Questlove Interview: Soul

Pixar’s Soul begins streaming exclusively on Disney+ December 25, and the highly anticipated animated film will bring the gift of music with it. It tells the story of aspiring jazz musician and music teacher Joe Gardner (played by Jamie Foxx), who gets the opportunity of a lifetime only to see it turn into a mystical voyage to the Great Before.

Accomplished musician Ahmir Khalib Thompson, known professionally as Questlove, plays Joe’s old student Curley. It is actually Curley who hooks his mentor up with the chance to audition for famed jazz singer Dorothea Williams, showcasing the deep impression that Soul‘s protagonist leaves on those he taught.

Questlove spoke to Screen Rant about the mentor who set him onto a musical path in his own life, as well as how he pulled double duty as a musical consultant for the film.

I especially loved the music in Soul, which I know that you were a consultant on. You’re also an accomplished musician on your own, so how did your love of music affect the way that you worked on the story?

Questlove: Well, it’s kind of weird, because initially when Pete Docter and Kemp Powers gave me a quick pitch of what the film was, I thought they were pitching me to give music recommendations. Maybe I’m scoring this, because they were asking questions that the average person doesn’t ask when it comes to music. Like, “If you’re this particular character, what would you listen to?”

I was more than happy to have any excuse to share any playlist or music recommendations, or to be Joe Gardner in real life, I’m that person. And the cherry on top was that, they were like, “Well, we’re not here for that reason. You’re in the film.” They kind of had to pick me up off the floor. But even then, they were more than happy to take my unsolicited recommendations for this character, and that character, and “this is what they would listen to.” That sort of thing.

I’m super elated. This is a historical film. It’s a musical film, but more than music, I see it just as a film about creativity and how creativity is key to the happiness inside of our lives. The things that make us happy, that’s creative.

Speaking of your character, Curley sees Joe as kind of a mentor, and as someone who sparked his passion. Who was someone in your life that was a Joe to you?

Questlove: All these things are happening at probably the most perfect time ever. I’ll say that weeks ago, I was thinking about this same exact question. I put a post up on my Instagram, as I was going through my dad’s old boxes at his old house, and I found a note from 1975. I had met this woman in Portland, Maine, who had randomly just asked me, “You seem to like music. What do you like?”

I named some artists that I liked and, the next day, she came back with a record player and those records. I was explaining to my followers on Instagram that when you Google “Questlove’s record collection,” you see this giant library. I have like 200,000 records now. I found that note and I said that, this note and this stranger’s kindness is what sparked and started my obsession with record collecting, and what I am right now as a so-called music expert.

I kind of just put it out there that there’s a woman in Portland, Maine named Ellie that remembers buying a five year old kid his first record collection. Thank you. I believe that they found this woman. I’ve yet to speak to her, but she was like the my real life Joe Gardner.

About The Author

Tatiana Hullender
(641 Articles Published)

Tatiana Hullender is a writer at Screen Rant, focusing on film and television, as well as a co-host of several podcasts. In the interviews she conducts for Screen Rant, she seeks to learn what drives each creative mind and how different experiences influence the same narrative. As a graduate of Columbia University in New York City, Tatiana studied theater and comparative literature. She has been passionate about all manner of storytelling since being exposed to Jane Austen and BBC adaptations of her work all at once. But Regency satire of manners isn’t the only genre she loves, as a love of comic books naturally developed into a love of cinematic universes and their superheroes. So long as a story has heart and humor, there’s a chance of finding something to enjoy in the telling of it.
Visit @myrcellasear on Twitter to follow Tatiana’s articles, interviews and podcasts including: The Flash Podcast, Pop A La Carte and Ladies With Gumption. Subscribe to them on the Podcast app, or contact her directly at painted(dot)out(at)gmail.com.

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