Taylor Swift, Kid Cudi, Maroon 5 and other top groups have helped power “The Hunger Games” soundtrack up the charts at iTunes and amazon.com, a solidly positive sign–as if it needed one.
The movie opens on Friday (Mar. 23). Sellouts are predicted nationwide, and some estimates place the opening weekend box office as high as $100 million.
The Hunger Games album went on sale at midnight today (Mar. 20) and rose to No. 4 on iTunes best-selling albums list. It hit No. 5 on amazon’s list and shot to No. 1 for soundtrack albums, according to Deadline.com.
Swift released “Safe & Sound,” the first official song off the soundtrack in December. It’s a country-inflected ballad with accompaniment by country band The Civil Wars.
The Hunger Games’ Track List
1. Taylor Swift: (Civil Wars), ‘Safe & Sound”
2. Taylor Swift: “Eyes Wide Open”
3. Arcade Fire: “Abraham’s Daughter”
4. Kid Cudi: “The Ruler & The Killer”
5. Miranda Lambert: (Feat. Pistol Annies), “Run Daddy Run”
6. The Civil Wars: “Kingdom Come”
7. The Decemberists: “One Engine”
8. Glen Hansard: “Take the Heartland”
9. The Low Anthem: “Lover Is Childlike”
10. Punch Brothers: “Dark Days”
11. Secret Sisters: “Tomorrow Will Be Kinder”
12. Birdy: “Just a Game”
13. Maroon 5: (fea. Rozzi Crane), “Come Away To The Water”
14. Jayme Dee: “Rules”
15. Carolina Chocolate Drops: “Reaping Day”
16. Neko Case: “Give Me Something I’ll Remember”
She followed up on Valentine’s Day in February with the release of a video based on the song. In the video, Swift walks through woods and meadows while the haunting single plays.
Last week, Swift’s second song off “The Hunger Games” soundtrack leaked. Called “Eyes Open,” it’s a driving rock-influenced pop song with full instrumentation.
A third song from the soundtrack, Kid Cudi’s “The Ruler & The Killer” also went viral. A driving drum beat opens the song, while Cudi chants and moans creating an equally haunting effect. After all, the movie is pretty fatalistic.
Kid Cudi reps for hip-hop on the soundtrack. Indie rockers Arcade Fire and country star Miranda Lambert also contribute tunes. Neko Case, Grammy-nominated The Decemberists, and Academy Award winner Glen Hansard of the Swell Season also contribute.
Sting has recorded a track for the film’s companion album The Hunger Games: Songs From District 12 And Beyond, according to deadline.
The bonus track will be available March 27th via download but only if customers purchase the companion album.
The movie, based on a series of novels by Suzanne Collins, is about a life and death struggle staged like a game show. It unfolds in a strange post-apocalyptic land that was once the United States.
The movie stars Jennifer Lawrence, Woody Harrelson, Liam Hemsworth, Elizabeth Banks, Willow Shields and Elizabeth Banks.