A movie’s soundtrack is always an important part of the entire experience and that’s certainly the case with animated films. Over the years, there have been some truly memorable songs from animated movies, especially in the realm of Disney releases. In fact, music was huge during the popular Renaissance Era.
For a lot of people who grew up in the ’90s, the songs from iconic Disney movies remain on their playlists even to this day. Of course, great soundtracks in animated movies aren’t just limited to Disney films. Some modern non-Disney releases have featured some unbelievable soundtracks, including the biggest Netflix movie in history.
Entergalactic (2022)
One of those aforementioned modern movies to boast a great soundtrack is Entergalactic. This film flew under the radar upon its release but it deserves more appreciation because of the impressive visual style, fantastic voice cast, and engaging, relatable storyline.
As good as those aspects are, Entergalactic’s best feature is the soundtrack. Rapper Kid Cudi created the film, so the soundtrack actually doubles as the star’s eighth studio album. Along with Cudi’s stellar skills on display, the soundtrack features 2 Chainz, Steve Aoki, and more.
On top of simply being a soundtrack filled with great songs, each song perfectly captures the mood of Entergalactic. There’s a smooth, mellow nature to everything from “New Mode” to “Willing to Trust” to “She’s Lookin’ For Me.” It all comes together to make for a truly special experience on Netflix.
A Goofy Movie (1995)
It stands to reason that A Goofy Movie is Disney’s most underrated film in history. Although it was released in 1995, A Goofy Movie was produced by Walt Disney Television Animation rather than the main studio, so it’s not considered part of the Renaissance Era, which ran from 1989 through 1999.
One aspect of A Goofy Movie that has withstood the test of time is the soundtrack. A key storyline sees the characters end up as a concert for Powerline, a pop star in the film’s universe. His songs are some of the best ever featured in a Disney movie.
Those two songs are “I2I” and “Stand Out,” which are both remarkable. They sound like actual hits that would be played over and over on the radio. It helped to have Tevin Campbell performing the singing voice. The rest of the soundtrack is also strong, but it’s those two tracks that are the highlights.
Beauty And The Beast (1991)
Early on in the Disney Renaissance Run, Beauty and the Beast made history. It became the first animated movie to win the Golden Globe for Best Picture – Musical or Comedy and the first to be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. While it didn’t win that Oscar, it did take home the prize for Best Original Song.
The song that won the award was “Beauty and the Beast,” which was magically played on the big screen during one of the film’s most emotional moments. The soundtrack to Beauty and the Beast goes much deeper than just that award-winning hit, though.
In fact, Beauty and the Beast was the rare film to receive multiple nominations for Best Original Song, as both “Be Our Guest” and “Belle” were up for the award. Those three songs are enough to make this one of the best soundtracks in any movie, animated or not.
The Little Mermaid (1989)
The Disney Renaissance Era began in 1989 with The Little Mermaid and it started a trend for the studio. Not only were these films major hits but the soundtracks ultimately played a huge part in their successes and it all started with The Little Mermaid.
Like Beauty and the Beast that came after it, The Little Mermaid won Best Original Song at the Oscars for “Under the Sea,” the upbeat tune sung by Sebastian. It also earned a second nomination in that category for Sebastian’s other great song, “Kiss the Girl.” However, that’s just the tip of the iceberg for the soundtrack.
The Little Mermaid also boasts several other fantastic songs. There’s Ariel’s “Part of Your World,” which is still great today, and Halle Bailey’s 2023 version might even be better, which is impressive. There’s also Ursula’s “Poor Unfortunate Soul,” which has gone down as one of the best Disney villain songs ever.
Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse (2018)
There’s an undeniable level of cool that comes with Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. From the incredible visual style to the unique cast of characters to the uplifting heroic story at the center of Miles Morales. That said, the coolest thing about this movie is likely the soundtrack.
Although Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse wasn’t nominated for any musical Oscars (though it did win Best Animated Feature), the soundtrack is filled with tremendous music. “Sunflower” is the biggest hit of the bunch, still ranking near the top of Spotify’s most-played songs of all time.
