star trek musical charts

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Explores New Territory After Topping Music Streaming Charts

Strange New Worlds’ Subspace Rhapsody became an instant hit among fans.

• "Subspace Rhapsody", the first-ever musical episode from Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , masterfully weaves character arcs and propels narratives of the show's second season.
• The "Subspace Rhapsody" album quickly dominated top album charts, showcasing the cultural impact it has already made.
• The combination of brilliant songwriting and stellar vocal renderings in "Subspace Rhapsody" has enamored listeners, with hits like "Status Report" reaching high positions on iTunes charts.

The mesmerizing world of Star Trek has given us glimpses of infinite galaxies, showcased compelling characters, and narrated epic space battles. Yet, few would have anticipated it also offering a musical delight that would set the streaming universe abuzz. Enter Subspace Rhapsody , the first-ever musical episode from Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , a venture that soared both in its audacity and brilliance.

The episode, which explores the crew of the USS Enterprise expressing their innermost sentiments through riveting song sequences, manages to do much more than merely entertain. Subspace Rhapsody is not just an enjoyable ride filled with toe-tapping numbers. It masterfully weaves character arcs and propels several narratives of the show's second season.

As viewers tuned in to the episode, there was a widespread sense of anticipation about its feedback. And the verdict? An unequivocal success. By the next day, August 4th, 2023, the Subspace Rhapsody album was released across all major music platforms, climbing swiftly to dominate top album charts, notably hitting a prominent spot on iTunes.

This delightful collection offers fans all nine original tracks from the episode, sweetened with instrumental versions of the series' iconic opening and closing sequences. One only has to glimpse the enthusiastic online reactions, such as the tweet from acclaimed LGBTQ+ Youtuber and poet, Donny Winter , to grasp the cultural impact this album has already made.

But what makes Subspace Rhapsody stand out? The answer lies in a combination of brilliant songwriting by Kay Hanley and Tom Polce of Letters To Cleo fame and the stellar vocal renderings by the cast of Strange New Worlds. With hits like "Status Report" hitting the #7 spot and the album itself maintaining strong positions on iTunes charts, it's clear that listeners are enamored.

RELATED: Star Trek Actor Zachary Quinto Passes the Mantle of Leonard Nimoy's Mr. Spock to Ethan Peck

Subspace Rhapsody: A Harmonious Blend of Star Trek's Past and Future

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds ' foray into the world of music isn’t just a gimmicky experiment . Season 2 has already showcased a flair for blending genres and spinning narratives in fresh, innovative ways. The positive reception of Subspace Rhapsody is testament to the showrunners' profound respect for and understanding of the timeless Star Trek essence. Every new endeavor, no matter how avant-garde, resonates with that unmistakable Star Trek soul.

From its inception, filled with the classic Star Trek jargon, to a grand conclusion punctuated with a whimsical Klingon K-Pop segment, each melody in Subspace Rhapsody remains faithful both to the Star Trek ethos and the multifaceted characters of Strange New Worlds . This episode is a celebration of these characters, referencing their histories and projecting their futures. Unsurprisingly, Star Trek enthusiasts have embraced the songs with deep affection.

It's clear that the universe of Star Trek has expanded in unexpected and delightful ways. Subspace Rhapsody stands as a testament to its melodious frontier.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2 is streaming on Paramount+.

Star Trek’s Musical Soundtrack Tops Streaming Charts

• “Subspace Rhapsody” has been a powerful success, praised by critics and followers alike, with the soundtrack topping streaming charts.
• The album consists of all the unique songs from the musical episode and instrumental variations of the opening and shutting credit.
• The musical labored as a result of it stayed true to the Star Trek franchise, with insightful lyrics and excellent vocal performances by the forged.

The soundtrack for “Subspace Rhapsody,” Star Trek: Unusual New Worlds ‘ first-ever musical episode, has been topping streaming charts. By almost all accounts, “Subspace Rhapsody” was a powerful success for Unusual New Worlds, because the episode has obtained reward from each critics and followers alike. In “Subspace Rhapsody,” the crew of the USS Enterprise discover themselves confessing their emotions by way of catchy musical numbers. Not solely is the episode extremely enjoyable, but it surely additionally supplies fascinating character growth that strikes a number of storylines of Unusual New Worlds season 2 ahead.

On Friday, August 4, 2023, the day after Unusual New Worlds ‘ musical aired, the album dropped on all music streaming platforms and landed on the highest album charts on iTunes quickly after. The “Subspace Rhapsody” album consists of all 9 unique songs from Unusual New Worlds’ musical episode, plus the instrumental variations of Unusual New Worlds’ opening and shutting credit. See the Tweet from LGBTQ+ Youtuber and poet Donny Winter under:

With insightful lyrics written by Letters To Cleo’s Kay Hanley and Tom Polce, and a few actually excellent vocal performances by Unusual New Worlds’ forged, it is not shocking that music from “Subspace Rhapsody” is so fashionable. The Unusual New Worlds musical’s album stays at #3 on the highest albums streaming chart and #1 on the highest soundtracks chart on iTunes. A number of of the person songs have additionally charted on the highest soundtrack songs listing, with “Standing Report” having reached the best spot at #7.

Why Unusual New Worlds’ Star Trek Musical Gamble Labored

Star Trek: Unusual New Worlds season 2 has experimented with numerous genres and storytelling codecs, and obtained an overwhelmingly constructive response. “Subspace Rhapsody” is one other instance of the inventive groups behind the present pushing the boundaries of what Star Trek may be, and the musical labored for a similar causes the opposite genre-bending episodes have labored. The individuals behind Unusual New Worlds clearly love and perceive the Star Trek franchise. Even when Unusual New Worlds is at its most experimental – like within the musical episode – it nonetheless feels undeniably like Star Trek .

