August Moon

A fictional boy band assembled for the 2024 film The Idea of You, August Moon offer up catchy, effervescent pop in the tradition of inspirations <a href="spotify:artist:4AK6F7OLvEQ5QYCBNiQWHq">One Direction</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:04gDigrS5kc9YWfZHwBETP">Maroon 5</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:3Nrfpe0tUJi4K4DXYWgMUX">BTS</a>. With its lead singer portrayed by lead actor Nicholas Galitzine, the group sang their way onto the U.S Heatseekers chart and U.K. soundtrack and compilation charts with help from singles like "Guard Down" and "Dance Before We Walk."

Directed and co-written by comedy veteran <a href="spotify:artist:62nnZCDuGeZNIdPwhuS7xW">Michael Showalter</a>, the romantic comedy-drama The Idea of You is based on the novel by Robinne Lee. It made its festival debut at March 2024's South by Southwest Film Festival, where it was an Audience Award nominee before receiving a wider release in May. The film stars <a href="spotify:artist:0nIyPY7J7G68WgQEOLHn0x">Anne Hathaway</a> as a divorced art gallery owner who reluctantly escorts her teenaged daughter and her friends to Coachella, where she meets August Moon bandleader Hayes Campbell (Galitzine). Galitzine's music background at this time included playing the Prince in the 2021 film musical Cinderella opposite <a href="spotify:artist:4nDoRrQiYLoBzwC5BhVJzF">Camila Cabello</a>.

The soundtrack album's seven original songs (plus acoustic and remix versions) were composed by Savan Kotecha (<a href="spotify:artist:2wY79sveU1sp5g7SokKOiI">Sam Smith</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:1Xyo4u8uXC1ZmMpatF05PJ">the Weeknd</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:6S2OmqARrzebs0tKUEyXyp">Demi Lovato</a>) and performed by Galitzine, who enlisted various friends and collaborators to serve as the rest of August Moon in the studio. (The onscreen band is portrayed by professional dancers.) Closely involved throughout the process was music supervisor Frankie Pine (Daisy Jones & the Six). The Idea of You LP arrived on <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Arista%22">Arista</a> in March of 2024, with singles like "Dance Before We Walk" and "Guard Down" counting down to the movie's wider release; it reached the Top Ten of the Billboard Heatseekers chart in addition to topping the U.K. soundtrack chart. ~ Marcy Donelson, Rovi