BINI, SB19 and Lea Salonga Lead ‘Forgotten Island’ Soundtrack (EXCLUSIVE)

The full track listing for Dreamworks Animation’s “Forgotten Island” has been revealed.

SB19, BINI and Lea Salonga are among the artists leading the soundtrack. As previously revealed, H.E.R. and Katseye’s Sophia Laforteza also feature. The soundtrack will be released on Sept. 18 with the film set to open on Sept. 25.

The film follows H.E.R. and Liza Soberano as the voices of Jo and Raissa, two best friends who embark on one last adventure together. Their journey takes them into a night filled with shapeshifters, demons and witches, testing their friendship as they struggle to find their way out of a magical portal and return home.

The music in the film blends influences from the 1980s and ’90s, particularly drawing inspiration from Filipino and Filipino-American musical culture.

“Forgotten Island” also features a remixed version of INXS’ classic “Never Tear Us Apart,” sung by Katseye’s Sophia Laforteza, for an emotional moment between the two friends.

The film’s two female leads, H.E.R. and Soberano, are at the helm of the film’s title track “BRB.” Filipino boy band SB19 will cover the classic song “Mga Kababayan” by Francis M. Additionally, Ruby Ibarra and Carl Angelo perform “Salbahe Ako.”

The film is scored by composer Nathan Matthew David who leaned heavily on analog synths from that era. Speaking about the score, David said, “There are elements of ’80s pop and hip-hop. But when the girls stumble into the mystical portal and end up on the island of Nakali, “the story evolves, and so does the sound.”

He also introduces music and instruments from indigenous Filipino tribes, utilizing traditional Filipino instruments like chanters, the Las Piñas bamboo pipe organ, and a Filipino choir singing Tagalog phrases.

In the film, Salonga plays a dreaded Salonga’s mythical creature. For that, he used the talking gong, known as the indigenous gandingan, a traditional instrument of the southern Philippines.

How did directors Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado get Salonga to play a villain? Crawford revealed that they sent a pitch to see if she was interested. “We heard from her team right away.”

Salonga said yes, but the directors realized that, as amazing as the part was, they were concerned it wouldn’t be meaty enough for her. Mercado said, “She was already on the same page as us, understanding that the Manananggal didn’t need to speak a lot to be scary.”

“She elevated the material,” Mercado said. He went on to explain that Salonga found the voice for the character after listening to H.E.R. and Soberano. “She said, ‘I’ll change my voice so that it complements theirs. If they’re a little higher, then I’ll make the Manananggal deeper and speak from the gut.’” Salonga’s vocals are used throughout David’s score. The album can be preordered here. Check out the album art below.

Full tracklisting below.

*All tracks by Nathan Matthew David unless otherwise noted