Composing duo Barlow & Bear makes history writing soundtrack to 'Moana 2'

Tuesday, November 19, 2024
Composing duo makes history writing soundtrack to 'Moana 2'
Fans have been anxiously waiting eight years to return to Motunui with beloved characters Moana and Maui.

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Fans have been anxiously waiting eight years to return to Motunui with beloved characters Moana and Maui.

New week, 'Moana 2' takes us back for a whole new adventure set to an exciting new soundtrack.

The team of composers for this animated Disney sequel is not only writing history with the score, but they're also shattering glass ceilings.

Grammy Award-winning musical duo Barlow & Bear say they're picking up where Lin-Manuel Miranda left off in 'Moana.'

Abigail Barlow, 26, and Emily Bear, 23, are making history with this musical moment. They are the youngest composers to write all of the songs for an animated Disney film, and the first female writing team to do so.

"Working with Disney been the honor of a lifetime," Bear told Action News.

"It's wild," Barlow added. "It's magical. Pixie dust does exist!"

Barlow and Bear are both accomplished musicians in their own right. The duo first met when they had a chance encounter in Los Angeles, California, about two years ago.

"It was one of those kismet things," said Bear. "Whatever scratched her brain also scratched my brain. We started writing and it was so much fun."

They later won a Grammy for their first collaboration called 'The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical Album.'

In this collective moment, they said their journey feels a lot like Moana's.

"We see ourselves in Moana," said Bear. "We feel very, very deeply grateful that we get to share her story. We love her, she's a peer. I think so many times in my life, I've been the only girl in the room, and so to do this with Abigail, and see ourselves in each other and in Moana, it's wonderful."

'Moana 2' opens in theaters on November 27.

You can also catch a special performance by Barlow and Bear in the 6abc Dunkin' Thanksgiving Day Parade.

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