From the technobabble-filled opening quantity to the triumphant finale, full with a hilarious Klingon Okay-Pop interlude, each music feels true to Star Trek and to the characters of Unusual New Worlds . “Subspace Rhapsody” is, above all, a character-focused episode, and the songs not solely reference occasions from the characters’ pasts but additionally transfer their tales ahead. There may be a lot for Star Trek followers to like in “Subspace Rhapsody,” and the songs have clearly resonated with many followers of Star Trek: Unusual New Worlds .

Star Trek: Unusual New Worlds ‘ season 2 finale streams Thursday, August tenth on Paramount+.

LEAVE A REPLY Cancel reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

• April 17, 2024 | Watch: Things Get “Odd” In ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Trailer And Clip From “Face The Strange”
• April 17, 2024 | Alex Kurtzman On Streaming TV Challenges And How Shorter Star Trek Seasons Helps Avoid “Filler” Episodes
• April 16, 2024 | Watch: Did This Moment On ‘The View’ Just Accidentally Hint Whoopi Goldberg Is In The Next Star Trek Movie?
• April 16, 2024 | See The Organians Return In Preview Of ‘Star Trek’ #19
• April 15, 2024 | Actor Talks “Authentic” Scotty On ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’; Season 3 Production Passes Milestone

‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Climbs Streaming Top 10 Chart For Week Of Musical Episode

| September 1, 2023 | By: TrekMovie.com Staff 69 comments so far

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds continues to rank on Nielsen’s top streaming chart, with the penultimate episode of season 2 jumping up the chart.

Ranking “Rhapsody”

The Nielsen top 10 original streaming program chart for the week of July 31-August 6 includes Star Trek: Strange New Worlds —the week of the musical episode “Subspace Rhapsody.” SNW moved up from #9 for the previous week to #7, with 362 million minutes viewed. The series continues to compete and even beat original programming from streaming services with significantly more subscribers like Prime Video and Hulu.

This is the sixth time Strange New Worlds has ranked on the Nielsen chart in the first eight weeks of its season 2 run (which includes one week when two episodes premiered). Earlier in the year, Star Trek: Picard ranked on the same chart three times during its 10-episode run. Since Nielsen started measuring Paramount+ data earlier this year, only the two Star Trek shows and the Yellowstone prequel 1923 have appeared on the original top 10 chart.

From “Subspace Rhapsody” (Paramount+)

The soundtrack of original music from “Subspace Rhapsody” was released on the same day as the episode and quickly rose to #1 on the Apple iTunes album chart . It remained on the top 100 chart all through August.

You can listen to the full Album on YouTube via Lakeshore Records.

Bonus: Sing along video

Paramount+ has been posting videos for the various songs in “Subspace Rhapsody” including a singalong lyric video for the first song of the episode. Check it out in the playlist below.

Keep up with news about the  Star Trek Universe at TrekMovie.com .

Related Articles

Strange New Worlds

Actor Talks “Authentic” Scotty On ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’; Season 3 Production Passes Milestone

Lower Decks , Strange New Worlds

‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Renewed For Season 4; ‘Lower Decks’ To End With Season 5

Awards , Strange New Worlds

‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Picks Up Two Hugo Award Nominations

All Access Star Trek Podcast , Discovery , Section 31 , Star Trek 4 , Starfleet Academy , Strange New Worlds , Upcoming movies

Podcast: All Access Goes To The ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Season 5 Junket And Breaks Down That ‘Variety’ Article

Sucks to be the individuals who took a piss on episode 9 because it upset their delicate canon sensibilities. Season 2 is great Trek. You’re welcome.

Sucks to be someone who’s entire posting personality is based on deriving pleasure from other poster’s discontent. What a life!

Only if that personality mirrors their *actual* personality.

Being a hater provides amusement, if not necessarily rewards.

How does someone present their “actual” personality in a comments section and how would that reasonably be distinguishable from their posting personality?

I know quite a few of people who are sh*tposters online and absolutely lovely people IRL.

The sh*tposter-lovely IRL is a distinction without a difference if we’re just looking at posts, which is what I was doing (“entire posting personality”). The “What a life!” part that you might be keying in on doesn’t have to translate to, “Well, they have a pretty fulfilling life away from the keyboard, too! They’re not just aroused by the chance of seeing Trek fans be miserable” — it can also mean, “Wow, they’re losers” just like pretty much all of us here are since we’re posting on a Star Trek message board.

Look who’s repeating their same ole shit now and getting hammered for it.

Can you say, “hypocrite”. ;-) Lol

Misery loves company!

Here’s TrekMovie’s dumbest poster, licking the closest boot he can find.

Lol, that dude even agreed with me, Einstein

Also me saying there’s value in hating is the *opposite* of hypocrisy. It’s amazing that you can post without accidentally hanging yourself.

It’s so cool to have a groupie here. I feel like a rock star.

Thanks, groupie

Didn’t you get warned about trolling?

Nah, we’re talking about different things. Which is fine!

“…whose…”

S2E9 was my favorite as it was so different and unexpected. Come on people it was fun and if you don’ like it then don’t watch it, SIMPLE!

But but according to our resident internet **experts**, it was supposed to be a terrible episode and not Star Trek at all!

I’m here laughing at the sidelines :D

Well some people loved it, others thought it was terrible. It’s not really a huge consensus one way or the other from what I can tell. On IMDB, it’s rated the lowest episode of the season with a 6.9, which isn’t bad but average. For comparison sake the highest rated episode of the season is the crossover episode with a 9.0.

So I don’t think it’s considered awful but not amazing either.

Someone not being into musicals, or willing to extend the benefit of the doubt is a fair critique. The vitriol was off the charts for several posters here, however, prior to the episode airing. The ratings strongly suggest that viewership was much more driven by another quality outing, as opposed to the curiosity factor.

Sorry man, I disagree. It’s the first Star Trek musical in history and they were hyping this episode for months, of course there was a curiosity factor. How could there not be?

