Can Diane Warren retire her 'Susan Lucci of the Oscars' crown? 'It's one of my best songs'

With 13 Academy Award nominations and no wins, legendary songwriter Diane Warren says in a way she’s “happy to be the Susan Lucci of the Oscars.”

For Warren, a master of the cinematic power ballad, it’s about longevity – writing for films since the 1980s, doing "my best work" now at 65 and having “Somehow You Do” up for best original song at Sunday's Oscar ceremony. Honestly, Warren prefers this path to, say, winning 20 years ago and never getting nominated again.

That said, she hopes her losing streak doesn’t mirror soap-opera icon Lucci’s long wait for an Emmy. “It took her 19 times to win. That gives me six more times before it happens,” Warren quips.

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For the most-nominated woman in Oscar history without a win, this year’s nod is particularly sweet because it was unexpected. “Somehow You Do,” from the Glenn Close and Mila Kunis addiction drama “Four Good Days,” faces competition from Billie Eilish, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Van Morrison and Beyoncé on Oscar night and was shortlisted with Jay-Z, Jennifer Hudson and U2. “I was like the little engine that could,” Warren says. “When they announced the nominations, I like had five heart attacks because my song was the very last song.”

Starting with "Rhythm of the Night" in 1985 for "The Last Dragon," Warren has been writing songs commissioned by producers for a multitude of films as well as "casting" singers for those tunes. "They have to be authentic to the movie. That's almost like another character," says Warren, whose first two Oscar-nominated songs – "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now" for "Mannequin" (1987) and "Because You Loved Me" for "Up Close & Personal" (1996) – were No. 1 hits. The latter garnered Warren her first, and so far only, Grammy Award.

Warren takes USA TODAY through highlights from her Academy Award songbook, from the stories behind the music to which songs had the best chance of victory:

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‘How Do I Live’ (‘Con Air,’ 1998)

LeAnn Rimes and Trisha Yearwood both did versions, though nothing was going to stop an unsinkable mega-hit from “Titanic.” “There was no chance,” Warren says of going up against “My Heart Will Go On.” “Everybody that was nominated that year was like, ‘OK, let's just go have fun.’ ”

‘I Don't Want to Miss a Thing’ (‘Armageddon,’ 1999)

While “The Prince of Egypt” track “When You Believe” won the Oscar, Warren’s tune was a pop-culture heavyweight and remains the only No. 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 in Aerosmith’s storied career. “That song has become a classic,” she says. Aerosmith "never did other people's songs. They did a Beatles song once and that doesn't count because it's a Beatles song. I was really the first songwriter song they ever did.”

‘Music of My Heart’ (‘Music of the Heart,’ 2000)

It was Warren’s idea to team ’N Sync with Gloria Estefan, who starred in the drama about teachers with Meryl Streep. Phil Collins’ “You’ll Be in My Heart” (from “Tarzan”) won but “Music” meant a lot to Warren, who was inspired to write the song by “a camp counselor when I was young who had an impact on my life,” she says. “I remember the night I played it for her, and that was a really cool moment.”

‘There You’ll Be’ (‘Pearl Harbor,’ 2002)

It was a rough road to Oscar night, even before losing to “If I Didn’t Have You” (from “Monsters, Inc.”). “Pearl Harbor” producer Jerry Bruckheimer “just kept making me rewrite it like 20 times,” she recalls. “A lot of jumping through hoops on that one but that worked out. He said, ‘Do not send that to an artist till I approve it.’ And meanwhile, I'd sent it to Faith Hill. She was ready to record it. I usually don't listen when people tell me what to do. And everybody usually benefits when I do that.”

‘Til It Happens to You’ (‘The Hunting Ground,’ 2016)

Until Sam Smith’s James Bond song “Writing’s on the Wall” (from “Spectre”) won, Warren was confident Oscar glory would finally be hers – especially after Lady Gaga’s “spectacular” performance with sexual assault survivors. “It went to a commercial break and everybody did kind of think that was going to win. ‘And the winner is … not that song.’ I've got to say, I was bummed at that one.”

‘Stand Up for Something’ (‘Marshall,’ 2018)

Andra Day and Common’s Oscar night performance of the number – which lost to “Remember Me” (from “Coco”) – was another “pretty phenomenal” memory for Warren, she says. Day and Common were joined by a stage full of “amazing people” including Black Lives Matter and #MeToo activists. “That was a really awesome performance and that's one of my favorite songs as well.”

‘I’ll Fight’ (‘RBG,’ 2019)

Warren figured correctly that Gaga’s ‘A Star Is Born” hit “Shallow” was going to win the night. But "I'll Fight" was an example of Warren “casting” the perfect artist for a movie song – in this case, Jennifer Hudson. “With Ruth Bader Ginsburg, I wanted her avatar to be this big-voice diva because she's so small in stature and very soft-spoken. But her words are loud. Her words have changed people's lives, they've changed laws,” Warren says. “If Ruth Bader Ginsburg could sing, she'd be Jennifer Hudson.”

‘I’m Standing With You’ (‘Breakthrough,’ 2020)

Elton John’s “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again” (from “Rocketman”) was victorious against Warren’s tune. She says she originally wanted to go for another artist (“Kelly Clarkson or somebody like that”) because she didn’t know if “Breakthrough” star Chrissy Metz could sing. “I had her come in with my producer and I left because I didn't want any negative vibes in the studio: ‘I don't really want you, but let me hang out with you while you sing.’ So I came back and heard what she did and she sounded amazing.”

‘Somehow You Do’ (‘Four Good Days,’ 2022)

The singer performing a movie song is “almost like another character,” says Warren, and RebaMcEntire “just embodies resilience and strength” in a tune about surviving. And going up against heavy hitters at this year’s Oscars, “it's one of my best songs I think. I love what it says. I love the message of it. I love the melodies in it. It seems to resonate with people and that makes a song special.”

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Diane Warren, 'Susan Lucci of the Oscars,' hopes No. 13 is charm