“Black Panther” bares it’s claws at the box office next weekend, but Marvel is eager to get audiences pumped in advance so the soundtrack is dropping today. Be forewarned, however, that while the album is curated and produced by Kendrick Lamar and Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith, and features SZA, Schoolboy Q, Vince Staples, Ab-Soul, The Weeknd and more, there’s only one song you’ll hear in the actual movie.
The Kendrick Lamar and SZA jam “All The Stars” makes the cut of the movie, while the rest of the jams are strictly for your earbuds only (or for blasting out of well equipped car stereos — “King’s Dead” is a particularly excellent banger). Nonetheless, it’s impressive that Marvel and Disney aligned their brand with an album that’s definitely not for kids. Even more, it’s interesting to hear that Lamar was so inspired and motivated by the movie, he decided to roll up his sleeves and get deeply involved.
Read More: ‘Black Panther’: The Crown Weighs Heavy On The King [Review]
“…we met, and we talked,” director Ryan Coogler told NPR about Lamar. “And to Marvel’s credit, they really supported the idea of getting some songs from him. At first, he was just going to do a few songs for the film, and then he came in and watched quite a bit of the movie, and the next thing I know, they were booking a studio and they were going at it.”
In fact, the always busy rapper had to carve out time in his already busy schedule to fit in work on the blockbuster superhero movie.
“[During] The DAMN. Tour, we probably came up with 50 percent of it — the production, the hooks and ideas,” said Top Dawg Entertainment producer Sounwave. “When we got back from the tour in September, that’s when we were able to execute our ideas and reach out to people we respect and whatnot … kind of just put the stamp on it. So, I want to say those two months was the most vital on that tour, in terms of creative process.”
It’s also cool to hear how elements of composer Ludwig Göransson‘s score (which is terrific) made their way onto the soundtrack album as well. Stream “Black Panther” below and see the movie when it opens next weekend.