But I’m not suggesting that’s why it got high ratings alone since every episode has had high ratings, correct. So people watched for a number of reasons, those curious about a musical, those who was truly excited about it and those who just normally watch it either way out of habit. We been hearing for years now people who supposedly hate everything about shows like Discovery, Lower Decks, etc, but still watch them every week for years including people on this very board too, right?

Again, I have to emphasize this is the lowest rated episode of the season on IMDB and the only other episode that has landed in the 6s in two seasons. But I know, someone is to come along and tell you can’t trust IMDB. But then where you are getting the idea that this episode is considered ‘loved’ then? Because the irony is the episode before and after it ranged in the 8 column. Certainly there are no real SNW haters on that site from I can tell just not in love with this specific episode.

Sorry I meant to say the only two other episodes to land in the 6s. The other was Elysian  Kingdom with a 6.1.

That episode has 100% on the Tomatometer from professional critics.

I went and looked. You’re 100% correct, the professional critics did love it. But there were also only 9 reviews.

I want to make this absolutely clear. I’m not trying to say people overwhelmingly thought it was bad. I think most people liked it, I include myself in that. But it would be disingenuous to claim it was a huge hit in the fanbase. That doesn’t seem to bare out at all. I think the people who loved it really loved it, but the people who hated it also really hated it, but I will concede there are more who loved it more than they hated it. Fair?

Totally fair!

And I wasn’t saying you were wrong, just giving you an additional data point.

Great, no worries then!

It’s pretty clear that anyone who doesn’t like it is in a very small minority and might only exist in the comments section of this site and a few obvious YouTube channels. Since I’m one of them, given the people who feel the same as I do, I can only assume it’s brain damage and that we were maybe never Star Trek fans to begin with.

I will only talk about myself here, although I was really skeptical of a musical episode, I stayed open minded obviously but I was waiting for it to be a dumpster fire lol. The fact that it wasn’t IMO made me like it overall, but still not in love with it. I haven’t rewatched it or listen to any of the songs again minus the Klingon boy band segment. That’s probably still my favorite lol. But I still have no desire to rewatch it yet.

And no you’re not in a small minority, but I will say I think most people were surprised they liked it, even a little compared to the ones who just outright hated it.

Once we got past the Measure of a Man homage I started to dread every episode, especially the LD crossover and musical. I felt about the LD how you did about the musical, though, so that was a nice relief, but by the time we got to episode 9 it had become clear to me that the people making the show feel more comfortable parodying Star Trek than, like, telling stories. The musical feels like something that was made for the Star Trek Cruise to just have on in the background or for karaoke. I guess there’s nothing wrong with that, but I didn’t like feeling reminded that as a Star Trek fan I’m much closer to being a Disney Adult than a mature person.

“had become clear to me that the people making the show feel more comfortable parodying Star Trek than, like, telling stories.”

You nailed it.

I personally couldn’t get through it. Musicals just aren’t my thing. Like any musical. Its cool that they did it and I like that they are trying new things, I’m just not the target audience.

My view: as a musical, I really enjoyed it. The numbers have held up well after a couple of weeks, especially the “I’m the X/I’m Ready” song and “How Would That Feel?”

As an episode of Star Trek, it makes zero sense. I consider it a fun alternative take on the franchise outside of canon.

If you must shoehorn it into canon: perhaps a 24th century Lin-Manuel Miranda decided to write a holodeck musical set aboard the famous starship and mined Pike’s logs for inspiration very loosely based on actual events, kind of like TITANIC (or what we saw in TATV).

I agree that much of this repeated genre hopping suggests a franchise out of ideas on how to tell its core story.

A lot of weird brain thinking in order to justify likeing something

Hence “ I consider it a fun alternative take on the franchise outside of canon.”

Very impressive.

Although it is also quite a feat for new Apple and Peacock shows to do so well, they are at even more of a disadvantage for number of active subscribers, and have only the one season.

Great news but I don’t think it’s a surprise. Most fans were going to at least watch some of it out of curiosity alone. But overall SNW has been on fire ratings wise. To reach the top ten nearly every week is very impressive.

Thought it was probably the best episode of the season, though I don’t think the views are an indicator of that.

Still, can’t imagine this coming as a surprise.

You’re simply the best Better than all the rest Better than any Trek Any Trek we’ve ever met We’re stuck on your heart We hang on every word you say Tear us apart Baby, I would rather be dead

Lyricist opening? Don’t quit your day job.

aww, not a Tina Turner fan?

On a related subject, does anyone have any insight into how respected this streaming chart is? It is by Nielsen, so I assume that it has credibility in the entertainment industry?

There has been lots of commentary about how hard it is to measure streaming ratings, especially since most of the companies keep their data secret.

On a related note, I’m wondering how well the soundtrack has been selling. I know I bought it — are those numbers publicly available anywhere?

Glad I watched it FIVE TIMES, then. :-)

I’ve also watched the songs on YouTube a zillion times and bought the soundtrack and play it while I do chores; the crew of the Enterprise is basically singing in my head nonstop these days.

Glad this episode has gotten good ratings, since that’s what the companies care about!

You are not alone.

My obsession with this episode has made me feel a little bit crazy, so I’m really glad I’m not the only one!

I listen to the soundtrack on Spotify a lot. According to my “on repeat” playlist, I’m the X is currently my most played songs.

That’s one of my favorites, for sure!

Spock has been my favorite TOS character since the very beginning. But although I think Ethan Peck does a nice job with what they give him to play, I haven’t been that wild about SNW’s Spock, UNTIL “I’m the X.” I thought about it and realized that Spock doesn’t really feel like Spock to me unless he has that undercurrent of hidden pain. Once “I’m the X” happened, Peck!Spock was suddenly Spock for me.

