Now that the first official trailer for Paul Feig’s Ghostbusters reboot has hit the internet, we’re getting a better idea of the kind of over-the-top, supernatural hinjinks we can expect this summer. While the trailer itself is slowly winning people over one by one, we’re left wondering about the movie’s iconic theme song history. Sure, we got a couple key hooks from the melody dropped in the trailer at all the right moments, but the original was a chart-topping Billboard No. 1 for three weeks, and a key element to Ghostbusters as an unstoppable cultural juggernaut as one of the greatest movie themes of all time.
With all that to consider, there’s the question of who’s going to pick up where Ray Parker Jr. (and Bobby Brown, too, we didn’t forget) left off. Taking that into consideration, here are a few artists we’d like to see lend their sound to the new Ghostbusters theme, but before we get to that, here’s the original, for your viewing pleasure.
Now that everyone’s up to speed, here’s our top five picks.
Bruno Mars
For a guy who’s been performing since he was a kid, Mars continues to revel in the public spotlight, and his soulful delivery, not to mention his retro-friendly, high-energy performances, seem like they’d be a natural fit here. They could practically re-create the original video with the new cast and no one would probably mind. Not to mention that Mars himself could stand to be on a movie soundtrack that wasn’t one of the Twilight sequels or Alvin and the Chipmunks: Road Chip.
Kendrick Lamar
With only two studio albums under his belt, including this year’s groundbreaking To Pimp A Butterfly, Lamar has been busy creating headlines with his elaborate, and controversial Grammys performance. This may not seem like a very conventional choice, but as his star continues to rise, it’s intriguing to imagine what exactly he would do given reign over the Ghostbusters theme song. It could be a fun look for an immensely talented guy. He’s already appeared on a film soundtrack with “Backwards” featuring Tame Impala.
Missy Elliott
While she’s stayed busy touring and making guest appearances on a host of other albums, Missy Elliot came back strong with the song “WTF” late last year, then followed that up a few weeks later with “Pep Rally,” which dropped just before the Super Bowl. After almost eight years without an album of her own, making Elliott the new voice of the all-female Ghostbusters franchise seems like a no-brainer and necessary.
Wayne Coyne & Miley Cyrus
As pop music’s currently reigning odd couple, these two seem like they’d embody the same kind of reckless, lighthearted fun that Feig looks to have captured on screen. Aside from their occasional live appearances, the two have been in cahoots recording a seven-song EP for a while now, and certainly aren’t afraid to attempt their own spin on beloved songs. A spot on a movie soundtrack could help re-introduce both of them to a new audience as an unified act, instead of them alienating themselves from each other’s fanbase.
Huey Lewis & The News
This is a perfect choice for one main reason: he’s the song’s rightful heir. Back in 1984, Parker was signed on to write and record a theme for the upcoming movie, and the producers played him “I Want A New Drug” by Huey Lewis & The News for inspiration.
Huey Lewis sued him later that year, citing that the song was a particularly damaging sound-alike due to the film’s popularity, and it was eventually settled out of court. So, it would almost make too much sense to have Huey Lewis record that very song now, even if he was countersued by Parker for breaking their confidentiality agreement in 2001.
