Film and TV
Dolly Parton’s Dumplin’ Soundtrack Is Proof the Queen of Country Isn’t Giving Up Her Throne (Esquire)
With six revamped classics and six newly written ones, it’s Dolly’s songbook that serves as the titular character’s inspiration. But it doesn’t feel like a soundtrack per se. The Dumplin’ album feels like an ode to something bigger.
Five reasons the Creed II soundtrack packs a punch (NME)
Music has always been a huge part of the Rocky films. Just try and think of the first movie’s iconic training montage without humming the legendary theme ‘Gonna Fly Now’, or imagine Rocky III without ‘Eye of the Tiger’. And the latest instalment in the series is no different, as the soundtrack to Creed II packs an almighty punch. Boasting a star-studded line-up and curated by production extraordinaire Mike Will Made-It, it’s a totally knockout.
‘I didn’t have a clue what the show was about’ – The story behind the iconic Mission: Impossible theme tune (Independent)
Lalo Schifrin, the jazz genius behind some of Hollywood’s greatest music, finally gets an Oscar honour. Martin Chilton tells the strange tale of his most famous composition.
Handmaid’s Tale Music Supervisor Maggie Phillips on Secret Character Playlists, Gilead’s Contraband Vinyl & The Songs That Got Away (Billboard)
Phillips is the brain behind some of the most inspired, haunting Handmaid’s sequences — from Kate Bush’s “This Woman’s Work” in the season 2 premiere’s mock-hanging scene, to X-Ray Spex’s “Oh Bondage Up Yours” after the bombing in episode 6, to Annie Lennox’s “Walking on Broken Glass” as a frenetic counterpoint to Emily’s fear in the finale.
Top TV Song Last Week: Girl by Timecop1983 ft. SEAWAVES (Tunefind)
Taking top song this week is DC’s Legends of Tomorrow with a nostalgic dreamwave track that plays through the end montage of the episode. Special shoutout to our client North Star Media who represent the track for sync!
Sync Story : Alice Boman / Wanderlust (The GMS Team)
Emerging Swedish singer Alice Boman has helped bring BBC One’s relationship drama Wanderlust to life, with four tracks featuring across the series’ six episodes.
Film and TV Composer Spotlight: Rob Simonsen (Pop Disciple)
Evocative composer and founding member of The Echo Society speaks on returning to his jazz roots to tell the scandalous story of politician, Gary Hart for The Front Runner, his harmonious working dynamic with director/producer/writer, Jason Reitman, the greatest challenge of executing the score of Love, Simon, and the power of listening.
Listen to the new Mary Poppins Returns soundtrack featuring Emily Blunt and Meryl Streep (Classic FM)
The sequel to Mary Poppins offers an all-original new soundtrack, featuring the vocals of Emily Blunt – and the composing talents of Marc Shaiman.
Supervisor Spotlight: Toby Williams (The GMS Team)
This month we feature an exclusive interview with Toby Williams, Music Supervisor at Leland Music, who shares insights into his career to date and what inspired him to pursue a career in supervision.
Sia and Scott Walker’s Soundtrack to Natalie Portman Film Vox Lux Announced (Pitchfork)
Columbia Records and Three Six Zero Recordings have announced the release date for the soundtrack to Vox Lux, the new movie starring Natalie Portman as a pop singer named Celeste. The soundtrack – featuring Scott Walker’s original score and original songs written by Sia – is out December 14.
How a small Philadelphia record company gave an Oscar contender its sound (The Inquirer)
Philadelphia music label proprietor Frank Lipsius has been waiting decades for a high-profile, musically focused picture like Green Book to dig out some of the lost relics buried in the vaults of his family biz, Jamie Record Co.
Film Music Contenders Span Many Genres and Styles (Variety)
There’s a new wrinkle for Academy members voting in the music categories this year. For the first time in nearly 40 years, music-branch members are returning to the “shortlist” procedure, choosing 15 scores and songs that will ultimately be whittled down to a final five in each category.
Exclusive: Listen to two wild tracks from the Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle soundtrack (EW)
World-renowned composer Nitin Sawhney has left his mark all over pop culture, from collaborations with Shakira and Paul McCartney to scores for TV and films like Mira Nair’s The Namesake and the BBC’s Human Planet. Now the Englishman has wandered into the animal kingdom with Andy Serkis for the director/actor’s movie Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle.
The Rugrats Movie soundtrack, featuring Beck, Iggy Pop & Devo, to receive first-ever vinyl release (CoS)
The soundtrack was produced by Devo’s Mark Mothersbaugh, who also wrote the series’ infectious theme song.
One of the year’s most overlooked movies just dropped one of the year’s best soundtracks (Polygon)
As hinted at in the trailers, actress Cynthia Erivo is Bad Times at the El Royale’s secret weapon. Up to this point, Erivo has been best known for her Tony Award-winning performance in the Broadway version of The Color Purple, and her voice is put to full use in Bad Times at the El Royale.
