Throughout history, visual art and music have almost always gone hand in hand. From opera to theater, and of course, film and television, music has always been used to elevate what we see on screen. It helps us feel more deeply, remember more vividly, and in many cases, turns a simple scene into a pop culture moment.
One thing that’s always fascinated me is how a song, sometimes released years before a movie even exists, finds its way into a scene and instantly becomes iconic. Suddenly, that track isn’t just a song, it’s the song from that moment.
The first example that comes to mind, which will probably sound a strangely vintage to the youngest, is Emma Stone’s hilarious shower performance in “Easy A”, singing Pocket Full of Sunshine by Natasha Bedingfield. We’re talking about a movie released 15 years ago, and a song a bit older by two years. If you have seen this movie, I dare you to hear the song without picturing Emma.
Or consider The Power of Love by Frankie Goes to Hollywood. I’ve known and loved it for years, but after “All of Us Strangers” with Paul Mescal and Andrew Scott, it took on a whole new emotional weight, and it did take me a while to separate the two things for my own sake (I believe we’re talking about one of the most dramatic moments in recent cinema.).
On a less niche phenomenon, “Stranger Things” did this trick several times, since its soundtrack is a collection of classics from the Eighties. We all remember Should I Stay or Should I Go by The Clash in season one, and then, of course, season four, which made Kate Bush's Running Up That Hill a Gen Z anthem. These already well-known songs suddenly reached a whole new audience (many of whom weren’t even born at the time of their release) who fell in love with them.
Another moment that brings back 2010s vibes is tied to The Perks of Being a Wallflower soundtrack. It introduced a new generation to old classics and found much of its emotional weight not just in the script or performances, but from the epic songs woven into the story (obviously, I am referring to legendary David Bowie’s “Heroes”).
Last but not least, who could forget Saltburn? Barry Keoghan’s wild final dance scene to "Murder on the Dancefloor" by Sophie Ellis-Bextor? That track dominated the early 2000s, and now, two decades later, it came back, and for a while, it really was everywhere.
I could go on (and on!), but the point isn’t just to list great movie-song moments. It’s to appreciate how powerful a song can become when it’s placed in exactly the right scene. It’s not just background noise, it never is, but it becomes a central part of the story. In this era of nostalgia, where the past blends seamlessly with the present, and where TikTok can breathe new life into old tunes, music and film are more intertwined than ever.
So the next time a song gives you chills during a movie, remember, it’s not a coincidence. It’s one of its many lives. It’s alchemy.