That makes sense. I also listened to it and thought “wow this song is very Spock, it sounds like him, it sounds like something he would sing.” So I guess it flipped the switch there for me too.

I haven’t been a fan of the way that SNW has been writing him too. The whole plot thread for him in the last half of season 2 was making me go “oh no are they about to treat him like ENT did T’Pol because it was bad then and would be bad now.” It’s like him trying to connect to and understand how his mother feels makes sense but when it became about a relationship I just kinda went oh no here we go again. It ended up feeling like a rehash of ENT. If that makes any sense.

I liked hearing Ethan Peck sing. I don’t watch SNW anymore, but I will admit to liking this episode. I tried to dislike it but laughed really hard when the Klingons went all boy band.

How do you not watch SNW anymore, but you’ve seen the second to last episode? The second to last episode any of us have seen. You liked this episode but chose not to return for the season finale. There must be some temporal anomaly playing with you or my understanding of this post.

I think it’s honestly fair and good that they’re choosing to no longer watch SNW unless the particular episode is of interest. It’s fair to them and to us because they’re not just sitting there watching it still and stewing in their hatred of it and then spewing it here in ways that make reading the comments not very fun for everyone else. Unlike other people that comment on this site.

So in short, it’s not weird at all and tbh a non issue.

Sorry, I wasn’t clear. I finished the season but have decided not to continue to watch the show. It’s not my Star Trek. It doesn’t work for me. It’s for a new generation znd I’m not the target audience. However, the musical was cool. I did like it.

Me too. I keep waking up to a different song from the episode running through my head.

I was thinking this type of episode should be one-off but since it has been such a success I’m now hoping this was an affect from a species who live in subspace and they have to go back to make Second Contact…. hmm if only there were protocols and specialists for that…

Utterly delightful episode.

This is just awesome. I love it when Trek finally gets the recognition it deserves.

Wow, this is going to end up having more than triple the number of Top 10 finishes that Picard had — the viewership levels are leaving Picard in the dust.

It’s entirely possible Picard’s success is what has launched SNW to better numbers. It’s been a good year for Star Trek, to be sure.

Mmh. Futurama is a sci-fi-spoof. Though I love Futurama, I’m surprised it’s ranked higher than SNW. Why is that? Because it has more episodes? Because more people watched it in that week? Because it’s more popular than Trek? What do you think?

More people have Hulu than Paramount

I LOVE this show! Thank you to all the amazingly talented people who bring this show to life. I still can’t believe that I am living in a time where Thursdays bring so much joy because of new Star Trek!

Thank you to Lori and Tony, too! I always look forward to Fridays because of ALL ACCESS. The SHUTTLE POD team is also incredible!

Well, that just makes me want to watch it all over again! I’m not a musical lover, but you could combine almost any format with Star Trek and–assuming it’s actually well done for what it’s supposed to be–I’m a happy camper. This episode does EXACTLY what it is supposed to do.

I didn’t want to like it, but my frown melted to smiles and laughter as the episode went on. Especially Peck and Bush, they were terrific. I have the album on Amazon Music. I’m a convert to musical episodes.

Very cool! I loved Peck’s song. I was luke warm on it until La’an’s song, at which point I was like, “OH! They know exactly what they’re doing.” And what a singer! The episode really took off after that. Bush’s song was wonderful although it’s hard to watch with Spock standing like a statue in the background absorbing all of it.

I get P+ through my Amazon account and SNW was the most show solidly until the release of Lioness bumped it down to #2. Even now, weeks after the finale it’s still #3. The show clearly has legs and is reaching a sizeable audience. I might not be it’s biggest fan, but I’m thrilled to see it doing so well!

Has anyone mentioned if the faux-musical poster would ever be made available for purchase? Might look good in my office/media room.

Find a hi-res version and have one made on Vistaprint. Simple.

Well deserved. I loved the musical and will re-watch it more than any other episode of SNW.

I’m considering purchasing S1 on disc. Not S2. The musical episode was fun, but not something I would watch again, as well as the crossover episode. Fun at the time, but not continued times.

Den of Geek

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds “Subspace Rhapsody” Soundtrack and Musical Influences

Here's a list of every song in Star Trek: Strange New World's musical episode "Subspace Rhapsody" and what influenced the soundtrack!

• Share on Facebook (opens in a new tab)
• Share on Twitter (opens in a new tab)
• Share on Linkedin (opens in a new tab)
• Share on email (opens in a new tab)

This Star Trek: Strange New Worlds article contains spoilers.

Star Trek has always had a habit of taking unlikely detours into other genres, whether it was Kirk and Spock dressing like gangsters in the TOS episode “A Piece of the Action” or the powerful Deep Spine Nine period piece “Far Beyond the Stars.” But with its most recent episode, Strange New Worlds takes the franchise in the most unexpected direction.

Directed by Dermott Downs, “ Subspace Rhapsody ” finds the Enterprise crew breaking into song after discovering an anomaly at the edge of the Alpha Quadrant. The episode gives Uhura actor Celia Rose Gooding a chance to show off the pipes that landed them a role in Jagged Little Pill: The Musical on Broadway , and also featured a Klingon hip-hop number that recalls Han Solo’s lowest moment .

As shocking as the episode was for Trekkies, “Subspace Rhapsody” benefited from a steady hand at the helm, thanks to Downs’ previous experience working with musicals. The mind behind the “ Duet ” episode of The Flash , which saw Supergirl and Flash forced to sing to battle the Music Meister, Downs knows how to make normally straight-laced heroes burst into song.

Ad – content continues below

Although he knew the risks of such a stylistic divergence for Strange New Worlds , Downs told Comicbook.com that he drew from familiar influences. For Pike’s argument with Captain Batel, Downs designed “kind of [a] country duet that goes sideways in front of the whole crew.” The Klingon hip-hop moment came about after shooting a version without dancing but Downs decided that it didn’t work. “You want it to be something outrageous,” he explained, arguing that only an act that filled Klingons with dishonor would “help us propel to this final conquering of the anomaly.”

