Phoebe Bridgers, Thundercat, Brockhampton, Tame Impala, Kali Uchis. Sounds like an absolute bonkers lineup for a music festival, right? Well, it’s not. All of these artists are featured on the new Minions: The Rise of Gru Soundtrack of all movies. And with an all-star roster like this, despite being a children’s film, you would expect this to be an easy out-of-the-park homer. But alas, the Minions: The Rise of Gru Soundtrack falls short of glory. 

Now you may be asking yourself, how can such a stacked lineup not live up to its high expectations? Maybe it is due to the fact that being featured on a movie soundtrack doesn’t allow for as much creative freedom as one might expect. 

Even with polarizing pop-music producer phenom Jack Antonoff lending a hand on production for the entire project, the reimagined batch of ’70s hits covered by modern-day musicians leaves a bit more to be desired. Granted, there are a handful of memorable moments on the Minions: The Rise of Gru Soundtrack like the funky opening “Turn Up the Sunshine” by Diana Ross & Tame Impala, or, the somberly sweet Carpenters cover of “Goodbye to Love” by Phoebe Bridgers. But with some clunky production and a few odd song choices, the Minions: The Rise of Gru Soundtrack overall seems to be another forgettable compilation of tracks. 

When saying “another,” what is really being said is that there are so many movie soundtracks that have featured some of your favorite artists that were skipped over due to not having any real substance. Sure, the songs were made for a designated movie and not specifically for their own personal projects. But it seems that more often than not, artists featured in soundtracks don’t deliver the quality of music that they normally would. 

Before we go any further, it is important to make the distinction between different types of movie soundtracks. Of course, there are the John Williams and Hans Zimmer scores that feature elegant and exuberant instrumentals with a string section and horns accompanying a film masterfully. Then there are soundtracks with original music included in a movie like a musical or a Disney film in which the characters sing the tunes in the movie. Then there are movie soundtracks that resemble more of a compilation of previously recorded songs such as the Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix Vol. 1. 

And finally, we have movie soundtracks that include original music inspired and recorded specifically for such soundtrack like the new Minions movie. There is something unique about this category of movie soundtracks because it allows for artists to focus on a genre or writing style that they may or may not be used to if they were creating music for their own body of work. And although having limitations can lead to creativity, this narrow vision may also lead some artists to musical roadblocks. 

Another recent soundtrack filled to the brim with heavy-hitting artists like Doja Cat, Eminem, Denzel Curry, Kacey Musgraves, and again, Tame Impala, is the 2022 biopic Elvis starring Austin Butler. As predicted, each artist adds their own flair to the King of Rock and Roll’s discography by ironically covering his music or writing songs inspired by his flashy lifestyle. And in theory, musicians finding inspiration from another monumental musician seems like a no-brainer, but the Elvis Soundtrack, unfortunately, falls flat. The soundtrack almost plays out as if the featured artists are phoning it in for a check which there is nothing wrong with, but it leaves fans a bit empty-handed. 

It may sound like all movie soundtracks are not meeting the potential and creative integrity that the featured artists are usually known for, but that is most certainly not the case. There are quite a few beloved movie soundtracks with original music that have recently found its way into people’s hearts. Marvel’s Black Panther soundtrack rallied in the likes of SZA, Vince Staples, Travis Scott and Kendrick Lamar for front-to-back bangers matching the energy of the action-packed film. The Black Panther Soundtrack is a perfect example of how to utilize talent and let each artist bring their unique voice to a collaborative project without hindering their creative voice. 

Even everyone’s favorite robot duo, Daft Punk, made a flawless movie soundtrack for the Tron: Legacy movie in 2010. Teetering more on the score side of movie soundtracks, Daft Punk were able to bring forth the world of Tron through heavy synthesizers, fatty bass sounds and thumping drums. Disney gave the robots full control and allowed them to embrace their eccentric electronic style to capture the digital landscape of the fictional arcade game. 

It would be a disservice not to mention one of the greatest movie soundtracks of all time, Twilight. During a time when girls would keep up with their Tumblrs and teen dramas were all the rage, Twilight recruited the likes of Paramore, Muse, Radiohead and Iron & Wine for a monumental event that transformed the way music accompanies movies forever. 

The reason why the Twilight Saga soundtracks were such a pivotal moment during cinema history is because they brought together such a wide range of artists to capture the essence of an unconventional vampire love story. But they did so in a way that accentuated the aesthetic of the movie, almost making the release of the soundtrack its own standalone event. 

With movies after the Twilight series, it seems as if everyone was trying to strike gold with another massive soundtrack like The Great Gatsby or Love, Simon, but nothing truly hit as hard as it did back in 2008. The Great Gatsby Soundtrack featured music from Beyonce, Lana Del Rey, Jay-Z and Jack White, but as a whole, the soundtrack felt like someone wrapping you in a delicate velvet blanket, but once you took it off, you were left with a bunch of lint attached to you.

The Love, Simon Soundtrack featured a handful of songs by Jack Antonoff’s power-pop band, Bleachers, as well as Troye Sivan and The 1975. And as much as everyone loves the work of Jack Antonoff, there is hardly anyone exclaiming the Love, Simon Soundtrack has heavy replay value. 

Maybe it’s the nostalgia factor, or maybe movie soundtracks truly don’t hit as hard as they once did. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Drive, Juno, even the Shrek soundtrack all are over 10 years old and still hit harder than a lot of soundtracks coming out today. With all the talent available and the resources at everyone’s disposal essentially guiding one’s hand to make an absolute banger with little chance of failure, it seems like artists don’t care all that much about movie soundtracks these days. 

At the end of the day, liking a certain movie soundtrack is all about personal preference and what tunes hit the ears just right. Is there some resentment towards Minions: The Rise of Gru Soundtrack for not fully meeting its incredibly high expectations with its unimaginable featured lists? Yes, but one cannot help but dream for a day when movie soundtracks can thrive and go toe-to-toe with many other music projects in an artist’s discography and not just be seen as a detour amongst their albums. 

What it truly boils down to is that we all just want to hear good music, whether it’s inspired by a children’s movie or included in a superhero flick. Although being included in a movie soundtrack can narrow an artist’s creative voice, having some boundaries can lead to artists thinking outside of the box. Whether artists are writing music for a children’s movie or are covering a song, sometimes soundtracks can bring out the best of a musician like with Twilight and in some songs, Minions: The Rise of Gru.