Jocelyn's story might be off to a contentious start, but viewers are relishing in The Idol soundtrack. (Well, at least what they've heard thus far.)
For weeks, The Idol controversy has dominated headlines, but when the MAX miniseries by Sam Levinson, Reza Fahim and The Weeknd (Abel Tesfaye) premiered on Sunday, June 4, viewers listened up. Regardless of how they felt about the show's explicit content, they seemed to be in favor of its musical accompaniment.
The Idol follows up-and-coming pop star Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp), who crosses paths with a tainted nightclub owner and cult leader, Tedros (Tesfaye), so track lists were going to be an incredibly important part of the storyline. (Here's who The Idol is based on, by the way.) In fact, The Idol Vol. 1 promises a bunch of playlist-worthy tracks you probably won't want to miss.
"There’s a whole album. I’m not shying away from making music. It’s just adding another element to my already crowded schedule," Tesfaye told Interview about the album he's curated for the show.
'The Idol' soundtrack: here's how to listen
Although The Idol has already premiered—and new episodes will stream on a weekly basis—The Idol Vol. 1 won't be released until Friday, June 30. You can pre-order it on The Weeknd's website.
Judging from the initial song selections featured in the pilot episode (listed below) and Tesfaye's interview, where he states he took inspiration from Prince's Purple Rain and Pink Floyd's The Wall, fans are curious to hear more.
"What I know is that I do challenge myself, and this was a challenge," Tesfaye further revealed to Interview. "This was something that I’ve always wanted to do. Film and TV, mainly film, has always been kind of the heartbeat of everything I do artistically."
(By the way, if you were wondering if Lily-Rose Depp is really singing, we have the intel.)
'The Idol' soundtrack: released tracks
Though we're still waiting for the album in its entirety, The Weeknd did drop a few original tracks from the album on his YouTube page. You can have a listen to "Popular (Visualizer)" and "Double Fantasy" below.
Songs in 'The Idol' episode 1
- “Criminal” by Fiona Apple
- “Super Freaky Girl” by Nicki Minaj
- “Andromeda” by Ethel
- “Like A Prayer” by Madonna
- “Telegram Sam” by T. Rex
- “On My Mind” by Diplo
- “I Put Something In Your Drink” by Ramsey
- “Piece Of Your Heart” by Meduza
- “From Death” by Mike Dean
- “Darling Nikki” by Prince
If you're more interested in the fashion featured on the show, check out how to get a pair of Lily-Rose Depp's sunglasses from The Idol and the buzzy Lily-Rose Depp bikini lookalike—but keep in mind that you'll definitely need a large helping of SPF for that skimpy number.
