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From Beyoncé’s The Lion King: The Gift to the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack, Billboard rounds up 12 movie soundtracks that include original songs by African…
Yemi Alade in 2020’s Black Is King.
Disney+/Courtesy Everett Collection
African artists have soundtracked superhero movies, sports dramas, Westerns and, more importantly, films that bring it back home to the continent.
While Billboard previously published a list about African artists whose songs gained sync placements in TV shows and movies, we’re now rounding up African artists who’ve intentionally recorded songs for movie soundtracks.
From Billboard‘s previous list of 21st century movie soundtracks curated or executive produced by rap and R&B stars, five of those soundtracks make it on this list – including Beyoncé‘s The Lion King: The Gift and Kendrick Lamar‘s Black Panther: The Album. These albums respectively accompany the live-action remake of The Lion King (as well as her musical film Black Is King) and the Marvel film and assemble a cross-continental cast of acclaimed artists, from Ghanaian dancehall king Shatta Wale to Cameroonian Afro-fusion artist Salatiel to South African gqom singer-songwriter Babes Wodumo. Jeymes Samuel, who directed both The Book of Clarence and The Harder They Fall, included artists like Adekunle Gold, Yemi Alade, Malian singer-songwriter and guitarist Fatoumata Diawara and South African soprano Pretty Yende.
And although they didn’t technically record original songs, Bloody Civilian and Wizkid recorded original covers of Bob Marley classics for the Grammy-winning accompanying soundtrack to last year’s biographical drama film based on the late Jamaican reggae legend. Tems also covered a Marley classic, but for a different film: Her version of Bob Marley & the Wailers‘ “No Woman, No Cry” played during the teaser trailer for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever in 2022 and was featured on the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Prolouge EP and the movie’s official soundtrack.
Below, Billboard rounds up 12 movie soundtracks that feature original songs by African artists, in order from newest to oldest.
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F1 The Album (2025)
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}Burna Boy recorded “Don’t Let Me Drown,” Mr. Eazi recorded “Attention,” Darkoo recorded “Give Me Love” and Obongjayar recorded “Gasoline” for F1 The Album in June. Billboard ranked “Don’t Let Me Drown” and “Gasoline” in the top 10 out of the 17 total tracks on the soundtrack.
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Smurfs Movie Soundtrack (Music From & Inspired By) (2025)
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}Tyla recorded “Everything Goes With Blue” for the Smurfs movie soundtrack in June. She told Billboard ahead of her hosting gig at the 2025 Kids’ Choice Awards that she had “fun” making the song. “I love The Smurfs. And Rihanna being Smurfette, it’s such a fun Smurf movie. So I’m happy that I’m a part of that one,” Tyla added.
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The Book of Clarence (The Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2024)
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}The Book of Clarence director Jeymes Samuel collaborated with Adekunle Gold, Doja Cat and Kodak Black on “Jeezu” and with Yemi Alade on “Sacred Love” on the movie’s soundtrack last year. “It’s great to see such incredible representation in a first of its kind film,” Gold wrote on Instagram.
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Bob Marley: One Love (Music Inspired by the Film) (2024)
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}Bloody Civilian covered “Natural Mystic” and Wizkid covered “One Love” for the Bob Marley: One Love soundtrack last year, which won best reggae album at the 2025 Grammy Awards. Wiz said in a press release that it was “a blessing to cover” the “iconic record.”
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Metro Boomin Presents Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Soundtrack From and Inspired by the Motion Picture) (2023)
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}Metro Boomin collaborated with Wizkid, Don Toliver, BEAM and Toian on “Link Up” for the Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse soundtrack in 2023 that Metro executive produced. For its deluxe edition, Ayra Starr collaborated with Becky G on “Take It to the Top” and Omah Lay collaborated with Big Boss Vette on “I Can’t Stop.”
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Creed III: The Soundtrack (2023)
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}Sudanese American rapper Bas collaborated with Ayra Starr on “Ogogoro” and with Black Sherif and Kel-P on “Blood, Sweat and Tears” for the Creed III soundtrack in 2023, which J. Cole and his Dreamville label executive produced.
