Grammy-nominated recording artist Masego has signed on to produce the original score for N LITE’s upcoming anime fantasy film Mfinda.
This makes Masego, who is said to be an anime aficionado, the first Black composer to score an anime theatrical film, according to N LITE, a Black-owned media company and anime studio based in the U.S. and Tokyo.
Mfinda, which is in pre-production, hails from Oscar-winning producers and distributors GKIDS (Boy and the Heron), Viola Davis and Julius Tennon’s JuVee Productions and legendary anime producer Masao Maruyama (Tokyo Godfathers). The executive producers include former NBA MVP Joel Embiid and artist-actor-rapper Jaden Smith, who also voices a role in the movie.
The film, created by Patience Lekien and Christiano Terry and co-written by Terry, Donald H. Hewitt (Spirited Away, English Language Version) and Mika Abe (Forest of Piano), follows a 13-year-old Congolese girl who is transported to the Mfinda, a primordial forest of spirits, gods and ancestors. There she meets another young girl from a distant time and sets out to find the magical Nkisi, her only hope of returning home during a time of conflict between humans and the spirits of nature.
Masego is known for pioneering a blend of jazz, R&B, hip-hop and electronic that he’s dubbed “TrapHouseJazz.” His breakthrough came in 2017 with his single “Tadow” with FKJ; he also collaborated with Apple Music on his single “Mystery Lady” in 2021.
For Mfinda, the recording artist is said to be working on music that feels both timeless and forward-leaning while blending music with storytelling. Masego, a fan of anime titles including Howl’s Moving Castle, Solo Leveling and My Hero Academia, said he has always been inspired by the story arcs of the genre.
“Black anime is my internal world, so when Christiano called me to be a part of this, there was nothing to think about: I’m in,” he said. “‘Hey Masego, would you like to compose on this Black anime film, it’s about——’ ‘I’m in.’ That’s how the convo went. Most of my tattoos are from anime, so to be able to create something that could end up a part of someone’s identity feels good. I’m happy to play my part in crafting a sound the culture will be proud of.”
Said Terry: “Masego is one of my favorite artists of all time and it is an honor to welcome him as composer on Mfinda. We hope for the audience to experience music in Mfinda’s score that they’ll never forget.”
Masego will be joined by Ozie Cargile, musical director at N LITE, to help create the score. Cargile is a composer and 2019 Sundance Fellow known for his symphonic pieces Creation of the Universe (2003) and Audacity of Hope (2009). Cargile previously collaborated with Joseph Gordon-Levitt on the animated short Strawberry Bootlaces (2012) and on the short film Flames (2021) with executive producer Lena Waithe.
