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Beangrowers feature in Marcia Gay Harden film
Malta’s veteran indie act The Beangrowers have once again made their way to Hollywood, as one of their songs can now be heard during the end credits of the indie comedy-drama If I Were You, starring Marcia Gay Harden. They speak to us about scoring this opportunity.
29 May 2014, 7:30am
Teodor Reljic
Teodor Reljic
2 min read
The Beangrowers’s song ‘Life’s a bitch and she sings in your band’ can be heard during the end credits of If I Were You, starring Marcia Gay Harden
How did Beangrowers make their way onto the soundtrack of the film? What was the process like?
We were approached by the director Joan Carr-Wiggin, and her husband, producer, David Gordian, because both are big fans of the band apparently.
If I'm not mistaken this isn't the first time that the Beanies were featured on a movie soundtrack [please specify which films]. What was the process of getting them on board like, in each particular case?
The biggest honour so far was for ‘The Priest’ to be included in the soundtrack of a Wim Wenders film called Land of Plenty back in 2004, together with Leonard Cohen and David Bowie, who also featured on the soundtrack of the same film. ‘You Are You Are’ also featured in the Ghost Whisperer TV series.
There were also two more productions: Wildfire (TV series) used ‘You Are You Are’ in 2007, while Love Me (film) used ‘The Priest’ and ‘Waltz’ in 2012. The first time Beangrowers featured on a film soundtrack was in 1998 when ‘Feel’ was chosed for a German film called Liebe Deine Naechste. These soundtrack inclusions always came by surprise and by invitation and in each case so far, we were pleased to accept.
How would you say the song fits with the overall soundtrack of the film, and the film itself?
In If I Were You our song ‘Life’s A Bitch Then She Sings in Your Band’ features in the end credits and the lyrics really fit to the message of the film actually. Our song is about the positivity and strength that we find after a failed relationship. This is what the two main female characters of the film go through and “it all works out in the end”.
The song was made available for the film "under exclusive licence and publishing for North America by Minty Fresh". Could you elaborate on what this means, exactly, and how the Beangrowers managed to acquire American distribution?
Minty Fresh are the record label that we work with in North America. We released ‘Not In A Million Lovers’ on Minty Fresh in 2008. The track chosed for this film is from that album.
What do you think other local musicians can do to achieve the same level of international success as the Beangrowers?
There is no secret to success nor can anyone follow the exact same path. It takes hard work, dedication and the will to be a good ambassador to your own art.
Teodor Reljić was born in Belgrade, Serbia and raised in Malta. He writes fiction across ...
