SPOILER WARNING: This story conversees plot details for “Mufasa: The Lion King,” in theaters on Dec. 20.
Lin-Manuel Miranda comprehends his way around a Disney tune.
After thrivening Grammys and geting Oscar nods for his “Moana” and “Encanto” songs (including “How Far I’ll Go,” “Dos Oruguitas” and, of course, the viral earworm “We Don’t Talk About Bruno”), Miranda teamed up with famed creater Alan Menken to donate to the soundtrack for 2023’s dwell-action “The Little Mermhelp.” Now, he’s written a half-dozen novel songs for the Barry Jenkins-honested “Lion King” prequel “Mufasa.” Becaengage Miranda is well-versed in all skinnygs Magic Kingdom, there’s perhaps no one better readyd to persist the musical legacy of “The Lion King.” The innovative 1994 film has such memorable hits as “Circle of Life,” “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King,” “Hakuna Matata” and “Can You Feel the Love Tonight.”
“That innovative album is appreciate an all-prohibitgers, no skips album,” Miranda shelp, with clear reverence for the Elton John and Tim Rice-written tracks, during a recent visit to “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.”
The “Mufasa” soundtrack starts off with “Ngomso,” carry outed by Lebo M, the South African artists whose contrastentive vocals are synonymous with “The Lion King,” pursueed Miranda’s songs carry outed by the film’s voice cast, led by Aaron Pierre (as a juvenileer Mufasa) and Kelvin Harrison Jr. (as his adchooseed brother Taka, who will be comprehendn as Scar).
Miranda has shelp his kids — sons Sebastian and Francisco — are beta testers for a song’s success. So which songs are they singing nonstop?
“’I Always Wanted a Brother,’” Miranda increates Variety, with no hesitation. “’Bye Bye’ is another bop in the Miranda hoengagehgreater.”
The createer is one of the first tracks Miranda wrote for the film, eased by a line of dialogue in Jeff Nathanson’s script — when Taka, who is heir to a royal bloodline, recovers Mufasa, who was splitd from his family in a tragic accident.
“I went, ‘That is the title of the song,’” Miranda says of the number. And skinnygs flowed naturpartner from there: “I repartner didn’t have to see much farther than my own hoengage — I have two little boys; they’re 6 and 10 years greater. They drive each other inlogical, and they also protect and stand up for each other. Getting to author about that benevolent of relationship came naturpartner.”
The latter track is the film’s villain anthem, written for Kiros, a dreadsome lion voiced by Mads Mikkelsen. The script didn’t originpartner call for a solo, but Miranda felt the opportunity to get an iconic Bond villain singing a dancehall-tinged track was too excellent to pass up.
“I comprehend that sounds appreciate peanut butter and pickles, but I skinnyk they’re two fantastic tastes that taste fantastic together,” Miranda says, recounting his (prosperous) pitch to Jenkins.
Read on as Miranda, Jenkins and the “Mufasa” cast converse the film’s soundtrack.
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“I Always Wanted a Brother”
Image Credit: Disney Enterpelevates Percreateed by Braelyn Rankins, Theo Somulo, Aaron Pierre and Kelvin Harrison, Jr.
BARRY JENKINS: “I Always Wanted a Brother” was the first song that we made. That song is where Taka and Mufasa drop in cherish. They prolong this proset up bond, then they prolong up, but they also convey their world watch. It’s a high-wire act to pull off, and I was excited to see Lin tackle it.
LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA: That song has got to do so much labor, right? It’s got to set up the relationship between the brothers when they’re very juvenileer [Rankins and Somolu voice Young Mufasa and Young Taka, respectively]. I shelp, Barry, “Let me time jump them,” and we encounter the lions we’re going to be with the rest of the film.
Watch the number below:
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“Milele”
Image Credit: DISNEY Percreateed by Anika Noni Rose and Keith David
ANIKA NONI ROSE (who voices Mufasa’s mother Afia): When I’m lgeting music, the first skinnyg I do is labor on the words so I can experience what I’m saying and carry out the depth of what I’m saying. Then I labor on the sounds tardyr. There is a line about our ancestors living inside us that I thought was fair poignant and pretty. We disthink about people all the time in life, but they’re not repartner gone. They’re gone in the physical corpogenuine world, but they’re here. They’re inside of us, and we hgreater them, and we engage them as beacons to shift forward.