The most complex of the numbers involved Nurse Chapel’s excitement over a career opportunity, even at the cost of her relationship with Spock, which overtakes her in a crowded mess hall. “There were so many elements and interactive elements to that, that that probably had the most full-blown rehearsals, just so everybody would be prepared on the day and you’re not trusting someone’s going to catch you, and on the day they don’t,” said Downs.

But the most interesting of the numbers featured La’an ‘s heartbreak at seeing Kirk , who does not know about the romance the two shared in an alternate reality. After watching Kirk and Una perform a playful duet, La’an retreats to her room for an intimate song, one that includes insert shots of the life she and Kirk could have had. “I know it probably has a music video feel, but I was going for something much more like Terrence Malick and emotional,” contended Downs, referencing the vulnerability in movies such as Tree of Life and Days of Heaven .

Initially, however, Downs planned to take a bigger approach. “Originally, that breakout moment, we were talking about doing something like  The Sound of Music ,” he revealed. “[B]ut it just became too huge and out of step with the episode and it would’ve been fun to go completely opposite of outer space.”

Of course, “Subspace Rhapsody” ends up delivering much more than a worthwhile musical. It pushes the story forward for several characters, while revealing some interesting backstory for Kirk by bringing back Carol Marcus , who you might know best from The Wrath of Khan . It’s an impressive amount of ground to cover for the Star Trek series, especially when doing it in song and dance!

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds “Subspace Rhapsody” Soundtrack

As space-bound as “Subspace Rhapsody” is, you can enjoy the music here on Earth. On Aug. 4, the “Subspace Rhapsody” official cast recording will be available to purchase, which includes the following tracks:

• Star Trek Strange New Worlds Main Title (Subspace Rhapsody Version)
• Status Report
• Connect to Your Truth
• How Would That Feel
• Private Conversation
• Keeping Secrets
• Keep Us Connected
• Subspace Rhapsody End Credit Medley

You can listen to the full soundtrack of the episode below:

Get the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!

Joe George | @jageorgeii

Joe George’s writing has appeared at Slate, Polygon, Tor.com, and elsewhere!

Filed under:

How Strange New Worlds pulled off the first-ever Star Trek musical episode

To boldly go...

Share this story

• Share this on Facebook
• Share this on Reddit
• Share All sharing options

Share All sharing options for: How Strange New Worlds pulled off the first-ever Star Trek musical episode

Throwing an hour of light comedy into the middle of a 10-episode arc with galactic-level stakes could derail an entire season, but Star Trek: Strange New Worlds dances gracefully from week to week between courtroom drama, time-travel romance, and its latest wild swing: a musical episode.

In “Subspace Rhapsody,” the crew of the USS Enterprise encounters a strange cosmic phenomenon that induces them to break into song and reveal their innermost feelings. The episode features 10 original songs by Kay Hanley and Tom Polce (of Letters to Cleo fame) and highlights the vocal talents of the cast, including Tony nominee and Grammy winner Celia Rose Gooding and singer-songwriter Christina Chong.

Executive Producer Alex Kurtzman, who heads up the franchise at Paramount, has been teasing the possibility of a Star Trek musical since 2020. But at the time, his only venue for bizarre genre experiments was Star Trek: Short Treks , a short subject anthology series that filled the gaps between Discovery and Picard . Short Treks eventually became the launchpad for Strange New Worlds , whose tone has proven equally elastic. After the warm reception to its first season, which contained everything from a screwball body-swap comedy to a grim political drama involving child sacrifice, it was time to set phasers to “sing.”

According to the episode’s director, Dermott Downs, Chong was the cast member who pushed the hardest for a musical episode. Chong, whose debut EP Twin Flames is also out this week, confesses in her Spotify bio that her screen acting career began as a way to raise her profile as a singer and stage actor. “Subspace Rhapsody” would seem to be an important landmark in her career, as she features heavily on the soundtrack, including the solo ballad “How Would That Feel?”

(Chong is unavailable for comment due to the conditions of the ongoing SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes, as is the rest of the cast and the episode’s writers, Dana Horgan and Bill Wolkoff. Songwriters Kay Hanley and Tom Polce also could not be reached via Paramount publicity.)

Indeed, one of the interesting challenges of producing a musical episode of an established television show is tailoring the music to suit the talents of the existing cast. Who’s a belter? Who’s a crooner? Who’s funny? Who might not be comfortable singing at all? The tools at hand impact not only the distribution of the songs, but the shape of the story. The narrative and emotional weight of a musical has to fall on the shoulders of the cast members most prepared to carry it.

So, it’s no surprise that, while “Subspace Rhapsody” gives nearly every regular cast member an opportunity to show off, the heart of the story is Ensign Nyota Uhura, portrayed by Celia Rose Gooding. Gooding’s performance as Frankie in Jagged Little Pill , a Broadway jukebox musical featuring the songs of Alanis Morissette, garnered them a Tony nomination for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical, as well as a Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album (shared with the rest of the cast). Gooding sings the episode’s 11 o’clock number, “Keep Us Connected,” an undeniable earworm that showcases their impressive vocal range and power. Gooding’s Broadway bona fides bring a level of legitimacy to “Subspace Rhapsody” that’s lacking even in top-tier TV musical episodes like Buffy ’s “Once More, With Feeling” and Community ’s “Regional Holiday Music.”

This also isn’t Downs’ first crack at a musical episode, as he also helmed “Duet,” a crossover between The Flash and Supergirl that reunited former Glee castmates Grant Gustin, Melissa Benoist, and Darren Criss. Downs used this experience, as well as his long resume as a music video cinematographer, to secure the “Subspace Rhapsody” gig from the list of episodes in development for Strange New Worlds ’ second season. Combined with his fondness for the original Star Trek , the possibility of working on Trek’s first musical episode was too exciting to pass up, despite the obvious risks.

