The acclaimed songwriter Diane Warren revealed she lost one of her most prized possessions earlier this month in fires that ravaged parts of Los Angeles.
The 68-year-old award winner revealed days after the blaze had leveled her beachside home in Malibu, which she reportedly bought for $5.2 million, that her white Yamaha piano was among the things lost in the fire.
‘So weird that a week ago today this was my view. Looking out watching dolphins make their way across the ocean. Thinking about the songs thru the years I worked on here and some crazy memories,’ Warren wrote shortly after her home burned to the ground. ‘To all my friends and to everyone who lost their homes, sending U all love and strength.’
At the time, she had only shared photos before the devastation, but she finally revealed the extent of the devastation to her 105K Instagram followers over the weekend.
A video posted to her page showed that nothing had survived the rapidly moving fire, which began in LA’s Pacific Palisades neighborhood, aside from some beams, some twisted metal and a red fire hydrant that looked as if it had been untouched.
Missing from the devastation was Warren’s gorgeous white piano.
The legendary songwriter Diane Warren, 68, revealed she had lost her prized white Yamaha piano in the fire that engulfed her Malibu beach house
A video she posted over the weekend revealed nothing was left of the home, which she reportedly bought for $5.2 million
Just days after her home was destroyed, she posted an old photo of the brilliant white piano looking out of the Pacific Ocean
The hitmaker — who has written popular tunes for artists including Cher, Beyoncé, Celine Dion, Aerosmith, LeAnn Rimes and many others — didn’t appear to have returned to the site of her old home, but she instead shared a video that had been filmed by friend.
‘This is … Diane’s,’ he said somberly before adding the house’s street number as the sound of the wind and waves roared in the background.
‘Not much left,’ he added as he panned his camera to the left and then back to the right to survey the damage.
The man stood at street level, but beyond the edge was a lower level of the home reaching down to the beach that featured more scrap metal.
‘Devastated. Nothing left,’ he added in a low voice.
In her caption, Warren added, ‘Hadn’t seen it til now. Goodbye beautiful old friend.’
‘Love you Diane I’m so so sorry for your loss and I’m sending you love,’ the actress Rosanna Arquette wrote in the comments.
Linda Thompson also joined in with condolences, writing: ‘Sending you my love… I am always here for you… I’m so sorry… This was just the most devastating fire!’
Warren has written songs — including several hits — for stars including Cher, Beyoncé, Celine Dion, Aerosmith, LeAnn Rimes and many others
A video apparently shot for her by a friend showed nothing had survived except for some pillars, metal scraps and a red fire hydrant that looked untouched
Down below the street-level ledge was the lower level that opened onto the beach, which was also completely destroyed
In her caption, Warren added, ‘Hadn’t seen it til now. Goodbye beautiful old friend.’ Warren has been nominated for 15 competitive Oscars but has never won, though she was given an honorary Oscar
Shortly after the fire, Warren po
sted a photo of her former view looking out at a rock on the beach. She has been shortlisted for this year’s Oscar nominations. The final nominees will be announced on Thursday, January 23, at 5:30 p.m. PT/8:30 a.m. ET
Shortly after the blaze destroyed her home, she posted a photo of a large rock on the beach that she had previously taken.
‘This is the last pic I took of Leah’s rock from my beach house,’ she admitted, before noting that she owned the home for ‘almost 30 years.’
‘It looks like it was lost in the fire last nite. There’s a rainbow shining on it which I’m taking as a sign of hope for all creatures who have been affected by this tragedy,’ she added. ‘The animals and the rescue ranch are OK tho which is the most important thing. Stay safe everyone.’
Other celebrities who have lost homes in the fires include James Woods, Anna Faris, Cary Elwes, Paris Hilton, Anthony Hopkins, John Goodman, Eugene Levy, Miles Teller, Billy Crystal and Adam Brody and Leighton Meester.
Warren, whose career is chronicled in the new documentary Diane Warren: Relentless, is famous not just for being an acclaimed songwriter, but for also being a perennial Academy Award hopeful.
Although she has received an honorary Oscar, she has never won a competitive Academy Award despite having been nominated fifteen times.
Despite being snubbed by the Oscars, she has won a Grammy Award, an Emmy and two Golden Globe Awards, along with other honors
However, she may be in line for Oscar nomination number 16, as her song The Journey, which was performed by H.E.R. in the Netflix war drama The Six Triple Eight, was shortlisted along with 13 other songs for the 97th Academy Awards’ best original song category.
Academy Award nominations will be announced on Thursday, January 23, beginning at 5:30 a.m. PT/8:30 a.m. ET.
