I May Destroy You: the soundtrack you need to add to your summer 2020 playlist

Michaela Coel in I May Destroy You.

Credit: BBC

Life


I May Destroy You: the soundtrack you need to add to your summer 2020 playlist

By Hollie Richardson

5 years ago

Anyone who’s been watching I May Destroy You will want to plug into the soundtrack, so we rounded up the show’s songs for the ultimate playlist.

It’s official: I May Destroy You is one of the most important, gripping and truly unique series of 2020. 

Created by Michaela Cole, who also stars in the lead role, the series takes us on a nuanced and raw exploration of consent, race and feminism in the digital age. From period sex to male rape, each episode punches viewers with stigmatised issues that we must continue to challenge and openly talk about.

Sure, it hits all the big issues. But the other thing that people are praising the series for is it’s brilliant soundtrack. Each episode features tune after tune after tune. And the soundtrack features a number of excellent black, female musicians, including Little Simz, Sampa the Great and Abra.

The soundtrack is available to download and listen to on Spotify and BBC Sounds. Let’s take a look at the full song list and some of the key scenes they accompany in the series. 

Picture Perfect by Little Simz

This is the song we hear in the trailer for I May Destroy You, setting the scene for the show’s east-London backdrop.

This plays when we flashback to Arabella’s time in Italy with her on/off boyfriend.

Arabella dances to this iconic 00s tune on the night of her writing deadline and assault.

This rendition of gospel legend Milton Brown’s It’s Gonna Rain plays as Arabella stumbles out of the club on the night of her attack, and it plays again throughout the series.

Images: BBC

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