Academy Awards: 5 Oscar-Nominated Songs That Should Have Won But Didn’t

Should Have Won: “Travelin’ Thru” from Transamerica, 2005

We’ll put this right out there in the open: we’re a sucker for anything Dolly. That’s reason enough for us to think she should have won this award, hands-down and without question. But this song isn’t just anything by Ms. Parton; there is a depth to this number that is far-reaching and even groundbreaking. She wrote the music and the lyrics, and she even sings the song for the film’s transgender character who is just trying to find her place in a world that won’t accept her. It of course does so much more because it can apply to anybody who has ever had to struggle to find out who they truly are. Searching for one’s identity while going through life’s ups and downs is a universal theme, and Dolly covers the territory beautifully. It packs an extra wallop if you’re really tuning in to the lyrics. Not that same kind of wallop a pimp packs. But we digress.

Winner: “It’s Hard Out Here For A Pimp” from Hustle & Flow