In a career spanning only 12 years, Ludwig Göransson has amassed an impressive resume in both the recording and motion picture industries, earning an Academy Award, an Emmy Award, multiple Grammy Awards and countless other nominations. After working as an assistant to composer Theodore Shapiro, Göransson got his first big break writing music for the NBC television series, Community. This led to a friendship and collaboration with Donald Glover, who performs under the stage name Childish Gambino, on several studio albums including Because the Internet and Awaken, My Love. Göransson has been nominated for six Grammys with Childish Gambino, and won two in 2019 for the Billboard Hot 100 Number One hit song “This Is America,” which became a cultural phenomenon and garnered world-wide acclaim.
While pursuing his masters degree in film scoring at USC, Göransson met his other longtime collaborator, director Ryan Coogler, when he scored his short film, Locks. Over the next nine years, Göransson would score all three of Coogler’s feature films. Much like iconic filmmaking duos Hitchcock and Herrmann or Spielberg and Williams, Coogler’s diverse filmography has allowed Göransson to show his range as a composer, writing understated melodies for Fruitvale Station, hyping up audiences for Creed, and infusing African percussion into his themes for Black Panther.
In 2019, Göransson earned multiple awards and nominations for his score for Black Panther including a Golden Globe nomination, a Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack, and an Academy Award for Best Original Score. He won two Grammy Awards for his song “This is America”, which he co-wrote and co-produced with frequent collaborator Childish Gambino.
Last year, Göransson composed the critically acclaimed score and produced the hit song “The Plan” (performed by Travis Scott) for Christopher Nolan’s TENET, which premiered late Summer 2020. Göransson has received many accolades for his score including a Golden Globe nomination, Broadcast Film Critics Association Award nomination and the score is a finalist on the Academy Awards shortlist for Best Score. Göransson co-wrote and co-produced the songs for DreamWorks’ TROLLS WORLD TOUR with Justin Timberlake, which exceeded expectations with its history-making digital release, racking up nearly $100 million in sales in just three weeks. This follows his unique Emmy Award winning score for THE MANDALORIAN on Disney+, LucasFilm’s first Star Wars live-action streaming series helmed by director Jon Favreau. Eight full length albums were released, one album per episode, with recurring themes throughout the season. Most recently, Göransson won his second Emmy for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series for Season 2 of THE MANDALORIAN.
Up next, Göransson will score the Star Wars live-action series THE BOOK OF BOBA FETT and Pixar’s TURNING RED. The film, which is directed by Domee Shi, is scheduled to be released in March 2022.