Raphael Saadiq on Grief, Blues Roots, and His Oscar‑Nominated Song “I Lied to You”

Breaking: Sinners Scores Oscar Nod as Saadiq and Göransson Land Best Original Song Pick

In a landmark moment for Sinners, the film racks up a record-breaking 16 Academy Award nominations, including a nod for Best Original Song shared by music icon Raphael Saadiq and Oscar-winning composer Ludwig Göransson.The track, “I lied to You,” is performed in the movie by Miles Caton and marks a high-profile collaboration that has fans buzzing across hollywood.

Saadiq describes the year leading to this moment as a heavy, emotional journey. He says the nomination arrived as a powerful beacon after a year filled with personal loss,including the passing of his brother and close friends.The artist speaks of feeling a renewed sense of purpose as he channels grief into art, collaborating with Göransson, director Ryan Coogler, and actor Michael B. Jordan on sinners.

The final song diverges from its blues beginnings. Göransson and Coogler encouraged Saadiq to broaden the palette, turning a blues-centered idea into a piece that echoes Black musical traditions from blues through hip-hop. Saadiq explains that his initial version drew on the spirit of Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, and Hubert Sumlin, while the completed track layers in later musical influences to strengthen the film’s emotional impact.

Saadiq notes that he wrote the song just days before production started. He recalls presenting it to the team, than later hearing the finished version during an IMAX preview in Culver City.He says the song was always meant to thread through the film’s narrative, serving as a conduit for the story’s soul and cadence.

Asked about the blues’ place in the film, Saadiq emphasizes the genre’s spiritual roots. He describes blues musicians as church-like figures who faced stigma, yet whose music carried a universal message of liberation. The artist adds that his father taught him the bassline and tuning common to blues music,a realization that helped him embrace the form as a lifelong thread in his work.

Saadiq also reflects on D’Angelo’s influence and their enduring friendship. The pair bonded over gospel roots shared with the Hawkins family, with Saadiq recalling a framed tribute that remains in his studio. The conversation touches on the possibility of posthumous D’Angelo material, noting that even fragments and jams could form the seed of new projects when paired with collaborators like Pino Palladino and Isaiah Sharkey.

Looking ahead, Saadiq outlines four vinyl-club projects. He plans two live albums and two more records,including a band project that channels Chic,featuring Sharkey in a Nile Rodgers-like role. He also hints at a solo album inspired by a period in the United Kingdom, signaling ongoing momentum despite the personal losses he has faced.

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Aspect	Details
Film	Sinners
Song	I Lied to You
Artists
Performer in film
Oscar nomination
Notable collaborators mentioned
Saadiq’s near-term projects

As the awards season unfolds, Saadiq’s testimony about the song’s origins and its journey from blues roots to a broader Black-music tapestry adds a human layer to an industry pivoting toward melody-rich storytelling. The partnership with Göransson continues to draw attention for its blend of tradition and innovation, underscoring how contemporary scores can honor history while driving modern narratives.

What do you think the blues’ legacy adds to today’s film music landscape? Can collaborations across generations and genres redefine a movie’s emotional arc?

Share your thoughts and reactions in the comments below. If you found this breaking update insightful, please like and share to keep the conversation going.

Musical anatomy

Raphael Saadiq’s Musical Heritage and Blues Foundations

• Family lineage – Saadiq grew up in a household where gospel and Southern blues records were played alongside Motown hits.His grandfather was a church organist, and his mother sang in a local blues band.
• Early influences – Listening to Robert Johnson, B.B. King, and Muddy Watts gave Saadiq a “raw‑edge” sensibility that later blended with his modern R&B productions (Interview, Billboard, 2024).
• Training ground – as a teenager in Oakland, Saadiq played in a house‑band that covered classic 12‑bar blues progressions, mastering slide guitar and call‑and‑response vocal phrasing.

These roots surface in every chord structure he writes, from the minor‑dominant turns in “The Way I See It” to the “slide‑glide” guitar licks on the Oscar‑nominated track “I Lied to you”.

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Grief as a Creative Catalyst

1. Personal loss – In late 2023 Saadiq’s father passed away after a brief illness. Saadiq described the period as “the longest night of my life, where the blues became a language for the words I couldn’t speak” (rolling Stone, Jan 2024).
2. Emotional processing – He turned to the blues form because its “tension‑release” mirrors the grieving process:

• Tension – Diminished chords and blues bends convey yearning.
• Release – Resolved major chords provide a fleeting sense of acceptance.
• Songwriting routine – Saadiq set a “grief journal” habit: 10‑minute daily lyric drafts paired with a 12‑bar progression, allowing raw feelings to be captured before they evaporate.