There’s also “What’s Up Danger,” which plays during the film’s most iconic scene, and “Hide,” an emotional track from the late Juice Wrld. Add in the powerful “Start a Riot,” the cool vibes of “Familia,” and Vince Staples’ memorable track “Home,” and this is a soundtrack without a single skip on the tracklist.
Aladdin (1992)
Expectations were as high as ever for Aladdin since it followed the mᴀssive critical acclaim that was Beauty and the Beast. Thankfully, Aladdin lived up to those lofty heights by delivering a stellar movie and topping it off with an iconic soundtrack.
Aladdin was part of Disney’s streak of having a movie with multiple songs nominated for the Best Original Song Academy Award, as two tracks found their way into the category. They were Robin Williams’ catchy “Friend Like Me,” and the winner, the emotionally gripping “A Whole New World.”
Again, both are considered among the best Disney songs of all time. There are a handful of other really strong songs on this soundtrack, though, with the standouts being Williams’ performance in “Prince Ali” and Aladdin’s personal intro song, “One Jump Ahead,” which shows off his life as a man always on the run.
The Lion King (1994)
The peak of the much-talked-about Disney Renaissance Era came with 1994’s The Lion King. Not only was this an original story, not being based on an existing fairy tale or anything like that, but it went on to become the biggest hit that has grossed nearly $1 billion and spawned sequels, remakes, a Broadway musical, and more.
Again, music played a mᴀssive part in the rousing success that was The Lion King. The soundtrack is as good as it gets, with a whopping three tunes nominated for Best Original Song at the Oscars, including “Circle of Life,” “Can You Feel the Love Tonight,” (which won) and “Hakuna Matata.”
Those three songs are all very important in cinematic history, working as emotionally uplifting songs and, for “Hakuna Matata,” a fun upbeat track. That said, the soundtrack is also home to “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King,” which might be the movie’s most memorable song of all.
Encanto (2021)
These days, there’s likely no bigger name in movie songwriting than Lin-Manuel Miranda. The man behind the greatness of Hamilton and In the Heights has handled songwriting for several movies, including the hit Moana (which was heavily considered for this list).
Miranda’s talents have been on display for a few animated movies (including the underrated Vivo) but his greatest work in that medium has to be Encanto. The movie being focused on a Colombian family allowed Miranda to draw from his own Latin roots, which is infused in every song on this film’s masterful soundtrack.
The emotional “Dos Ortugitas” was nominated for Best Original Song, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” became a mᴀssive hit that received radio play, and “The Family Madrigal” is a perfect introduction to the Madrigals. There’s also “What Else Can I Do?” and “Surface Pressure,” performed by two sisters in scene-stealing moments.
KPop Demon Hunters (2025)
Now the most viewed movie in the history of Netflix, KPop Demon Hunters is a cultural phenomenon. Capitalizing on the success of K-pop as a genre and featuring stellar visuals, engaging characters, and fun action sequences, KPop Demon Hunters is inescapable these days.
With the film centering on a popular trio of K-pop singers, making sure the music lived up to that billing was hugely important and they nailed it. Huntr/x, the film’s central trio, has some incredible songs with the biggest hit being “Golden.”
Along with “Golden,” they are also behind the action-packed “Takedown.” Huntr/x isn’t the only band showcased though, as their rivals, the Saja Boys, get some bangers like “Soda Pop” and “Your Idol.” In fact, this is the first soundtrack to have four top 10 hits on the Billboard charts since 1995.
Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse (2023)
While Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse featured a remarkable soundtrack, the sequel Across the Spider-Verse took what worked about that and managed to best it, which isn’t easy. This time around, producer Metro Boomin was behind the curation of the soundtrack and he did masterful work.
Legitimately, every song on the soundtrack is good. “Annihilate” perfectly captures the tone of the franchise, while “Self Love” with Coi Leray is a great theme song for Gwen Stacy. They were also used at great times of the film, like “Silk & Cologne” playing during Miles and Gwen’s bonding scene.
The shining light of the soundtrack is “Am I Dreaming,” the mesmerizing song by ASAP Rocky and Rosiee that plays over the beautifully animated credits sequence. On top of that, the soundtrack also features Lil Uzi Vert, Swae Lee, Lil Wayne, 2 Chainz, and more.
