You know that feeling when a movie is fine, maybe even great, but the music is what actually stays in your brain for a week? That’s exactly what happened with Paul Feig’s 2013 buddy-cop flick. Honestly, the soundtrack from the movie The Heat does more heavy lifting for the film’s vibe than most people realize. It’s not just background noise. It is a gritty, funk-heavy, soulful explosion that makes Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy look ten times cooler than they already are.
Movies like this usually play it safe. They go for generic orchestral swells or whatever Top 40 hit is bubbling under the charts at the time. But The Heat? It went deep into the crates. We’re talking 1970s soul, hard-hitting funk, and even some old-school hip-hop that feels like it was ripped straight out of a sweaty Boston basement. It’s loud. It’s abrasive. It’s perfect.
The Soulful Chaos of the Heat Soundtrack
The music supervisor, Mike Knobloch, and the director didn't just pick songs they liked. They picked songs that felt like McCarthy’s character, Mullins. If you’ve seen the movie, you know Mullins is a wrecking ball in a track jacket. She doesn't do "subtle." So, the music doesn't either.
The opening of the film sets the tone immediately with "Fight the Power" by The Isley Brothers. It’s a statement. It’s got that distorted bassline that vibrates your teeth. It tells you right away that this isn't going to be a "polite" female-led comedy. It’s a movie about two women who are essentially outcasts in a hyper-masculine world of law enforcement. The funk underscores that rebellion.
But then you get these weird, beautiful pivots. One minute you're listening to the brassy stabs of "Pick Up the Pieces" by Average White Band, and the next, you're hit with "Groove Is in the Heart" by Deee-Lite. It’s a chaotic mix, but it mirrors the friction between Bullock’s stiff, by-the-book Ashburn and McCarthy’s wild-card energy.
Why 70s Funk Works for Modern Cops
There’s a long history of pairing funk with police procedurals. Think about Starsky & Hutch or The French Connection. There is something about a wah-wah pedal and a syncopated drum beat that makes a car chase feel more dangerous. In the soundtrack from the movie The Heat, this choice feels like a nod to the classic "tough guy" cinema of the 70s, but it flips the script by applying that swagger to two women.
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Take "The Rock" by East L.A. Car Pool. It’s an obscure track. Most people haven't heard it outside of this film. But it has this relentless, driving percussion that makes a simple scene of driving through the streets of Boston feel like a high-stakes mission. It’s about the attitude.
- "Fight the Power (Part 1 & 2)" – The Isley Brothers
- "Every Little Bit Hurts" – Brenda Holloway
- "Express Yourself" (Remix) – N.W.A
- "Rock Me Again & Again & Again & Again & Again & Again" – Lyn Collins
The Lyn Collins track is a standout. If you recognize the "It takes two to make a thing go right" sample from Rob Base and DJ EZ Rock, this is where it came from. Putting the original 1972 James Brown-produced version in the movie gives it a raw, authentic texture that a modern pop song just couldn't achieve.
The Bar Scene and the Emotional Pivot
Everyone remembers the bar scene. It’s the moment Ashburn finally lets her hair down—literally—and gets drunk with Mullins. They’re dancing, they’ve got Scotch tape on their faces, and they’re singing along to "I'll Take You There" by The Staple Singers.
It’s a cliché to say music brings people together, but in this movie, it’s the literal truth. That song is a gospel-soul masterpiece. It’s warm. It’s inviting. It acts as the bridge between two characters who spent the first hour of the movie trying to sabotage each other. The soundtrack isn't just accompanying the story here; it's driving the character development.
Then there’s the use of "A Little Less Conversation." It’s been used in a million movies (looking at you, Ocean’s Eleven), but here it’s the JXL Radio Edit Remix. It’s fast-paced. It’s kinetic. It captures that frantic energy of a comedy that is trying to keep its foot on the gas.
