The Lion King: Beyoncé drops new original song 'Spirit' from Disney live-action remake

Beyoncé  dropped new original song from Disney’s live-action The Lion King . The song, ‘Spirit,’ was released on 10 July (Tuesday) and should get an Academy-Award push for Academy Award consideration. The tune comes at a pivotal moment for Nala, the character voiced by Beyoncé, in the film that comes out 18 July. She also co-wrote the song. It’s part of an album called The Lion King: The Gift that Beyoncé is executive producing and performing on along with other artists. It will be released digitally 11 July, with the physical album coming 19 July. The collection is a companion to the main Lion King soundtrack, which consists mostly of songs from the animated film, along with a new number from Elton John and Tim Rice, who wrote the songs for the original. Check out Beyoncé as Nala in The Lion King

Jon Favreau, who directed Disney’s live-action remake of  The Jungle Book  in 2016, helms The Lion King. The cast also includes Donald Glover as Simba, Alfre Woodard is Simba’s mother Sarabi, Chiwetel Ejiofor as Scar, James Earl Jones as Mufasa, Eric Andre as Azizi, John Oliver as Zazu, and Keegan-Michael Key as a hyena. The Lion King is one of the biggest animated films of all time, with a lifetime global box-office gross of just under $1 billion. It won Oscars for the song ‘Can You Feel the Love Tonight’ by Elton John and Tim Rice, and for its score by Hans Zimmer, plus two Grammy Awards, with the soundtrack selling more than 14 million copies. The stage production made its Broadway debut in 1997 and went on to win six Tony Awards. Translated into eight languages, the film’s 23 global stage productions have been seen by more than 85 million people. As reported earlier, the worldwide gross for the brand exceeds that of any film, Broadway show or other entertainment titles in history. (With inputs from agencies) Listen to the song here.