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Much has been made of Jay-Z’s involvement with Baz Lurhmann’s epic adaptation of The Great Gatsby. The music mogul has never before lent his name or his talents to a project in this way before (we’re not counting his “inspired by” American Gangster album). Despite the hype, this soundtrack collaboration is fundamentally safe (if seemingly off to a fast start on the charts.). Not only is The Great Gatsby a tent-pole blockbuster with an above-the-title director and major A-list talent, it’s a grandiose celebration of New York jazz age glamour and excess — which in some ways, makes it a perfect fit for the Brooklyn-born superstar.
But Jay-Z is far from the first talent to marry music and movie-making. In recent years, a number of pop, rock, rap, and indie artists have lent their names and composition skills to film projects, including Daft Punk’s electro score to Joseph Kosinski’s TRON: Legacy, The Chemical Brothers for Joe Wright’s Hanna, Karen O for Spike Jonze’s Where the Wild Things Are, and Skrillex for Harmony Korine’s Spring Breakers. Like Jay-Z’s involvement with Gatsby, these have been one-off collaborations; other rock stars have managed to have second careers as movie composers — even creating some of the most memorable scores of recent years.
Take a look at some of the most prolific musicians-turned-film-score-composers after the jump.
