Sinners, the latest feature by the Black Panther franchise and Creed director Ryan Coogler, has been lauded by critics as one of this year’s most acclaimed films. A supernatural action horror film set in 1930s Jim Crow era in Mississippi, Sinners is centered around twin brothers Smoke and Stack, both played by Michael B. Jordan, who return to their hometown with hopes of starting over by opening a music joint.
Sinners pays tribute to the fiery Black music community with stellar performances by Hailee Steinfeld, Miles Caton, Jayme Lawson, and Wunmi Mosaku, among others. In one scene, as the twins prepare for their opening night, they’re joined by their little cousin Sammie, played by Caton, a preacher’s son with a gift of song who’s chided for playing the “devil’s music.” “‘Sinners’ is my love letter to all of the things that I love about going to the movies, as a cinephile, especially watching films with an audience,” says Coogler. “It’s the communal experience — and this movie was made to be seen with a crowd of people you don’t know.”
Ludwig Göransson, the film’s composer, playfully sets the atmosphere by, in some cases, weaving in blues guitar, and the film finds its rhythm in the community of outcasts and immigrants all coming together in an enmesh of music and dance. When the supernatural elements finally burst onto the scene, it’s a visceral jolt — the crash of drums and heavy electric guitar, a thunderous proclamation that the night is just getting started.
Göransson has a long history of collaborating with Coogler, having been the composer for all of his films, including Fig, Fruitvale Station, Creed, and both Black Panther films. The Mandalorian and Oppenheimer composer noted that their friendship had blossomed during their college days at the University of Southern California where they first met as students. Last year, he won the Academy Award for Best Original Score for his work in Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer. This is already his second Oscar following his win in 2019 with Black Panther.
How do we make the audience today feel like they’re hearing something fresh, yet true to the time?
In this interview, Göransson delves into his creative process behind the soundtrack, its musical influences, and his close friendship with Coogler.
How would you describe Sinners?
I would describe it best as a Ryan Coogler film. It has everything. I feel like all of his films are something emotional you’ve never experienced before on the screen. It has such depth to it on so many different levels, but it’s also extremely entertaining. It presses so many buttons inside of you in a way that you never experienced before. Entering this world he’s created for the first time, it can be kind of jarring or shocking because there’s nothing to compare it to. But once you’re hooked, you just want to be in that world forever.
How is this film extremely personal to Ryan?
Ryan told me that the movie is essentially a love letter to his uncle, honoring his memory and the impact he had on his life. His uncle was always playing blues music through his stereo speakers whenever Ryan visited his house. This music became a significant part of Ryan’s childhood and upbringing. While we were making Creed, his uncle passed away. He found it difficult to process his grief and memories. It took him a long time to understand the significance of their time together and the music they shared.
What did you think when you first read the script?
When I first read the script, I was so impressed by the way Ryan seamlessly integrated music into the narrative. The musical moments felt organic and unforced, and it was very evident that they were all interconnected with great intentionality. My immediate reaction was, “Wow, this is extraordinary.” I felt incredibly fortunate to be involved in a project of this caliber. Opportunities like this are rare and don’t come along very often.
What is the process like between you and Ryan when working on such a musically-driven project?
Well, the first thing was to figure out who to work with. Since the movie is set in the 1930s, we needed the music to feel authentic, like something straight out of that era. But here’s the challenge: What did it really sound like back then? How do we make the audience today feel like they’re hearing something fresh, yet true to the time? The problem is: there aren’t great recordings from the ‘30s, and practically no film footage, so we don’t really know exactly how it sounded. You can hear pitch distortion, hissing, and scratching all over these records. It’s important to remember, however, that these recordings were captured live, featuring performers in front of an audience and it was this energy and atmosphere of live musical performances that we wanted to capture in the juke joint setting.
So, the journey began. Who are we going to work with? Who are going to be the songwriters? Who’s going to be able to channel the story that Ryan has in his mind? To find that, we went on a journey—Ryan, Serena [Göransson] and I flew out to Memphis. I brought my dad along as well. He’s a blues guitarist and it’s been his dream his whole life to go on the blues trail. We all flew out to Memphis and went on the blues trail together.
Lawrence “Boo” Mitchell, a wonderful producer and musician, was our first contact. He owns Royal Studios, a renowned recording studio in Memphis with a rich history of producing iconic records from the ‘60s and ‘70s. Mitchell graciously guided us on a blues trail trip through Clarksdale, Memphis, and Indianola, where we visited the B.B. King Museum and local juke joints in an effort to get inspiration and historical insight. I then spent five days recording at Royal Studios with Boo Mitchell and a group of celebrated blues musicians, including Alvin Youngblood Hart, and Cedric Burnside.
In addition to all the amazing musicians we worked with in Memphis, there were several other songwriters and artists who I felt could authentically embody and contribute to the essence of this musical world. Among these were Brittany Howard, Rafael Saadiq, and Bobby Rush.
At the time, country and blues were really two different things. It was the record labels and the industry that separated it for the different types of people, like White music and Black music.
What were some of your musical inspirations for the film?
Well, Ryan was constantly sending me music. Lots of recordings from the ‘30s and ‘40s, specifically the music of Robert Johnson, Tommy Johnson, etc. Also, a few of the songs he shared with me were already written into the script, like “Pick Poor Robin Clean”, for example. We spent a lot of time talking about the songs from the script in particular and the role they played in the story. This back and forth with Ryan was incredibly helpful for me and was a large part of our creative process on this one.
Also, having Buddy Guy in the film was an opportunity of a lifetime. Having someone of that stature and of that caliber was a huge deal. For me, this was personal — my dad always played blues around the house, so I felt like I grew up with the Three Kings: Freddie, B.B., and specifically Albert King (who was my dad’s favorite guitar player).
Also, it was helpful for me to keep in mind that, at the time, country and blues were really two different things. It was the record labels and the industry that separated it for the different types of people, like White music and Black music. So, we wanted the music to be as authentic as possible, and respect the history and pay homage to these artists. We all put in a lot of research — it was really extensive, but that was the only way to do it justice.
What do you enjoy most about your friendship with Ryan? What makes you excited when he calls and says, “I’ve got another film, and I want to work with you”?
We started out as young kids devoted to making art together. It’s been so interesting to develop and grow together and be at different stages of our lives while on the same journey. We can kind of look back and look forward and think about how similar we are now but how different everything around us is. That we continue to understand each other because of this journey we’ve been on, the past that we share. I feel so grateful to have a partner like that.
Disclaimer: The interview was provided by a third-party content partner, published on Rolling Stone Philippines with permission as an exclusive for the Philippines.
