For many people, music is the soundtrack of their lives which helps them get through the day, makes sense of troubling or joyful times, but what about music and how it affects the soundtrack of any TV show or major motion picture? In this case two major influences from my childhood have come together to make something that I am quite excited to experience! A live-action version of Power Man and one of my favorite music producers, Ali Shaheed Muhammad from A Tribe Called Quest have joined forces. In the immortal words of Chris Tucker from the movie Money Talks, “This is right! It can’t get no righter.”
Many fans got a preview of what to expect from Marvel’s Luke Cage when Mike Colter appeared opposite Krysten Ritter in Jessica Jones, but that was merely a taste, as more details emerge regarding Luke’s solo series. Other than learning that Alfre Woodard would join the cast, I must admit to being a bit giddy when I found out that super producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad would be providing the score. For me, that’s epic on a few levels! First of all, Muhammad and A Tribe Called Quest’s music was the score to my teenage years. I love their brand of jazzy, melodic hip hop and the powerful collaborations they produced with other Native Tongues members like Jungle Brothers, Black Sheep, De La Soul, Leaders of the New School and others. With Harlem being the backdrop for the Luke Cage series, it makes perfect sense. The home of the Harlem Renaissance, the Apollo and a vibrant Jazz scene, Muhammad’s scoring should provide the perfect soundscape to help bring to life the backdrop while telling the story of a reluctant hero. Yes, Jazz is the perfect compliment to a reluctant, brooding, superhuman brotha. Luke Cage Executive Producer and Showrunner, Cheo Hodari Coker told EW, “We have Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad doing the scoring for us… We have a lot of different musical appearances, but at the same time, we’ve got the Marvel action. We’ve got drama. I would like this to be, I mean, I know this is heavy but, The Wire of Marvel television, because we really deal with a lot of different issues.” So, music will apparently play an important role and we can look forward to something gritty and real, the likes of which we saw in the hit series, The Wire. I’m all in!
Matter of fact, here’s a taste:
Having read Powerman and Iron Fist as a kid and following Luke Cage’s comics, I’m excited to see what the company who successfully pulled off Ant-Man and Jessica Jones can do with Luke Cage. Before Ant-Man came out, I was highly skeptical of the movie. They’d retconned the origin story, and, well he’s just Ant-Man. In a solo movie. It really didn’t feel like it was compelling enough for me to want to go spend my money on a theater outing. I couldn’t have been more wrong! The creative, Italian Job, Oceans 11 heist theme, combined with the unlikely superhero, mixed with the dad trying to do right by his daughter story completely got me. Especially the dad thing… all the feels! Same with Jones. A detective noir featuring a snarky, smart alek lush, and a storyline that actually has heart and depth when the protagonist’s quick witted veneer is exposed bare… loved it. Mike Colter has already shown audiences that he can play the superpowered man who prefers to remain in the shadows instead of the superhero limelight, as he tussled with Jones in her solo series, so now it’s up to Showrunner Coker and crew to show us that they can take the once-disco shirt wearing, “Sweet Christmas” exclaiming Power Man and turn him into a series which will give young black boys and girls- ultimately everyone really (those old enough to watch what I’m sure will have some edgy content)- a hero they can appreciate. A hero who may not be perfect but that they can look up to and see even the tiniest parts of themselves in.
Disclosure: As a member of the Netflix Stream Team, I’ve been provided perks for contributing content. That means this is a sponsored post, but that doesn’t mean that I’m schilling my integrity. I don’t take my time to write anything I wouldn’t want to read myself, or that I think doesn’t add some value for my readership.
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