Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic
Interview with Will Jennings from 1998, the story of the Titanic and My Heart Will Go On.
Will Jennings, an Oscar winner for “My Heart Will Go On” and “Up Where We Belong” and one of the best-known lyricists in the contemporary songwriting community, has died, his longtime publicist confirmed to Variety. No cause of death was released, though he had been ill for some time; he was 80.
Although the themes he co-wrote for "Titanic" (recorded by Celine Dion) and "An Officer and a Gentleman" (sung by Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes) earned him his two Academy Awards, Jennings also became known for a third film song, "Tears in Heaven" (performed by Eric Clapton), from the film "Rush," which won him a Golden Globe for Best Original Song and Grammys for Record of the Year and Song of the Year. He also won three Grammy Awards.
Jennings also had major hits with songs by Whitney Houston, Steve Winwood, Dionne Warwick, Barry Manilow and Tim McGraw, among others.
