SZA, The Weeknd, and Travis Scott are only a few of the hip-hop superstars included in the Black Panther movie soundtrack coproduced by Kendrick Lamar.
Days after the anticipated superhero flick held its premiere in California, Lamar revealed the complete tracklist of Black Panther: The Album.
Hip-Hop Gem
The Grammy-nominated rapper pulled some of the hottest hip-hop artists right now to work on the original movie soundtrack. The album, which is created in collaboration with Top Dawg Entertainment CEO Anthony "Top Dawg" Tiffith, will available for purchase and streaming starting Feb. 9.
Last month, Marvel Entertainment released the first two tracks from the upcoming album: "All The Stars" and "King's Dead."
Black Panther: The Album will also feature a few artists hailing from other genres that are not hip-hop. Jorja Smith, an R&B sensation, is also listed on the album. She performed a song called "I Am."
Grammy-nominated pop newcomer Khalid also provided a song dedicated to the heroes of Wakanda. The single "The Ways" features rapper Swae Lee.
Meanwhile, Lamar appears on five tracks from the album, including Chadwick Boseman's superhero song "Black Panther."
Here are all 14 songs included in Black Panther: The Album:
1. "Black Panther" by Kendrick Lamar
2. "All The Stars" by Kendrick Lamar and SZA
3. "X" by ScHoolBoy Q, 2 Chainz, and Saudi
4. "The Ways" by Khalid and Swae Lee
5. "Opps" by Vince Staples and Young Blakrok
6. "I Am" by Jorja Smith
7. "Paramedic!" by SOB x RBE
8. "Bloody Waters" by Ab-Soul, Anderson .Paak, and James Blake
9. "King's Dead" by Jay Rock, Kendrick Lamar, Future, and James Blake
10. "Redemption Interlude"
11. "Redemption" by Zicari and Babes Wodumo
12. "Seasons" by Mozzy, Sjava, and Reason
13. "Big Shot" by Kendrick Lamar and Travis Scott
14. "Pray For Me" by The Weeknd and Kendrick Lamar.
Lamar's Genius
In an interview from last year, Boseman and director Ryan Coogler explained that the song "DNA" convinced them that K-Dot is the perfect artist to helm the upcoming movie's soundtrack.
"As soon as I heard it on his album for the first time I said, 'They should use that song,'" the actor said. "I just thought it would fit. I didn't know if they'd do it or not, but I thought it was perfect."
"The lyrics are amazing — a lot of Kendrick's are," Coogler agreed. "It's actually oddly literal for our trailer's purposes — and I think a lot of the cultural things we're dealing with in Wakanda are in the zeitgeist in the African American community."
Black Panther, which is slated to come out on Feb. 14, is already projected to be one of Marvel Entertainment's most successful big-screen offerings yet. After the movie set a new record for advance ticket sales, tracking services predict a $150 million gross during its opening weekend.
If accurate, the movie, which is hailed as the "blackest" production from Marvel, will be the third biggest solo debut behind Spider-Man: Homecoming and Thor: Ragnarok.
