ZAYN AND ZHAVIA WARD TO PERFORM
OSCAR® AND GRAMMY®-WINNING SONG “A WHOLE NEW WORLD” AS FEATURED IN DISNEY’S “ALADDIN”
ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK TO FEATURE CLASSIC SCORE AND ORIGINAL SONGS BY COMPOSER ALAN
MENKEN, LYRICISTS HOWARD ASHMAN AND TIM RICE, PLUS A NEW SONG
WRITTEN BY MENKEN, BENJ PASEK AND JUSTIN PAUL
WILL SMITH AND DJ KHALED TO PERFORM NEW UPDATED RENDITION OF
OSCAR-NOMINATED SONG “FRIEND LIKE ME”
DIGITAL ALBUM SET FOR RELEASE MAY 21
PHYSICAL ALBUM TO BE RELEASED MAY 24
BURBANK, CA – May 9, 2019 – Multi-platinum and global award-winning superstar singer/songwriter ZAYN and emerging sensation singer/songwriter Zhavia Ward are set to perform the Oscar and GRAMMY-winning duet “A Whole New World.” The song will be featured in the film’s end credits and on the Walt Disney Records soundtrack, and is available today as a single and music video, which can be seen here. The new updated rendition of the classic song is produced by Saltwives aka Alex Oriet and David Phelan (ZAYN and Charli XCX) and the music video was directed by Philip Andelman (Beyoncé, Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran).
“The selection of artists, producer and tonal direction was critical for the success of updating a classic song like this,” said Mitchell Leib, president of Music & Soundtracks for the Walt Disney Studios. “ZAYN’s vocals are like no other and his artistic imprint immediately brought a contemporary and diverse presence. Additionally, ZAYN could have chosen any artist in the world to collaborate with on the duet, but he personally selected Zhavia for her unique perspective, powerful vocal abilities and to platform a talented new artist, ensuring that the audience could discover this song, again, for the first time.”
The timeless ballad, featuring Alan Menken’s beautiful melody and Howard Ashman’s unforgettable lyrics, received an Academy Award®, Golden Globe® Award and GRAMMY Award, among other accolades, upon its release in 1992.
The “Aladdin” original motion picture soundtrack features an unforgettable score from eight-time Oscar-winning composer Alan Menken (“Beauty and the Beast,” “The Little Mermaid”), along with new recordings of the original songs written by Menken and two-time Academy Award winner Howard Ashman (“Little Shop of Horrors”), three-time Oscar winner Tim Rice (“The Lion King”) and one song written by Menken and Oscar and Tony Award®-winning songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (“La La Land,” “Dear Evan Hansen”). From Walt Disney Records, the digital soundtrack is set for release on May 21 at 9:00pm PT and will be followed by the physical album on May 24.
A thrilling and vibrant live-action adaptation of Disney’s animated classic, “Aladdin” is the exciting tale of the charming street rat Aladdin, the courageous and self-determined Princess Jasmine and the Genie who may be the key to their future. “Aladdin” opens in U.S. theaters nationwide May 24, 2019.
Oscar-nominated actor and multi-platinum recording artist Will Smith and GRAMMY-nominated superstar songwriter, producer and multi-platinum selling artist DJ Khaled are set to perform a re-invented version of the classic Oscar-nominated song “Friend Like Me.” The song will be featured in the film’s end credit, on the Walt Disney Records soundtrack, and released as a single. The new updated rendition of the song is produced by DJ Khaled.
The new original song featured in the film and included on the soundtrack is “Speechless,” performed by Jasmine (Naomi Scott). The song is Jasmine’s big breakout song in the film about finding her voice, and was written by Alan Menken and songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul.
The Aladdin soundtrack includes “Arabian Nights,” “One Jump Ahead,” “One Jump Ahead (Reprise),” “Speechless” (Part 1), “Friend Like Me,” “Prince Ali,” “A Whole New World,” “One Jump Ahead” (Reprise 2), “Speechless” (Part 2), “A Whole New World” (End Title), “Friend Like Me” (End Title), and “Speechless” (Full), plus 25 score cues composed by Alan Menken.
The Aladdin original motion picture soundtrack physical album is now available for pre-order, pre-add on Apple Music, and pre-save on Spotify. “A Whole New World” is available at streaming and download services. For more information on Walt Disney Records releases, follow us at Facebook.com/Disney, Instagram/disneymusic, Twitter.com/disneymusic and our Disney Hits Playlist at https://disneymusic.co/DisneyHits.