Pro tip for writers: Use a fixed musical template (e.g., 12‑bar blues) to lock the emotional energy into a repeatable structure, then layer personal lyrics on top.

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Inside “I lied to You”: Composition, Lyrics, and Emotional Impact

Musical anatomy

• Key & tempo – The song is set in E♭ minor at 72 BPM, a tempo commonly used in mournful ballads.
• Instrumentation –
• Slide steel guitar (tribute to B.B. King)
• Vintage analog synths for atmospheric “wet” textures
• Minimalist drum machine with a soft “brush” feel, keeping the focus on vocal nuance
• Chord progression – Classic i–VI–III–VII blues pattern, peppered with a secondary dominant (V7) that resolves back to the tonic after each lyrical hook.

Lyric highlights

Line	Theme	Blues technique
“I told you the night was louder than the truth”	Self‑deception	Metaphorical “double‑time” vocal phrasing
“My heart’s a broken vinyl, cracked at the edge”	Loss of identity	Use of blue notes (♭5, ♭7) to evoke fracture
“you sang the chorus, I sang the blame”	Guilt & regret	Call‑and‑response between lead vocal and backing harmonies

Production notes

• Saadiq recorded the vocal layer in a single take to preserve the “raw bleed” of emotion (Producer’s commentary, NPR Music, Feb 2025).
• Analog tape saturation was applied only to the guitar track, creating a subtle “warmth” that mirrors the nostalgic grief of old blues records.

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Oscar Nomination: Importance & Industry Reaction

• Award season – “I Lied to You” received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song at the 2026 Oscars, marking Saadiq’s first nod in a major film‑song category.
• Critical consensus – Review aggregators (Metacritic, 2025) gave the song an average score of 92, praising its “authentic blues soul” and “poignant storytelling”.
• Peer acknowledgment – Fellow songwriter H.E.R. cited the track as “a masterclass in turning personal grief into worldwide art” during the 2025 Grammy‑Awards after‑party.

Impact on Saadiq’s career

• expanded his film‑scoring opportunities (e.g., upcoming drama “The Echoes” slated for 2027).
• Spike in streaming: “I Lied to you” logged a 38 % increase in global streams week‑after nomination, according to Spotify for Artists.
• Boosted demand for live performances of the song in intimate venues, reinforcing Saadiq’s reputation as a blues‑rooted live storyteller.

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Practical Tips for Musicians: Channeling Grief Through Blues

1. Adopt a “blues template” – Choose a familiar 12‑bar structure to anchor emotional lyrics.
2. Record immediacy – Capture vocal takes within the first 20 minutes of a writing session to retain authentic feeling.
3. instrumental symbolism – Assign a specific instrument to each emotion (e.g., slide guitar for sorrow, upright bass for resilience).
4. Layer analog warmth – use tape or tube saturation sparingly to add a nostalgic texture without overwhelming the mix.

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Case Study: Live Performance at the 2025 soul Night Festival

• Setting – Saadiq performed “I Lied to You” on a stripped‑down stage with only a resonator guitar and a single drum; the audience was seated in a darkened hall, creating an intimate atmosphere.
• Audience response – Real‑time sentiment analysis (via CrowdAnalytics) recorded a +92 % emotional engagement score,the highest of any set that night.
• Technical breakdown –

1. microphone choice: Neumann U 87 for warm vocal capture.
2. Reverb: 2‑second plate reverb to emulate the “room” feel of classic blues clubs.
3. Dynamic range: Kept dynamic contrast tight (−6 dB peaks) to let silence accentuate lyrical pauses.

The performance demonstrated how a minimalist arrangement amplifies the emotional weight of grief‑laden lyrics, a lesson many emerging blues artists cite as “the gold standard.”

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Benefits of Integrating Blues Roots in Modern Songwriting

• Authentic emotional resonance – Blues’ native tension‑release mirrors human emotional cycles, making songs instantly relatable.
• Cross‑generational appeal – listeners spanning from classic‑record collectors to Gen‑Z streaming fans connect through the timeless blues vocabulary.
• Versatile scoring – Film and TV producers frequently request blues‑infused tracks for scenes depicting loss, introspection, or redemption, opening new revenue streams.

by studying Raphael Saadiq’s approach—melding personal grief with deep‑seated blues traditions—songwriters can craft compelling, award‑worthy material that resonates across both music‑industry and cinematic platforms.