Chrissy Metz Sings 'I'm Standing with You' and Honors Mom After Stroke in Oscars Performance

"It's such an emotional song, so I'm very excited," Chrissy Metz said before the performance

Chrissy Metz took the stage at the Sunday’s 92nd annual Academy Awards, to sing an emotional performance of “I’m Standing With You” — her Oscar-nominated balled from the drama Breakthrough.

The This Is Us star, 39, looked elegant at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California during the touching performance of the song, which was written by Diane Warren. The actress radiated in a shimmering navy gown as she sang the powerful ballad with a full chorus echoing background vocals behind her.

At the end of the song, Metz took the opportunity to honor her mother, Denise, who was rushed to the hospital after suffering a “massive stroke” last year.

“I love you, mom,” the singer said, getting choked up.

“The doctor said her prognosis was grim,” Metz recalled to Christian publication Guideposts in March. “The stroke was on the left side of the brain. He said he was certain she would have paralysis on her right side and that her speech and swallowing would be severely compromised. ‘You don’t know my mom,’ I said.”

Ahead of her Oscars performance, Metz previously told PEOPLE, “Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d be singIng a Diane Warren song at the Oscars. This is so epic!“

Ironically enough, while speaking to E! News on the red carpet ahead of the Oscars, Warren revealed that the This Is Us actress wasn’t her first choice to sing “I’m Standing With You” — until she heard her voice.

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“I was blown away. I didn’t want her originally for the song, I wanted a more established artist, I didn’t realize she could sing,” Warren told E! “She went in my studio, I said, ‘Alright, I’ll come back in a few hours.’ And when I heard her on the song, [I was just] blown away. Just totally blown away. She was amazing.”

Prior to the awards show, Metz revealed to E! News that she’s wasn’t nervous about singing the tune.

“I’m really, actually, very excited. I think everyone else is more nervous for me than I am,” she said. “I know that I’m there to do a job. And like, I’m going to be present, I’m going to be prepared, and I’m just going to have a good time.”

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She went on to explain that she’s “so honored” to be singing on the Oscars.

“It’s such an emotional song, so I’m very excited,” Metz said, adding that she just wants to “enjoy it” and won’t be fazed by famous faces like Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio and Quentin Tarantino watching from the audiences.

“I think we get in our own heads about everything,” Metz said. “So, I’m gonna be like, ‘Brad! Leo! Quentin!’ Like, it’s all good.”

Metz starred in Breakthrough as Joyce Smith, a real-life Missouri mom whose 14-year-old son fell through a frozen lake back in 2015, and turned to her Christian faith to help him pull through.

Smith’s inspiring and incredibly story instantly moved Metz.

“Believing in miracles myself, I could just relate,” the actress told PEOPLE back in April. “I’ve always been sort of a positive Polly and that’s how I’ve gotten through so many of the things that I’ve been through in my life. Just changing my perspective and staying positive and knowing things are happening for me and not to me. It’s not easy but you have to do it.”

“We all want something to believe in, that we’re stronger together than apart,” Metz added. “It’s so interesting how your tragedies become your triumphs. That’s what’s sort of astounding about this story, the way that it’s affecting people’s lives no matter what you believe in. We all are looking for our purpose and our path in life.”

Breakthrough. Twentieth Century Fox

Meanwhile, Metz isn’t the only star performing on the Oscars.

Fellow nominees Elton John, Cynthia Erivo, Randy Newman and Idina Menzel are all among the others singing their nominated songs.

John, 72, will be on hand to sing “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again” from his biopic Rocketman, a new song he wrote the music for with longtime collaborator and writer Bernie Taupin. Erivo, who is the only person of color nominated in the acting categories for Harriet, will perform “Stand Up” from the Harriet Tubman biopic.

Menzel made her return to the Oscars stage with “Into the Unknown” from Frozen 2, the follow up anthem to the smash hit “Let It Go” from the original 2013 movie. She’ll be joined by 9 different singers who sang the song internationally.

And rounding out the performances is Newman, the singer-songwriter behind Toy Story 4‘s “I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away.”Last year, “Shallow” — the Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper duet from A Star Is Born won the Best Original Song prize.

The 92nd Annual Academy Awards are airing live on ABC from the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood on Feb. 9.