"City of Stars" is a song performed by Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone in the Damien Chazelle directed film La La Land (2016). The music of the song was composed by Justin Hurwitz while the lyrics were provided by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. The song won numerous awards, including the award for Best Original Song at both the 74th Golden Globe Awards and 89th Academy Awards.
Another version of the song was also released as a 'Hollywood remix' but was not used in the original film. "City of Stars" was released as a single in Italy on March 3, 2017.
Context In the film, the song is first sung by Gosling alone as the character of Sebastian as he sings and dances on the Hermosa Beach Pier. Later in the film, it is reprised by Sebastian and Mia (Stone) during a montage of him getting ready to tour with Keith's (John Legend) band, as well as Mia quitting her job at a coffee shop and renting out a theater for her one-woman play.
Inspiration Justin Hurwitz, the composer of the song, discussed the writing of the song:
Music video The music video was uploaded to Lionsgate Movies's YouTube channel on December 7th, 2016, and has gained more than 33 million views as of December 2025.
Accolades
+ Accolades for "City of Stars" Awards Award Date of ceremony Category Result Ref. Hollywood Music in Media Awards November 17, 2016 Best Song – Feature Film Critics' Choice Awards December 11, 2016 Best Song St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association December 18, 2016 Best Song Houston Film Critics Society January 6, 2017 Best Original Song Golden Globe Awards January 8, 2017 Best Original Song Satellite Awards February 19, 2017 Best Original Song Academy Awards February 26, 2017 Best Original Song Grammy Award January 28, 2018 Best Song Written for Visual Media
Charts Weekly charts +Weekly chart performance for "City of Stars" Chart (2017) Peakposition Greece Digital Songs (Billboard) 3 Hong Kong (Metro Radio) 1 Italy (FIMI) 51Japan Hot Overseas (Billboard) 2Japan Radio Songs (Billboard) 1South Korea International Chart (Gaon) 2US Digital Song Sales (Billboard) 45US Jazz Digital Songs (Billboard) Solo version 1
Year-end charts +Year-end chart performance for "City of Stars" Chart (2017) Position Hungary (Single Top 40) 72
Certifications
See also La La Land (soundtrack) "Another Day of Sun" "Audition (The Fools Who Dream)"
References