The songs that have inspired Emma Stone’s career
The American actor Emma Stone has suddenly become a Hollywood darling comparable to the might of one Meryl Streep, winning almost every Oscar she finds herself nominated for. While her most recent came in 2024 for Yorgos Lanthimos’ Poor Things, it was her first that would truly set her off on a path of success, earning an Academy award for her performance in the frenetic modern musical La La Land in 2016.
Playing a struggling actor in contemporary Los Angeles, Stone’s Mia falls into the path of pianist Sebastian, played by Ryan Gosling, with the pair fighting to get to the top of their respective industries despite the fight. Falling in love while trying to set a plan in place for the future, the film harks back to the classic musicals of Hollywood’s Golden Age, such as Singin’ in the Rain and Gold Diggers of 1933.
Yet, Stone had long been interested in the world of musical theatre before she claimed an Oscar for her role in Damien Chazelle’s movie, appearing on Broadway in 2014, where she starred as Sally Bowles in Cabaret. Getting in the right mood to play the character, she listened to a live performance of ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’ by Judy Garland in her dressing room, along with Ella Fitzgerald’s ‘It’s Only a Paper Moon’, as detailed to Entertainment Weekly.
Indeed, the world of music has been a constant influence for Stone, claiming that it’s “really good for helping you zone the hell out,” with this being true of many of her most critically acclaimed performances.
In 2011’s ‘Best Picture’ nominee, The Help, Stone further recalled that she would sit in a yellow Volkswagen Beetle on a daily basis behind the scenes, “and I would listen to ‘Sleigh Bells’ really, really loud to wake myself up”. It’s not exactly clear whether the classic Christmas hit was used as inspiration for her upbeat character or whether she was simply bored to sleep on the set. What makes her decision all the more curious is that the movie wasn’t even filmed around Christmas time.
Sometimes Stone curates her own playlists of music, including songs from Les Miserables, which she claimed made her understand “the power of music,” as well as eyebrow-raising Christmas tunes. Such an odyssey of music-loving must have led the actor to think of herself as some sort of maestro, with Stone actually recommending such songs as ‘Sour Cherry’ by the Kills and ‘Timebomb’ by Beck to be used in the 2008 film The House Bunny.
When speaking in a separate interview with British Vogue, the actor cast more light on some of her favourite songs, stating that Nancy Sinatra’s ‘These Boots Are Made For Walking’ and Cat Stevens’ ‘Where Do The Children Play’ were some of her favourite karaoke tracks. Clearly, music has played a crucial role in shaping and inspiring Stone’s life from Broadway to La La Land.