“There was a great potential to jump the shark,” says Downs, “because if you’re this grounded show, how are you going to do a musical in outer space? And to their credit, they crafted a great story. Once you understand the anomaly and how music pushes forward all of these interior feelings through song, then you have the potential for so many different kinds of songs.”

However, the prospect of singing for the viewing audience was not immediately appealing to every cast member, a fact that is lampshaded within the framework of the episode. Much of the Enterprise crew fears the subspace anomaly’s ability to make them spill their guts through song. Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) is afraid of getting into an argument with his girlfriend, Captain Marie Batel (Melanie Scrofano), and the pair ends up airing out their relationship issues on the bridge. (This song is, appropriately, entitled “A Private Conversation.”) Mount’s singing role is simpler than his castmates’ on a technical level, but leverages his comedic talents and awkward, boy-next-door charm.

“He crushed it,” says Downs. “It was like a country ballad gone wrong.”

Babs Olusanmokun, who portrays the multifaceted Dr. Joseph M’Benga, sings the bare minimum in the episode, and his character makes a point to tell his shipmates (and the viewer) that he does not sing . For his part, Downs cannot comment on any studio magic that may or may not have been employed to make the less seasoned vocalists in the cast more tuneful, but a listener with an ear for autotune will definitely detect some pitch correction.

Downs says that Ethan Peck, who portrays the young Lieutenant Spock , was among the more apprehensive cast members, but if anything, this becomes an asset to his performance in the episode. Spock has spent this season actively exploring his human feelings, even entering into a romantic relationship with Nurse Christine Chapel (Jess Bush). Spock’s solo “I’m the X” sees Spock retreating into his shell, and the actor’s shyness feeds into the character’s conflict. Peck’s performance of the song, which was written for his smooth baritone, was the production’s most pleasant surprise. The temp track of the song that the crew worked with (until Peck recorded his version over a weekend, like the rest of the cast) featured a bigger, more conventionally Broadway vocal, but Peck performs it in character — superficially steady, but with strong emotional undercurrents just below the surface.

On a character level, however, the musical format might be most revelatory for Rebecca Romijn’s Commander Una Chin-Riley, aka Number One. Una began the series as a very guarded person harboring a secret that could end her career. Even as far back as her appearance in the 2019 Short Treks episode “Q&A,” her advice to new arrival Spock was to “keep your ‘freaky’ to yourself,” in this case referring to her love for Gilbert and Sullivan ( inherited from Romijn herself ). Since then, her much more consequential secrets have been revealed, and she finds herself unburdened, and uses the opportunity presented by the musical anomaly to encourage her mentees to do the same. Una’s songs, “Connect to Your Truth”’ and “Keeping Secrets,” see her offering advice to rising first officer James T. Kirk (Paul Wesley) and her protege La’an (Chong), respectively, about the futility of withholding your full self from others.

“Subspace Rhapsody” concludes with an ensemble number about the crew’s common purpose and fellowship — an appropriate sentiment not only for a musical episode but for Strange New Worlds . Star Trek has always been about friendship and cooperation, but no previous incarnation (save, perhaps, for Deep Space Nine ) has granted each member of the cast such even amounts of attention and importance, from Captain Pike to Ensign Uhura. Previous Trek series could perhaps have sustained a musical episode (Ronald D. Moore even pitched one for DS9 back in the ’90s). For a series sold to fans as a return to “old-school Star Trek,” Strange New Worlds has taken some wild creative risks. While the show has resumed its time-tested episodic “problem of the week” format, its writers and producers have used this structure to experiment in ways that its sister shows, Discovery and Picard , could never have gotten away with. As corny as it might be, on Strange New Worlds it feels particularly appropriate to close a story with the entire crew singing about their trust in each other, in perfect harmony.

Star Trek: Discovery is cracking open a box Next Gen closed on purpose

Star trek: discovery is finally free to do whatever it wants, the 10 horniest episodes of star trek, ranked by cultural impact, loading comments....

‘Star Trek’ made its first ever musical episode, but was it any good? Our writers discuss

• Show more sharing options
• Copy Link URL Copied!

This article contains spoilers for “Subspace Rhapsody,” the ninth episode of Season 2 of “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds .”

On Thursday, “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” (Paramount+) debuted “Subspace Rhapsody,” which has been announced as the first musical episode in the franchise . (Some will, of course, remember Spock strumming on a Vulcan lute and Uhura singing in the original series or Data’s rendition of “Blue Skies” at Will and Deanna’s wedding in “Star Trek: Nemesis.”)

Whether or not one views this as an insult to or a delightful expansion of the series, it has become, if not quite de rigueur, not unusual for a comedy or drama or even a soap opera to get its inner “Rent” on. “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” was perhaps the most ballyhooed show to take this step toward Broadway, but all sorts of series have danced into the footlights: “Fringe,” “Psych,” “Xena: Warrior Princess,” “Futurama,” “One Life to Live,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Community,” “Transparent” and more.

Entertainment and arts reporter Ashley Lee, who knows a lot about musicals but little about “Star Trek,” and television critic Robert Lloyd, who knows quite a bit about “Star Trek” and less about musicals (at least any written after 1970), got together to discuss the episode.

‘Star Trek’ is the greatest sci-fi franchise of all. Why it’s stood the test of time

Full of ideas and emotions, the ever-expanding ‘Star Trek’ canon is still finding new ways to go where no TV show has gone before, 55 years on.

Oct. 28, 2021

Ashley Lee: Because I love musical theater, I’m always intrigued when TV shows take the risk to make a musical episode. The task of creating original songs for the screen is already tricky enough, especially in a way that invites along the show’s weekly audience and still moves its stories forward. And then there’s the task of asking the actors to perform them, whether or not they’ve ever sung or danced onscreen before. It’s an episodic experiment that, over the years, only some shows have gotten right.