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The Nuance of Boston and Santigold
Since the movie is set in Boston, you’d expect a bunch of Dropkick Murphys or Aerosmith. Thankfully, they avoided the obvious. Instead, they went with a more eclectic, urban feel.
Santigold’s "Disparate Youth" is a brilliant inclusion. It’s got that reggae-tinged, indie-electronic vibe that feels very "cool city" without being a "Boston cliché." It plays during a transition, and it completely shifts the mood from the gritty funk of the previous scenes into something more modern and sleek. It reminds the audience that while these characters are channeling 70s grit, they are still living in the present day.
Behind the Scenes: The Composition
While the licensed songs get all the glory, we shouldn't ignore the original score by Michael Andrews. He’s the guy who did the music for Donnie Darko and Bridesmaids.
Andrews didn't go for a big, sweeping orchestra. Instead, he leaned into the "cop show" aesthetic. He used vintage synthesizers, live drums, and distorted guitars. The score feels "handmade." It doesn't sound like it was programmed on a laptop in a weekend. It sounds like a band in a garage trying to write a theme for a 1970s detective show. This handmade quality is why the soundtrack from the movie The Heat feels so much more authentic than your average studio comedy.
- The score was recorded with a focus on live instrumentation to maintain a "raw" sound.
- Many of the funk tracks were selected specifically to match Melissa McCarthy’s improvisational timing.
- The contrast between the "slick" Santigold tracks and the "dirty" Isley Brothers tracks was an intentional choice to represent the two main characters.
The Forgotten Gems
One of the best things about this soundtrack is that it introduces younger audiences to tracks they might have missed. "68 Guns" by The Alarm? That’s an 80s alt-rock anthem that fits perfectly with the movie’s themes of outsiders sticking together. It’s got that big, anthemic chorus that makes you want to pump your fist.
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And then there's "Coming Home" by Sasha Dobson. It’s quieter. It’s a bit more melancholic. It provides a necessary breather in a movie that is otherwise screaming at you (in a good way). It shows that the curators of this soundtrack understood pacing. You can't have 117 minutes of high-octane funk; you need the valleys to make the peaks feel higher.
Why This Matters for Your Playlist
If you’re tired of the same old algorithm-generated playlists, looking at the tracklist for The Heat is a goldmine. It’s a lesson in genre-blending. It proves that you can put N.W.A right next to Brenda Holloway and it will work, as long as the "soul" of the music is consistent.
Most soundtracks are marketing tools. They’re designed to sell a single or promote a new artist on the studio’s label. The Heat feels different. It feels like a mixtape your coolest, slightly-unhinged friend made for you. It has personality. It has flaws. It has a lot of bass.
The reality is that the soundtrack from the movie The Heat aged better than a lot of the comedies from that era because it didn't rely on "trendy" sounds. Funk is timeless. Soul is timeless. By leaning into the past, the movie created something that still feels fresh over a decade later.
Actionable Steps for Music Lovers
If you want to dive deeper into this vibe, don't just stop at the official soundtrack release. The official album actually leaves out several great songs heard in the film. To get the full experience, you should:
- Search for "The Heat Complete Score": Look for the Michael Andrews tracks that weren't on the pop-heavy commercial release. They’re great for productivity or driving.
- Explore the Isley Brothers’ 1970s Discography: If you liked "Fight the Power," check out the albums 3+3 and The Heat Is On (coincidentally titled).
- Check out Stax Records Playlists: A lot of the DNA of this movie’s sound comes from the Stax era of soul. Look for artists like Sam & Dave or The Bar-Kays.
- Build a "Mullins" Playlist: Combine the high-energy funk tracks from the movie with modern brass-heavy bands like Lettuce or The Budos Band to keep that energy going.
The music isn't just a background element in this film. It’s a character. It’s the third lead alongside Bullock and McCarthy. Without that specific, gritty, soulful sound, the movie would just be another funny comedy. With it, it becomes a tribute to a specific kind of toughness that doesn't go out of style.