Bell bottoms, peace signs, Brittany Howard, H.E.R., and Thundercat: they’re all a part of the new soundtrack for Minions: Rise of Gru. Out now along with the Despicable Me spin-off sequel, the 19-track double album features covers of Sly and The Family Stone, Kool & The Gang, Earth Wind & Fire, Santana, and more.
Produced by Jack Antonoff (Bleachers), the soundtrack kicks off with the original composition, “Turn Up The Sunshine“. The collaboration between Tame Impala and Diana Ross written by Antonoff, Kevin Parker, Sam Dew, and Patrik Berger sits at No. 21 on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart this week (dated July 2), marking Ross’ first spot on a Billboard chart since 2006 and her first time as a solo artist since 1999. In his only interview about the soundtrack, Antanoff called pairing the disco icon with the modern prince of psych a “big swing”, comparing it to Stevie Wonder and Ariana Grande collaborating on the Sing soundtrack.
“What can you do to cut through and grab people by the shoulders and get their attention and make them go, ‘Holy s–t?’” Antonoff told Billboard.
And that’s just what happened when the tracklist for Minions: Rise of Gru dropped back in May. Diana Ross wasn’t the only icon who stepped in to help the stars of today, as Brittany Howard’s cover of “Shining Star” features EWF’s own Verdine White.
“It wasn’t about wanting to get the 10 biggest streaming artists right now. There was none of that bulls–t that can exist around these things,” Antonoff said. Instead, the producer known for his work with Taylor Swift, Lana Del Rey, Olivia Rodrigo, and more had the idea “to take modern artists that are really in some way in the tradition of the great music of that time and then record them with this half modern technique, half super analog technique. Animation in kids’ movies is pretty trippy, so you can f–king get away with a lot.”
Other highlights of the soundtrack include Thundercat covering Steve Miller Band‘s “Fly Like An Eagle”, St. Vincent covering Lipps Inc‘s “Funkytown”, BROCKHAMPTON covering Kool & The Gang‘s “Hollywood Swinging”, H.E.R. covering Sly and The Family Stone‘s “Dance To The Music”, Gary Clark Jr. covering The Ides Of March‘s “Vehicle”, Tierra Whack covering Santana’s “Black Magic Woman”, RZA‘s “Kung Fu Suite”, and Antanoff’s band Bleachers covering John Lennon‘s “Instant Karma!”.
“I think there’s certain songs that live in the moment and then certain songs that kind of live forever,” Antonoff said. “I think the songs that I chose, regardless of this project, live forever. So this can just be another point in the long story of all the songs which are going to go way into the future of mankind.”
Stream the new Minions: Rise of Gru soundtrack via the player below or on your preferred platform. The double LP is also available on CD and vinyl.
The post Brittany Howard, Thundercat, H.E.R., More Cover ’60s/’70s Hits For ‘Minions: Rise Of Gru’ Soundtrack [Stream] appeared first on L4LM.