I admittedly put on the musical episode of “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” with low expectations because, outside of “Little Shop of Horrors,” putting sci-fi to song hasn’t historically been so harmonious (R.I.P., “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark”). Even though I had no prior connection to any of these characters, I found “Subspace Rhapsody” to be a pleasant surprise.

I loved how the songs, written by Kay Hanley and Tom Polce of the ’90s alt-rock band Letters to Cleo, poked enough fun at the oddity of suddenly breaking out into song without insulting the TV tradition. And I found it hilarious that the episode, directed by Dermott Downs and written by Dana Horgan and Bill Wolkoff, deemed “confessing highly personal, emotional information” a legitimate security threat. (When you think about it, such can definitely be true in the real world!)

I’m surprised that, after all these years, this is the first ever “Star Trek” musical episode. Robert, as a longtime fan of the franchise, were you open to the idea?

Robert Lloyd: In sci-fi fandom, any unusual step is bound to raise some hackles. But as a TV critic since before flat screens, I have seen at least a few of these “special musical episodes” mounted in otherwise nonmusical series. I suspect the impetus came not from viewer demand but from the producers or the writers, who are always looking for something new to entertain the audience and, not incidentally, themselves and was seized upon happily by cast members, many of whom will have had backgrounds in or at least a love of musical theater, even if only from their high school production of “Guys and Dolls” (which I mention because it was produced at my high school — not with me).

History shows there’s no sort of show more likely than another to take on this challenge, but of all the “Star Trek” series, “Strange New Worlds” is perhaps the one most amenable to it. It’s got a strong vein of humor, and, as a highly episodic show, it’s subject to — in fact, embraces — tonal shifts from week to week. This season has been particularly … goofy? Two weeks prior to “Subspace Rhapsody,” they aired a crossover with the animated spinoff “Star Trek: Lower Decks,” in which cartoon characters became flesh and fleshly characters cartoons.

How the latest ‘Star Trek’ spinoff resurrects the Buck Rogers brio of the original

‘Strange New Worlds,’ premiering Thursday on Paramount+, spins the franchise into a series with roots in its original rejected pilot.

May 4, 2022

I thought it was smart to give the musical element of the show a “scientific” rationale — if the usual “Trek” technobabble — with the Enterprise overwhelmed by feedback from a substance fault into which, on the inspiration of Carol Kane’s Pelia, they sent a playlist in an attempt to communicate musically.

And it’s quite appropriate for a season full of romantic subplots, including Ethan Peck’s Spock — who, you must know, is more about logic than feeling — having a thing with Jess Bush’s Nurse Chapel, and security chief Noonien-Singh’s (Christina Chong) awkward reunion with a young James T. Kirk (Paul Wesley), who doesn’t recall their relationship from an alternative timeline. (That bit may have made no sense to you, Ash.) Appropriately, the story makes it clear that heightened emotion is what causes the characters to sing — which is, of course, the underlying rationale of music theater.

All else aside, how did the music strike you? It was odd that although the music they fed into the fault was the “Great American Songbook” — the standards of early to mid-20th century popular song, often written for musicals — none of the songs in the episode were actually modeled on that tradition. Not much in the way of Jerome Kern or Rodgers and Hart there. It all sounded post-Andrew Lloyd Webber to me.

Lee: Haha, you’re right! While I did appreciate the use of Cole Porter’s show tune “Anything Goes” as a very literal cue to the audience of the storytelling “rules” ahead, many of the tunes were more contemporary than Golden Age. The one that’s most “vintage” in style was the sweet duet “Connect to Your Truth,” when Una Chin-Riley (Rebecca Romijn) shared key leadership advice with Lt. Kirk.

Regarding the romances, I admittedly became deeply invested in these will-they-won’t-theys by the end of their musical numbers. I particularly loved La’an Noonien-Singh‘s song “How Would That Feel,” about contemplating vulnerability; it was like an introspective, angsty version of “Company’s” “Being Alive” in the musical style of “Wicked” (and is a promising preview of her music — Chong just released a debut EP). And the stark differences in genre between Spock’s brooding electropop ballad “I’m the X” and Nurse Chapel’s Amy Winehouse-esque fellowship celebration “I’m Ready” definitely maximized the tension amid their miscommunication.

How science fiction is creating a strange new world of prestige TV

New series take viewers into the future, into space and into the heart of very human matters.

May 18, 2022

Beyond those, the opening number titled “Status Report” was so strong — a perfect example of musicalizing a familiar routine of the world (think “Opening Up” from “Waitress” or “Good Morning Baltimore” from “Hairspray”) — and the choral, orchestral rendition of the show’s main title was a delight. Also, the double meaning of communications officer Nyota Uhura’s anthem “Keep Us Connected” was very satisfying and, in my opinion, only scratched the surface of Celia Rose Gooding’s vocal abilities (she earned a Tony nomination for her performance in “Jagged Little Pill”).

If “Star Trek” ever officially makes the leap to the stage, I imagine these three songs in particular would transfer well. (Though if so, I’m gonna need a full expansion of that brief interlude of autotuned, rapping Klingons.) Bravo to Hanley and Polce for writing all the music and lyrics of this episode; while many have attempted it over the years, only a few pop stars and rockers have successfully walked the tightrope of writing effective and entertaining stage musicals (e.g., Cyndi Lauper, David Byrne and Elton John).

Overall, did you enjoy “Subspace Rhapsody”? Was the first musical episode of the franchise worth the wait?

Lloyd: I can’t say I was waiting for it, but I certainly enjoyed it. I’m all about nutty “Star Trek,” going back to “The Trouble With Tribbles,” and also found it a really effective way to embody the emotional crises being faced by “Strange New Worlds’” eminently likable characters. Certainly, the cast bursting into song (and the occasional dance), with music dropping in from … somewhere, is no more nonsensical than about, oh, a hundred things that have happened to the various starship crews over nearly six decades.

