Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1345045
2021 SCL AWARDS I 19 Blanchard and Lee's body of work contains over 20 movies whose impact pushes past the boundaries of filmmaking and into issues of social justice, race relations, and lessons in history. Whether through dramas like their most recent collaboration, Da 5 Bloods, or documentaries like When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts, their collaborations exhibit Lee's powerfully woven, visually compelling narratives coming to life with Blanchard's imaginative, expressive scores. When the two colleagues and friends spoke with the SCL's Score magazine in January, the reasons for their longstanding collaborative success became clear in their interaction. Expressing respect and admiration for each other's work, Blanchard and Lee have shared a strong sense of camaraderie and a commitment to artistry since their early career days in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. Their artistic relationship began with Blanchard as a trumpet player on the scores for Lee's first few films, which Spike's father, jazz musician Bill Lee, had composed. It developed into a scoring relationship when Spike heard Terence play an original piece at the recording sessions for 1990's Mo' Better Blues. Lee called that moment magical during The Score interview. He remembered, "Terence was at the piano and he was playing this melody. I said, 'Hold up! Hold up! What is that?' He said, 'Oh, a little something.' I said, 'Oh, don't give me a little something, something. That's just great! What is it?' 'It's called, "Sing, Soweto."' And that became, really, Bleek's theme." The thing about our relationship is that Spike always challenges me. " " –TERENCE BLANCHARD