Watch Chappell Roan and Elton John duet at his Oscar after-party
Chappell Roan performed at Elton John’s annual Oscars after-party, where they duetted to each other’s songs.
From Celine Dion’s “Titanic” ballad soaked in sentimentality to “Hamilton”’s revolutionary marriage of rap with Broadway bravado, the 25 songs, albums and sounds chosen for 2025’s induction into the National Recording Registry cover a cultural expanse.
This year’s class also includes Elton John’s seventh album that launched him to superstardom (“Goodbye Yellow Brick Road”); Chicago’s groundbreaking jazz-infused rock debut “Chicago Transit Authority”; and Mary J. Blige’s 1994 soul-funk standout “My Life.”
Calling the new entries “the sounds of America,” Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden praised the National Recording Registry as “our evolving nation’s playlist.”
These songs span from 1913’s “Aloha ‘Oe” by the Hawaiian Quintette to 2015, when Lin-Manuel Miranda and the cast of “Hamilton” unleashed the groundbreaking soundtrack to the theatrical juggernaut, making it the newest recording to join the registry.
In addition to other contemporary music selections from Amy Winehouse (“Back to Black”), Steve Miller Band (“Fly Like an Eagle”) and Tracy Chapman (her self-titled debut), the offerings also include jazz (Miles Davis’ “Bitches Brew”), country (Roy Rogers and Dale Evans’ “Happy Trails”) and ranchera (Vicente Fernandez’s “El Rey”).
A couple of non-songs also made the cut: Microsoft’s reboot chime and the soundtrack to “Minecraft,” making it only the second video game soundtrack to join the registry after Super Mario Brothers in 2023.
John, who in 2024 was honored with the Library’s Gershwin Prize for Popular Song with songwriting partner Bernie Taupin, told the Library of 1973’s “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road”: “Nobody really knows what a hit record is. I’m not a formula writer. I didn’t think ‘Bennie and the Jets’ was a hit. I didn’t think ‘Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me’ was a hit. And that’s what makes writing so special. You do not know what you’re coming up with and how special it might become.”
How are songs chosen for the National Recording Registry?
The Librarian of Congress heeds advice from the National Recording Preservation Board to select the 25 sound recordings that are at least 10 years old and deemed “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.”
But that list is whittled from the 2,600 nominations made by the public this year for recordings to be considered.
“Chicago Transit Authority” finished first in the public nominations, with “Happy Trails,” “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” and “My Life” also landing in the Top 10.
With these new inclusions, the number of titles on the registry is 675, still a small portion of the national library’s recorded sound collection of nearly 4 million items.
The public can submit nominations for next year on the Library’s website through Oct. 1.
2025 National Recording Registry full list
Recordings are listed in chronological order:
- “Aloha ‘Oe” – Hawaiian Quintette (1913) (single)
- “Sweet Georgia Brown” – Brother Bones & His Shadows (1949) (single)
- “Happy Trails” – Roy Rogers and Dale Evans (1952) (single)
- Radio Broadcast of Game 7 of the 1960 World Series – Chuck Thompson (1960)
- Harry Urata Field Recordings (1960-1980)
- “Hello Dummy!” – Don Rickles (1968) (album)
- “Chicago Transit Authority” – Chicago (1969) (album)
- “Bitches Brew” – Miles Davis (1970) (album)
- “Kiss An Angel Good Mornin’” – Charley Pride (1971) (single)
- “I Am Woman” – Helen Reddy (1972) (single)
- “El Rey” – Vicente Fernandez (1973) (single)
- “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” – Elton John (1973) (album)
- “Before the Next Teardrop Falls” – Freddy Fender (1975) (single)
- “I’ve Got the Music in Me” – Thelma Houston & Pressure Cooker (1975) (album)
- “The Kӧln Concert” – Keith Jarrett (1975) (album)
- “Fly Like an Eagle” – Steve Miller Band (1976) (album)
- Nimrod Workman Collection (1973-1994)
- “Tracy Chapman” – Tracy Chapman (1988) (album)
- “My Life” – Mary J. Blige (1994) (album)
- Microsoft Windows Reboot Chime – Brian Eno (1995)
- “My Heart Will Go On” – Celine Dion (1997) (single)
- “Our American Journey” – Chanticleer (2002) (album)
- “Back to Black” – Amy Winehouse (2006) (album)
- “Minecraft: Volume Alpha” – Daniel Rosenfeld (2011) (album)
- “Hamilton” – Original Broadway Cast Album (2015) (album)
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