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Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – Music From and Inspired By (2022)
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}DBN Gogo, Sino Msolo, Kamo Mphela, Young Stunna and Busiswa recorded “Love & Loyalty (Believe)” and “Jele;” Burna Boy recorded “Alone;” Tems recorded a cover of Bob Marley & the Wailers’ “No Woman, No Cry;” Fireboy DML recorded “Coming Back For You;” CKay collaborated with PinkPantheress on “Any Mmiri;” and Rema collaborated with Bloody Civilian on “Wake Up” and with Alemán on “Pantera” for the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack in 2022. Tems’ “No Woman, No Cry” and Amaarae‘s “A Body, A Coffin” was also included on the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Prolouge EP. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – Music From and Inspired By hit No. 1 on Top Soundtracks and World Albums.
Tems also co-wrote Rihanna‘s “Lift Me Up,” the lead single from the soundtrack that debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, and earned best original song nominations at the 2023 Golden Globes and Academy Awards and a best song written for visual media nod at the 2024 Grammy Awards.
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Coming 2 America (Amazon Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2021)
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}Tekno recorded “Waka Waka” and Burna Boy collaborated with John Legend and Nile Rodgers on “Coming 2 America” for the Coming 2 America soundtrack in 2021. The title track samples The System’s “Coming to America” (which Rodgers co-wrote/co-produced) from the original 1988 movie.
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The Harder They Fall (The Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2021)
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}Fatoumata Diawara and Ms. Lauryn Hill recorded “Black Woman” and Pretty Yende recorded “Three and Thirty Years” for The Harder They Fall soundtrack in 2021, which Jay-Z executive produced, alongside the film’s director Jeymes Samuel.
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The Lion King: The Gift (2019)
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}Beyoncé collaborated with Salatiel and Pharrell Williams on “Water;” her daughter Blue Ivy, SAINt JHN & Wizkid on “Brown Skin Girl;” Shatta Wale and Major Lazer on “Already;” and Nija, Busiswa, Yemi Alade, Tierra Whack, Moonchild Sanelly and DJ Lag on “My Power” for The Lion King: The Gift in 2019. Tekno, Lord Afrixana, Mr. Eazi and Yemi Alade collaborated on “Don’t Jealous Me,” Tiwa Savage and Mr. Eazi collaborated on “Keys to the Kingdom” and Burna Boy recorded “JA ARA E” for the soundtrack, which Beyoncé described as “a love letter to Africa.”
“The world has been sleeping on Africa. Our goal is to make music that reaches the world, and not just for our continent. Every single person on this album delivered on a world stage,” Busiswa told Billboard at the time. Alade added “the Parkwood team treated us like the royalty that we are.” And DJ Lag — whose track “Trip to New York” was included in Queen B’s headlining set at the 2018 Global Citizen Festival: Mandela 100 in Johannesburg, South Africa — echoed her regal sentiments to Billboard by saying, “No other gqom producer is traveling like me, doing this like me. When this happened, I thought, ‘I’m the king now.’” Savage said in a separate Billboard interview that “the project came out really well and it was very authentic. It’s easy when you’re not an African and you want to do a project like that, for Africans to be like, ‘Nah this isn’t Afrobeats.’ But she did a great job, so huge shoutout to her for putting so many of us on that kind of platform.”
The Lion King: The Gift hit No. 1 on Top Soundtracks, Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and World Albums and was nominated for best pop vocal album at the 2020 Grammy Awards. Black Is King was up for best music film at the 2021 Grammys, when Bey, Blue Ivy and Wiz won best music video for “Brown Skin Girl.”
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Queen & Slim: The Soundtrack (2019)
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}Burna Boy recorded “My Money, My Baby” for the Queen & Slim soundtrack in 2019, which samples Fela Kuti‘s 1972 track “Shakara.”
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Black Panther: The Album (2018)
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}Saudi collaborated with ScHoolboy Q and 2 Chainz on “X,” Yugen Blakrok collaborated with Vince Staples on “Opps,” Babes Wodumo collaborated with Zacari on “Redemption” and Sjava collaborated with Mozzy and Reason on “Seasons” for the Black Panther soundtrack in 2018, which Kendrick Lamar curated. Black Panther: The Album hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200, Top Soundtracks and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. It was also nominated for album of the year at the 2019 Grammy Awards and top soundtrack at the 2018 Billboard Music Awards, and it won favorite soundtrack at the 2018 American Music Awards.
“I’m a girl from Africa. My genre is gqom music. They call me gqom queen. I was too shocked. Kendrick Lamar and me? Hip-hop and gqom?! What? I’m so happy. It’s such a privilege and an honor,” Wodumo told Billboard at the time. Billboard also did a deep dive on her and the three other South African artists featured on the soundtrack.
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