Angela Bassett Did the Thing, and Ariana DeBose Deleted Her Twitter Account

It’s tricky to deliver a universally beloved performance, particularly at an awards show. Last year’s best-supporting-actress Oscar winner, Ariana DeBose, learned that the hard way after performing an original rap at the BAFTAs that went viral for all the wrong reasons. 

The Tony-nominated musical-theater star, who won Oscar gold for her performance as Anita in Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story, was asked to open this year’s BAFTA ceremony. In true theater-kid fashion, DeBose took on the challenge, concocting a musical performance that combined “Sisters Are Doin’ It for Themselves” and “We Are Family” with an original “Vogue”-inspired rap that toasted this year’s actress nominees.

So what went wrong? Clad in a pink jumpsuit, DeBose gave her all to the number—which she crafted herself. But by the time she began rapping about the all-female nominees for outstanding debut, she seemed to be somewhat out of breath. “Other ladies in the room, supporting and leading all here, I presume,” rapped DeBose before launching into the most viral portion of the number. 

She danced her way into the audience and called out the female acting nominees by name: “Angela Bassett did the thing. Viola Davis, my woman king!” sang DeBose. “Blanchett, Cate, you’re a genius. And Jamie Lee, you are all of us!” DeBose ended the number with an interpolation of “We Are Family”—and a request for the audience to get up on their feet, which went ignored.  

Reception to her performance in the room seemed to run the gamut. Some nominees—like Hong Chau, Dolly De Leon, and Ana de Armas—watched DeBose with something akin to confusion. Others, like Michelle Yeoh, Jamie Lee Curtis, and a snap-happy Viola Davis, seemed to genuinely enjoy it. The press response was also mixed, with British newspaper The Guardian calling DeBose’s opening number one of “the all-time great berserk musical performances” before breaking it down moment by moment, pointing out the highs (Dame Emma Thompson’s delighted reaction) and the lows (DeBose calling Electric Malady, a documentary about a horrifying medical condition, a “slay”). Online, social media accounts immediately began memeing the number for all it was worth. DeBose reportedly deactivated her Twitter account shortly after it began going viral.