Jeymes Samuel has launched the primary single from the soundtrack of his upcoming function movie, The E book of Clarence. The observe, “Hallelujah Heaven,” was written and produced by Samuel and options verses from three of a number of distinguished artists who seem on the album: Lil Wayne, Buju Banton and Shabba Ranks.
“I didn’t know Wayne,” Samuel tells The Hollywood Reporter of working with the rapper. “I simply despatched Weezy the observe and he mentioned, ‘I’m doing it.’”
The E book of Clarence, set in 29 A.D. Jerusalem, stars LaKeith Stanfield within the lead function of Clarence, a trickster who, out of desperation to show that he’s not a no one to everybody round him, claims to be a brand new messiah. The biblical epic, which additionally counts Omar Sy, Caleb McLaughlin, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Anna Diop amongst its forged, explores themes of race and faith via each the storyline and musical rating composed by Samuel who made his function movie debut with 2021’s neo-Western The Tougher They Fall.
“”Hallelujah Heaven” seems within the movie after we first see Jesus, the majestic Messiah, so I wished three majestic human beings to function on that observe. I approached Lil Wayne, I approached Buju Banton, and I approached Shabba Ranks and so they all resonated with the music and did it,” explains Samuel who recorded the music by himself a number of years prior.
“I carry out each single music on this soundtrack, in contrast to The Hardly Fall. I simply wrote and produced all of these songs,” provides the British singer-songwriter and filmmaker. “This film was simply too singular. All the pieces lived inside my head. After I take a backseat from performing, whether or not that be performing or singing, it’s as a result of I do know that there’s different folks that may do it, however this soundtrack was too near me.”
Nonetheless, Samuel invited a number of particular collaborators to the challenge. Further options on the forthcoming album embody Child Cudi and Jay-Z, who’s additionally a producer on the comedy-drama written, directed, and produced by Samuel.
“I couldn’t watch for every of them to ship again their verse,” says Samuel. “Once you’re working with featured artists, you hear the music in your thoughts however you’re doing a extremely poor impression of them. Then they ship the observe again and the music turns into one thing else and the following minute you’re capturing one thing that simply began as an concept in my head.”
Such was Samuel’s course of as he crafted the soundtrack for The E book of Clarence whereas additionally writing the film script.
“I see music and I hear movie,” he says. “As I’m writing the script, I’m listening to the dialogue and I’m taking melodies from the dialogue as a result of there aren’t any phrases and there’s no sentence that isn’t in a key, that isn’t in notes. All the pieces is melody.”
The E book of Clarence is about for launch on Jan. 12, 2024.
“Hallelujah Heaven” paintings.
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