The Oscar Narrative: Final Nomination Predictions - Original Score, Original Song, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing

Best Original Score
Terence Blanchard "BlacKkKlansman"
Justin Hurwitz "First Man"
Nicholas Britell "If Beale Street Could Talk"
Alexandre Desplat "Isle of Dogs"
Marc Shaiman "Mary Poppins Returns"

Other Contenders - Marco Beltrami "A Quiet Place", Ludwig Goransson "Black Panther", Carter Burwell "The Ballad of Buster Scruggs", Nicholas Britell "Vice", James Newton Howard "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald"

Commentary - First Man won the Globe, but somehow missed out at BAFTA, but I think Oscar voters in the music branch will recognize the brilliance of Hurwitz's work. Britell, Desplat, and Shaiman did get BAFTA nods and Globe nods. All three are popular previous nominees, with flashy and beautiful scores that usually catch attention in this race. Finally, I think that Terence Blanchard, who got the BAFTA nod will get in for BlacKkKlansman, a really popular film with voters and a beautiful score from a legend who has been scoring Spike Lee joints for decades, and has never gotten an Oscar nod. I hope this time around, he finally makes the cut. I would watch out for A Quiet Place and Black Panther, both of whom have gotten attention for their scores this season, and you cannot count out another Britell nod for Vice, Howard or Burwell.

Best Original Song
Black Panther - All the Stars
Mary Poppins Returns - The Place Where Things Go
Mary Poppins Returns - Trip a Little Light Fantastic
RBG - I'll Fight
A Star is Born - Shallow

Other Contenders - Dumplin' - Girl in the Movies, Boy Erased - Revelation, Quincy - Keep Reachin'

Commentary - This race has a lot of heavy hitters. We know Shallow is getting in, and most likely winning. Mary Poppins will probably follow other recent musicals, who almost always get nominations here. I think both of its songs get in. Diane Warren is a legend, so expect her song from RBG to make it. Finally, Kendrick Lamar will probably end up being an Oscar nominee, to add to his many accolades. Watch out for Dumplin, Boy Erased and Quincy, because names like Dolly Parton, Troye Sivan, and Quincy Jones could inspire voters to support them.

Best Sound Mixing
Black Panther
Bohemian Rhapsody
First Man
A Quiet Place
A Star is Born

Other Contenders - Mission: Impossible - Fallout, Mary Poppins Returns, Avengers: Infinity War, Roma, Vice, BlacKkKlansman, Widows, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Incredibles 2

Best Sound Editing
Black Panther
First Man
A Quiet Place
Roma
A Star is Born

Other Contenders - Mission: Impossible - Fallout, Mary Poppins Returns, Avengers: Infinity War, Bohemian Rhapsody, Vice, BlacKkKlansman, Widows, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Incredibles 2