Ludwig Goransson

I think to try to make new music and new ideas, you have to push the boundaries of existing music.

I would say that 'Creed' has a lot more music in it. It's 60 minutes of music, while 'Fruitvale' had about a fourth of that at best. There's a bigger focus in 'Creed' because I had to make music for training montages.

Something I grew up with is John Williams, of course, with 'Indiana Jones' and 'Star Wars.'

Some of my favorite scores include Bernard Herrmann's Hitchcock scores.

I think, as a composer, pressure should be something that makes you better.

The plan was just to make great art, and working with Donald Glover, who is such a renaissance man, we've been working together for ten years, and he is always pushing the envelope in a way - like, whenever we work together, I have no idea what it is going to turn out to be.

I've worked with Childish Gambino for so long, so I've learned that from those producing skills - how to really produce music - where, of course, it's about writing, but it's also about combining sounds and styles and genres.

So when I'm listening to music, I'm listening to a lot of hip-hop to be inspired and to hear new things.

I think with everything I do, I'm trying to just come up with new ways of creating music and mixing styles together. That's just what's fun for me to do, to try to make myself inspired.

I've produced all of Childish Gambino's music.

Chance The Rapper is a person who really knows what he wants.

I moved to L.A. in 2007 from Sweden.

I would love to do more superhero work; as a young film composer, that is one of the things you dream of.

I traveled to a library in South Africa called ILAM (International Library of African Music), which has a collection of about 500 different instruments that don't really exist anymore.

It's not lost on me that I'm a Swedish guy from one of the coldest countries in the world.

I think in 'Rocky IV' there are three montages with three five-minute songs, which is insane. You can't do that today.

So much music in Africa was created for specific moments, written for rituals or for a funeral or for challenges, thousands of years ago, and these rhythms are still used.

As a kid growing up in Sweden loving American music, I always dreamt of migrating here and working with brilliant artists like Donald Glover.

I was able to learn a new language - a new musical language is learning a new language, because it's so extremely different from Western classical music. African music is completely different.

I need to study more. I need to educate myself more - and not just in music, in everything - but especially in music and composing.

That's important for me, to never just relax and be too comfortable with what you have.

Travelling is a key part of my life. It keeps me inspired, takes me to new places, introduces me to new sounds, and allows me to explore new environments and soundscapes.

For the score of 'Black Panther,' the heart and soul came from immersing myself in the rich musical history of the griots in West Africa. I was following these brilliant musicians all over rural Senegal, learning their musical language.

I love L.A. partly because it feels like there are so many parts of the world in this city.

I wanted to be the best guitar player in the world. And then my dad got me a portable recorder, so I started writing my own music.

It definitely feels like I'm living a dream, but I try not to pinch myself because I don't want to wake up.

My starting point is always to read a script and have a conversation with the director about what their vision is, and then, after that, I love to do research.

I just want to say, creating music with Childish Gambino has been one of the greatest joys of my life.

I love learning new things.

I never used to get calls from artists or labels, but once you have a top 20 hit, you start getting them.

Music in Africa is perceived so differently than Western classical music - it's language and storytelling.

These days, you're always surrounded by music and sounds, whether you're in the mall or a subway car.

It was very challenging, trying to add an orchestra on top of these traditional African rhythms, because as soon as you add any kind of melody or chords over it, it stops feeling African.

One of the instruments that really stuck out to me was the talking drum, which is basically the first type of communication device. It's a drum you put on your shoulder, and you can pitch it with your arm, and you can 'talk' with it.

In western classical music with an orchestra, you focus the orchestra on melodies and harmony. In African music, the biggest focus is on rhythms and counter-rhythms - the complexity of rhythms.

Any time I get a chance to work with artists that make me inspired and learn new stuff about music - every chance I get, I'll take.

Any time you have the chance to celebrate something with your closest best friends, it's very special.

Needless to say, when I work on a film, it's mostly just me alone in my room just waiting to present the music to the director - and either he likes it or not.

No matter where you're born or what country you're from, you connect with 'This is America.' It speaks to people; it connects right to your soul. It calls out injustice, celebrates life, and reunites us all at the same time.

One of the first things I want do when I start writing music for a film is to create its own sound world, its own music world.

I think I'm a pretty good listener.

I'd say for a film composer, 'Star Wars' is kind of like the holy grail of film music. It's probably the best film music ever written.

I think, for me, a way to really come up with new ideas and come up with new ways of writing music is to create a unique sound palette or soundscape for all the films I'm working on.

Every now and then, as a composer and producer, it's important to write music for yourself.

I really want to get better at conducting.

Needless to say, I like to create a unique sound for each project I do.

The through line of the way I like to work, what makes me different, and what I like to do for every project - although they are completely different from each other - is I like to do a lot of research and create a unique landscape and unique soundscape for each movie.

If you're a film composer, you have the music tell the story of the character.

I think the more you know people and the more you get to know artists, the better you can collaborate.

Growing up in Sweden, musical education is something really special. There are music schools everywhere, and the education is very advanced.