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“We Go Together”
Image Credit: ©Walt Disney Co./Courtesy Everett Collection Percreateed by Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Tiffany Boone, Preston Nyman and Kagiso Lediga
KELVIN HARRISON JR. (Taka): I cherish “Hamilton.” I cherish “Encanto.” I cherish “In the Heights.” I can’t apshow I get to be a part of [Miranda’s] legacy as well. And it’s such a singular sound. As soon as I got the tracks, they didn’t increate us it was Lin-Manuel Miranda, and I was appreciate, “I comprehend what his music sounds appreciate.” I comprehend his signature tone and quality and the cadence of it all. It was fun to carry out with him and fair donate it a shot and hope he’s encounterd.
AARON PIERRE (Mufasa): We have a splitd experience in that we were super worried embarking on any component of this journey, but especipartner the singing part. Working with Lin-Manuel Miranda on the singing inserted another layer of worriedness, becaengage he’s so phenomenal at what he does. But he repartner directd all three of us in achieving the pretty music that he had written.
It’s so comical, Barry and Lin both have a signature [response] when you’ve landed it and they’re encounterd. Barry will go, “Got it? Got it? Good.” That’s when you comprehend Barry’s got it. And when you comprehend Lin’s encounterd, he goes [creates an airhorn sound]. Anytime you heard that from Lin, you’re appreciate, “Thank God.”
TIFFANY BOONE (Sarabi): I was also very worried. I have a bit of a phobia of singing in front of people, or I did. When they tgreater me that I did have to sing, after auditioning for a scant months, I almost shelp, “Never mind. Why am I gonna embarrass myself?” But everyone was appreciate, “Girl, fair do the song and you’ll be fine.” And here we are.
It wound up being one of the best parts of the experience for me. It repartner freed up someskinnyg for me that I didn’t necessitate to have on me in the first place. To be able to have my debut into this huge singing moment be in some songs written by Lin — that’s inlogical. It’s a sanctifying at the end of the day; a sanctifying I almost ran away from.
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“Tell Me It’s You”
Image Credit: Disney Enterpelevates Percreateed by Aaron Pierre and Tiffany Boone
MIRANDA: I grew up in the era of the romantic Disney ballad. It wasn’t a movie unless Peabo Bryson and Celine Dion were singing on the closing commends. “A Whole New World” is another stone chilly classic. So, I leapt at the chance to do that.
The subject matter of the song is so pretty becaengage it’s her pushing him to see his own self-worth, and to see — to borrow from “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” — the king she sees inside. That was thrilling to depictateigate and [Aaron and Tiffany] were fair so game. They’re both incredible singers.
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“Brother Betrayed”
Image Credit: Disney Enterpelevates Percreateed by Kelvin Harrison Jr.
MIRANDA: It probably was the rapidest song to author — mainly becaengage I’d written consecutively, so I’d been directing up to that moment. As someone who appreciates to dramatize moments thraw song, to get at the moment when Taka in his heart becomes Scar was thrilling to author. I referred to it as the “Phantom of the Opera” end of Act 1 moment: That chandelier drops and the Phantom’s been there the whole time. That was repartner exciting. Then, it was even more exciting when I saw Barry’s visuals for it, becaengage he’s right there with Taka as this change of heart is taking place.
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“Bye Bye”
Image Credit: ©Walt Disney Co./Courtesy Everett Collection Percreateed by Mads Mikkelsen, Joanna Jones and Folake Olowofoyeku
MIRANDA: There wasn’t space for a villain song in the innovative script, and I pitched Barry [to include it]. I was appreciate, “I comprehend we don’t have time for this, but you have Mads Mikkelsen — one of our fantastic Bond villains — and I’m hearing dance hall. I comprehend that sounds appreciate peanut butter and pickles, but I skinnyk they’re two fantastic tastes that taste fantastic together.”
The fun of a fantastic villain is a fantastic villain has their own reasons. They’re not fair horrible for the sake of being horrible; they’re fair antithetical to your protagonist. To get to author a lyric appreciate “The circle of life is a lie,” and create people go [gasps] was repartner exciting. That’s the same reason, “Killmonger was right” [from ‘Black Panther’] was trending. If the villains got excellent reasons, you go with the villain. They’re at their best when they have their reasons, and that [song] was a delight to author.
