Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (soundtrack)

Did You Know?

• The soundtrack debuted at number five on the US Billboard 200 with 52,000 album-equivalent units, including 14,000 in pure album sales.
• In the week ending January 17, 2019, the soundtrack moved up to its peak position at number two, mainly due to its lead single "Sunflower" hitting number one on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack for Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse dropped on December 14, 2018, via Republic Records, with tracks from artists like Vince Staples, Jaden Smith, Nicki Minaj, Lil Wayne, Ski Mask the Slump God, Ty Dolla Sign, Post Malone, Swae Lee, Anuel AA, Thutmose, Coi Leray, Shaboozey, the late Juice Wrld, and the late XXXTentacion. Singles "Sunflower" and "What's Up Danger" promoted it. A deluxe edition arrived on February 22, 2019, adding remixes of "Sunflower" and "Scared of the Dark." The music aimed to capture what a teen like Miles Morales would be listening to nationwide.

Development and release

Nicki Minaj wrote a song for the film, later revealed to be "Familia" with Anuel AA and Bantu. The soundtrack was put together to reflect what a teenager like Miles Morales would actually listen to. Post Malone first mentioned on The Tonight Show that he had written a track called "Sunflower," which Billboard called a "funky, dreamy ballad." Co-performed with Swae Lee, it dropped on October 18 and became a major success, spending 33 weeks in the Billboard Hot 100's Top 10—tying the then-record with Maroon 5 and Cardi B's "Girls Like You" and Ed Sheeran's "Shape of You"—and earned a Grammy nomination for Record of the Year.

A second single, "What's Up Danger" by Blackway and Black Caviar, came out on November 1, 2018. Blackway said being part of the project was probably the coolest thing that ever happened to him, while Black Caviar noted that their ten-year-old selves were freaking out when the chance came up. The soundtrack and score are mixed together in the film; for instance, during Miles's leap of faith, "What's Up Danger" slowly gives way to Pemberton's score. The music also plays within the story itself, like when Miles sings along to "Sunflower" early in the movie.

Score

Daniel Pemberton was announced as the composer for Into the Spider-Verse in July 2018. He described the experience as a pleasure, noting the impressive collaborators and groundbreaking directors, and said he felt fortunate to create a new musical universe for Spider-Man. Spring Aspers of Sony Pictures praised the score as a blend of influences that reflects Miles Morales’s Brooklyn setting and the film’s message that anyone can be a hero. The score came out on CD and digitally, with the digital version including extra tracks. Pemberton admitted he was initially doubtful that a big animated superhero film would allow for his experimental approach.

His music mixed a traditional orchestra with trap beats, scratching, and other hip-hop and turntable elements. A computer keyboard’s clacking appears in one scene, and the Kingpin’s motif is played by a click-pen. Turntable scratching is a notable feature. Pemberton explained that the idea of using DJ turntable sounds came from thinking about what music a teenager would listen to. As the film’s action intensifies, the score becomes more orchestral, but the hip-hop and scratching remain throughout.

To achieve what he called “scratching the orchestra,” the team recorded and mixed live players, transferred the audio to vinyl, and then carefully reinserted notes into the mix bar by bar with DJ Blakey. They used Serato DJ software to spin and scratch the uncompressed orchestral recording. The Prowler’s sound effect was created by processing elephant trumpeting through an audio filter. The score also includes many sound-effect-like layers that support the film’s sound design.

A Very Spidey Christmas

A throwaway joke in Into the Spider-Verse led to a real extended play album, A Very Spidey Christmas, which Sony Pictures Animation announced for release on December 21, 2018. Producer Phil Lord did not know Chris Pine could sing before the recording sessions. The EP contains five holiday songs performed by Pine, Shameik Moore, Jake Johnson, and Jorma Taccone. It includes Pine's "Spidey-Bells (A Hero's Lament)," a cover of "Jingle Bells" that plays during the film's end credits, and Johnson's cover of "Deck the Halls." Both tracks came out as singles on December 20, 2018.