It’s Oscars season! I’m sure everyone is anxious to see who wins Best Picture. It’s got us here at Lightning100 pondering who will win the best original song category. In the spirit of songs for films, we’ve decided to pick our favorite songs written for films!
Chloe’s Pick: “Sugarhigh” by Coyote Shivers
My pick comes from the 1995 cult classic, Empire Records. The movie follows a group of record store employees scraping together money to save their beloved record store all over the course of one day. It features Liv Tyler, Renee Zelleweger, and Coyote Shives as a few members of the main cast. They come up with the idea of hosting a live concert at the record store. The group charges an entry fee and sells miscellaneous merchandise and eventually raises enough money to save the store! At this concert, Zelleweger’s character overcomes her stage fright by singing “Sugarhigh” with Coyote Shiver’s character. My qualm with this song is that the only version available for streaming doesn’t include Renee’s singing parts! However, you can access the song’s scene from the film on YouTube!
I recommend watching the whole movie! But if you’ve only got time for one song you can access it using the link below!
Abby’s Pick: “What Was I Made For?” by Billie Eilish
Released in 2023, the Barbie movie became a sensation that lasted months, and possibly the whole year. Featured in the movie is “What Was I Made For?”, a song by pop singer Billie Eilish. The song went on to win multiple awards, including Song of the Year and Best Song Written for Visual Media at the Grammys, as well as Best Original Song at the Oscars. “What Was I Made For?” is a slow piano ballad that talks about the difficulties of growing up and not really knowing what the world is about. The song really revolves around the themes of the Barbie movie, while also connecting to young girls who are trying to figure out who they are in the big world. This song not only had a big impact on me, but also on many other girls in the world.
Give “What Was I Made For?” by Billie Eilish a listen by clicking the link below!
Alex’s Pick: “Out of Time” by The Rolling Stones
My pick is from Tarantino’s penultimate film, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. If you’re not familiar with it, the setting is the Hollywood Hills in 1969. The protagonist is a washed-up movie western star, whose era is coming to a close. Without spoiling too much of the movie, “Out of Time” plays as the star returns home to California at the end of what is probably the end of his last big contract. The lyrics of “Out of Time” perfectly reflect the story and feel as if they were written for the movie. While Tarantino was scoring the film, many current artists reached out hoping to land a song placement on the movie. Tarantino turned all of them down, insisting that every track in the movie be recorded before 1970; a fact that gives this 1960s music fan great satisfaction.
Tarantino describes the movie as a “love letter to Hollywood” and I recommend watching it. Listen to “Out of Time” at the link below!
Sally’s Pick: “Mystery of Love” by Sufjan Stevens: Sufjan Stevens
For my pick this week, I chose “Mystery of Love” by Sufjan Stevens. This song was originally released as a part of the Call Me By Your Name soundtrack. “Mystery Of Love” was written during the making of Sufjan Stevens’ previous album, Carrie and Lowell, but was not released until later. Stevens actually contributed two original songs to the Call Me Your Name soundtrack, as well as a remixed version of Sufjan’s song “Futile Devices” by pianist Doveman. According to Deadline, Luca Guadanino, director of Call Me By Your Name, originally asked Sufjan Stevens to play a narration role in the film. But, Stevens declined. Despite this, the soundtrack still acts as a kind of narration in itself. Its use of piano helps ground the film in Elio’s emotional perspective, as a nod to his musical affinity for piano. The instrumentation of “Mystery of Love” features light finger picking and chiming melodies which call to mind the visuals of nature present within the film; running rivers and babbling brooks. This soundtrack was my personal introduction into Sufjan Steven’s catalogue, and it was the perfect jumping off point.
Give “Mystery of Love” a listen at the link below. And make sure to check out the rest of the Call Me By Your Name soundtrack too!
We wish you luck in your Oscar predictions!
The Interns
