Twisters is the perfect mix guaranteed to deliver a summer blockbuster: a charming cast, an already iconic IP to build upon, and thrilling action. But it also includes the kind of wind system that propels the release into a pop cultural storm: a great soundtrack.
Director Lee Isaac Chung’s spiritual sequel to the 1996 action film Twister features a curated original album released in tandem with the film. Twisters: The Album serves as the perfect accompaniment to the buzzy press tour and excitement surrounding the release.
The film follows two groups of storm chasers—one set, YouTubers hailing from Alabama, and the other, scientists led by an Oklahoma native—so fittingly Twisters: The Album consists entirely of country music, particularly tracks that you can imagine the daredevil meteorologists blasting as they drive toward a cyclone. It’s not the first-ever country music soundtrack, but it is a rare, unprecedented project, considering it features 29 original songs. Produced by Atlantic Records (which also released Barbie: The Album last year featuring countless hits that stood alone from the film’s success) and curated by longtime Universal Pictures music supervisors Rachel Levy and Mike Knobloch, the team behind the record was tasked with signing genre icons as well as rising names, which Levy says was a “very important” priority.
They managed to tap everyone from Miranda Lambert and Shania Twain to Lainey Wilson and Megan Moroney, among others. Songs like Tanner Adell’s “Too Easy” cheekily plays while Edgar Jones’ character Kate leads Powell’s Tyler in the opposite direction of a tornado, while other tracks thoughtfully personify both the characters and the sweeping Oklahoma plains. Overall, it builds on the current mainstream moment country music is having.
Levy calls the rise in popularity in country music “amazing to behold.” With Twisters out in theaters July 19, she spoke to Marie Claire about her work on the soundtrack and why it was important to the filmmaker that it always be centered around roots music.
Marie Claire: First and foremost, are you a country music fan?
Rachel Levy: I'm definitely a country music fan. I grew up in Texas. I'm thrilled that country's having the moment that it's having right now. And I love that people are listening to music across all genres at the moment, not just staying in a particular lane.
As a music supervisor, we don't get the opportunity that often to work with country, so it's been a ton of fun to have this film to work with. We're not the first all-country soundtrack, but it's been some time since it was out there, and definitely [major] for a big blockbuster like Twisters.
MC: You must have had a lot of fun collaborating with artists you’re such a fan of then.
RL: Oh, yes. And [there was such] excitement from the community, too—from songwriters, producers, and the artists for the project. Most people are fans of the first movie. That does not always happen that there’s this excitement from artists to work on a project, so that was also really amazing.
MC: Was it always the plan for the soundtrack to be entirely country music and its own special album?
RL: Our director [Lee Isaac Chung] grew up in the South and he really wanted music to be authentic to Oklahoma and to the South. So once the decision was made to create an original soundtrack, all of us—between the filmmakers and our team and Atlantic Records, who's our label partner—we all sat down and discussed who our pie-in-the-sky top picks would be, keeping in mind what Isaac was looking for in each scene, where he wanted music, and what he wanted the tone to be. I think Isaac always had intended it to be authentic to the location. I think it was our team that went in and pitched the idea of, ‘Let's make this special and stand out as a character in itself within the movie.’
MC: And various needle drops speak to the characters in the movie or feel like what they might listen to. I was giddy when Glen Powell’s character Tyler Owens was introduced hanging outside of his truck, and the Luke Combs song “Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma” plays.
RL: It's a perfect placement. It’s also really rare that you, on the very first try, show an artist [footage], talk about a scene, tell them what you're looking for, and they come back with something that perfect, which Luke Combs did.
And then Lainey Wilson's song [“Out of Oklahoma”] plays as Daisy's character [Kate Carter] returns home to go see her mom. I'm really excited and proud of how the album turned out and what Isaac did with all of the music. You really need a director who's willing to give music the real-estate and placements in the movie to make it stand out, and that's exactly what he did.
MC: Megan Moroney is a rising star who’s on the tracklisting, and it marks her first time writing for a movie. Was it exciting working with artists who were doing this for the first time?
RL: A lot of them [were]. It's not easy. Most artists go into a studio and they're writing for themselves, for their own projects. To come in and write something that fits their artistry is one thing, but to come in and create something that fits a picture and that does what an editor or what a director needs a song to do within a scene is really tough. Not everybody likes it that much. I can't think of an example of somebody we didn't connect with and, when available, showed them scenes and Isaac came in to talk about the characters and what he was looking for tonally. I think that's why we ended up with such amazing songs, because of that process.
You really need a director who's willing to give music the real-estate and placements in the movie to make it stand out, and that's exactly what he did.
MC: There are so many women on the soundtrack, and for a long time, many female country artists have been vocal about not getting as much radio play or recognition within the scene. In some ways, it mirrors how Kate in Twisters is a bit discounted by some of her male peers. Was that a conscious effort to make sure women were represented on the soundtrack?
RL: It's always a priority for us as a department, and personally for me as a supervisor, to represent women in movies musically, whether that's female composers that we work with or female artists and the balance of that. Did the female voices work well and represent Daisy's character? Absolutely. I really can't think of it existing any other way. It's really just what made the most sense. I think it was important to the filmmakers. It was definitely important to us, and I'm glad it worked out that way.
MC: As a music supervisor, has it been fulfilling to see this trend of soundtracks being released as original albums and having their own pop culture moments?
RL: Oh, gosh, yes. It's probably one of my favorite things that I get to do in my job. And I've been lucky, I've gotten to work on a lot that are original. I worked on Marry Me, Minions 2, and a lot of the Fast and Furious movies, all of the Sing movies, a lot of Illumination projects.And the ones where we get to actually go in and curate, and I get to put on an A&R hat, find songs and artists, pair them together, and get a label partner, those are a blast to work on. Barbie was a big [moment], obviously, I'd like to think the Fast and Furious soundtracks were big, but I love that it's coming back. It has to do with the streamers. It's like, ‘You have to have a soundtrack. You’ve got to have something original.’
MC: Do you have a favorite needle drop or song of Twisters: The Album yourself?
RL: I think it's impossible. I mean, I love Miranda Lambert. But I’m just going to sit here and list them all. I love Tyler Childers. I mean, who doesn't love Thomas Rhett? There's a new artist, Conner Smith, who I think is amazing, and he's just got a great placement in the film. The list goes on.
MC: You’ve worked on a lot of major projects, including the Fifty Shades series, which had its own iconic soundtrack. Do you have another favorite soundtrack you’ve worked on?
RL: I was lucky enough to work on the Fast and Furious [movie Furious 7] where we had [the Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth song] “See You Again.” It stands the test of time, whether you're saying goodbye to a loved one or graduating and leaving friends, it is pretty for everybody. That was a big one.
My love started with movies and I didn't even know this job existed. So when I found out that you could put the two things together, I mean, I think I have the best job in the world.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