System of a Down’s Serj Tankian Pens Score for Disaster Film Spitak (Rolling Stone)
System of a Down frontman Serj Tankian, who has been writing film scores for some years now, has composed the music for the disaster film Spitak. Ahead of its U.S. premiere in Glendale, California on December 7th, Tankian is releasing its soundtrack album via his Serjical Strike Records imprint in the U.S. on Friday.
Gaming
Why The NBA 2K Soundtrack Is As Seminal To The Video Game As Basketball Itself (Complex)
Hip-hop and basketball are synonymous. While the concept isn’t new, the NBA 2K franchise has offered it a deeper level of significance. The 2K soundtrack, once a collection of generic beats and alt-rock music, has transformed into a must-hear playlist that contains the year’s most fire tracks and provides an unexpected platform for lesser known artists.
Alesso, 3LAU & Tycho Lead Ninja’s ‘Ninjawerks Vol. 1’ Compilation: Listen to the 3 Singles (Billboard)
On Friday (Nov. 30), we get the first taste of Ninja’s forthcoming Ninjawerks Volume 1 electronic music compilation. It’s his ultimate gaming soundtrack, curated with love to keep you in the zone for hours on end.
16 Video Game Soundtracks That Defined The Sound Of The Sony Playstation (Electronic Beats)
Back in the ’90s, Sony’s PlayStation video game console helped to usher in a new era for sound in gaming.
Advertising
Meet the incredible 11-year-old composer behind this Christmas advert (Classic FM)
A moving new Christmas advert has been released by Very.co.uk, featuring the talents of a gifted young singer and pianist. Reeah, the 11-year-old girl who stars in Very’s new Christmas advert, sings, plays the cello, and plays the piano – despite being born partially sighted.
Making Music Work: Fiat Chrysler Tweaks Winning Formula For ‘The Big Finish’ (Forbes)
The riffs involved in FCA’s suite of ads include Gwen Stefani’s first-ever rendition of a new Christmas song for Ram, and a reworking of “White Christmas” by OneRepublic for Jeep.
BBH’s RESONANCE Exhibition Explores Advertising’s Relationship with Music (LBB Online)
BBH’s creative brand and heritage is intrinsically linked to its innovative use and its love of music. From Levi’s ‘Flat Eric’, to Lynx ‘Pulse’, to Audi ‘Clowns’, music is the red thread that has enabled BBH to creatively express the emotional truth of the brands we work with.
Business
Rostrum’s Sync Manager Emoni Matthews Talks Launching the Drip Library, the Go-To Source For Hip Hop Production Music (Synchblog)
We sit down with our client Rostrum Records’ Sync Manager Emoni Matthews to discuss the process of building and launching the Drip Library, the go-to source for hip hop production music.
Warner Chappell poaches Sony exec Mary Nuñez for key latin sync role (MBW)
Warner/Chappell Music has appointed Mary Nuñez to the newly created role of Vice President, Sync – Latin. Nuñez joins from Sony Music, where she spent more than a decade leading music licensing and creative services for the Latin Iberia region.
BMG Production Music Scores Nine Wins at the Production Music Awards (LBB Online)
BMG Production Music (BMGPM) triumphed at the Production Music Awards (PMAs) held at London’s 8 Northumberland Avenue on November 23rd, with a record nine wins in its first year of entering.
‘I felt honoured when he chose us’: UMPG signs Oscar-nominated composer George Fenton (Music Week)
The composer has scored hundreds of soundtracks and been nominated for five Academy Awards. His extensive works include Gandhi, Groundhog Day, Cry Freedom, The Madness of King George, Shadowlands and Dangerous Liaisons. His upcoming film score projects include Liam Neeson thriller Cold Light.
Leo Justi’s Heavy Baile Is a Brazilian Dance Movement – and International Sync Success (Billboard)
“We’ve licensed about 20 different songs from him,” reports Waxploitation’s Jeff Antebi, noting that Justi has grossed some $300,000 from sync licensing this year. Antebi, who calls Justi “a creative force,” says the interest from music supervisors and directors has come from “his innate instinct to make music that pulls you out of your distraction.
Matt Sheeran signs global publishing deal with BMG and BMG Production Music (MBW)
Matt Sheeran has signed an exclusive global publishing deal with BMG and BMG Production Music. The classically-trained composer and songwriter is older brother to pop superstar Ed Sheeran. His work has appeared in chart hits, film scores and advertisements.
AIMP: Nashville Pubcast – Sync & Licensing (AIMP)
Senior Director of Sync & Licensing of Ole’ Publishing, Randall Foster shares his knowledge of all things music in film. Most importantly though, what does the world of sync and licensing look like for publishers and how can publishers maneuver through this different avenue of music publishing.
Tips and Tricks
Top tips for succeeding as a media composer (M Magazine)
Tune Up is a must-attend event for media composers, which shares industry insights and tips for success from some of the leading lights in the game. This year’s edition, which took place at the British Film Institute in London last week, featured composers Poppy Ackroyd, Philip Sheppard, Mary Scully and Alex Baranowski.
Events
Key Worldwide Music Industry & Sync Events List 2019 (Synchblog)
Our list of key music industry events in 2019 has landed! Don’t forget to bookmark this page – we’ll keep updating it as more dates get announced.
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