But let me ask you, did it make you liable to keep watching the series? (No judgment.)

Lee: Robert, these subplots were so genuinely compelling, even when concisely moved forward in song, that I’ll likely start this series from the beginning and continue on past this episode. Plus, I’m so intrigued by Lt. Kirk and Noonien-Singh’s romance in that alternate timeline!

‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’

Where: Paramount + When: Anytime, starting Thursday

More to Read

William Shatner has performed for decades, but he also loves horses and is designing a watch

March 12, 2024

Review: ‘Constellation’ is a tense, first-rate space thriller starring Noomi Rapace

Feb. 20, 2024

Commentary: For better or worse, two new plays reveal their writers’ TV backgrounds

Feb. 14, 2024

The complete guide to home viewing

Get Screen Gab for everything about the TV shows and streaming movies everyone’s talking about.

You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.

Ashley Lee is a staff reporter at the Los Angeles Times, where she writes about theater, movies, television and the bustling intersection of the stage and the screen. An alum of the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center’s National Critics Institute and Poynter’s Power of Diverse Voices, she leads workshops on arts journalism at the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival. She was previously a New York-based editor at the Hollywood Reporter and has written for the Washington Post, Backstage and American Theatre, among others. She is currently working remotely alongside her dog, Oliver.

Robert Lloyd has been a Los Angeles Times television critic since 2003.

More From the Los Angeles Times

Olivia Munn says she ‘absolutely broke down’ seeing her body after a double mastectomy

April 17, 2024

Heidi Gardner of ‘SNL’ says ‘anxiety set in’ after giggly ‘Beavis and Butt-Head’ sketch

Travis Kelce heads to TV to host celebrity spinoff of ‘Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?’

April 16, 2024

Commentary: ‘The Golden Bachelor’ divorce turns a TV success story into a cautionary tale

• Today's news
• Reviews and deals
• Climate change
• 2024 election
• Fall allergies
• Health news
• Mental health
• Sexual health
• Family health
• So mini ways
• Unapologetically
• Buying guides

Entertainment

• How to Watch
• My watchlist
• Stock market
• Biden economy
• Personal finance
• Stocks: most active
• Stocks: gainers
• Stocks: losers
• Trending tickers
• World indices
• US Treasury bonds
• Top mutual funds
• Highest open interest
• Highest implied volatility
• Currency converter
• Basic materials
• Communication services
• Consumer cyclical
• Consumer defensive
• Financial services
• Industrials
• Real estate
• Mutual funds
• Credit cards
• Credit card rates
• Balance transfer credit cards
• Business credit cards
• Cash back credit cards
• Rewards credit cards
• Travel credit cards
• Checking accounts
• Online checking accounts
• High-yield savings accounts
• Money market accounts
• Personal loans
• Student loans
• Car insurance
• Home buying
• Options pit
• Investment ideas
• Research reports
• Fantasy football
• Pro Pick 'Em
• College Pick 'Em
• Fantasy baseball
• Fantasy hockey
• Fantasy basketball
• Download the app
• Daily fantasy
• Scores and schedules
• GameChannel
• World Baseball Classic
• Premier League
• CONCACAF League
• Champions League
• Motorsports
• Horse racing
• Newsletters

New on Yahoo

• Privacy Dashboard

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' Excellent Musical Soundtrack Is Now Streaming

• Oops! Something went wrong. Please try again later. More content below

Strange New Worlds ’ musical episode was a great episode of Star Trek , but it was also a humdinger of a musical —a soundtrack laden with a frankly distressing number of earworms. And now you can listen to it without having to queue up Paramount+ .

After giving people a chance to watch “Subspace Rhapsody” yesterday, Paramount and Lakeshore Records have released an 11-track album dedicated to the episode’s musical numbers.

These Are the Best Desktop Apps for Gmail

9 of the Best Flops on Display at the Museum of Failure

From Disney+ to Max, Here Are the Best Streaming Services

From the acapella take on Strange New Worlds ’ main theme to the instrumental medley that plays over its credits, every song from the cast is on here—and while if you haven’t seen the episode you may want to hold off having a listen, it’s heartening that these largely cheesy, wonderfully earnest showtunes all retain some of their earworm nature outside the context of the episode’s narrative. That, or I think I might just be a sucker for hearing people rhyming about phaser banks and deflector shields regardless of context.

Click here to find the “Subspace Rhapsody” soundtrack on Apple Music, Youtube Music, Amazon Music, Deezer, and Qobuz.

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel , Star Wars , and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV , and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who .

More from Gizmodo

The Best Free AI Art Generators, Ranked

The Best Free TV and Movie Channels For Every Major Streaming Device

Sign up for Gizmodo's Newsletter. For the latest news, Facebook , Twitter and Instagram .

Click here to read the full article.

Recommended Stories

Wnba draft winners and losers: as you may have guessed, the fever did pretty well. the liberty perhaps not.

Here are five franchises who stood out, for better or for worse.

Indianapolis Star columnist Gregg Doyel apologizes after awkward, uncomfortable interaction with Caitlin Clark

Gregg Doyel flashed a heart sign at Caitlin Clark at her introductory press conference on Wednesday afternoon to kick off an incredibly strange back-and-forth.

Boban Marjanović hilariously misses free throws on purpose to give Clippers fans free chicken

Boban Marjanović is a man of the people.

Nike responds to backlash over Team USA track kits, notes athletes can wear shorts

The new female track uniform looked noticeably skimpy at the bottom in one picture, which social media seized upon.

2024 Masters payouts: How much did Scottie Scheffler earn for his win at Augusta National?

The Masters has a record $20 million purse this year.

UFC 300: 'We're probably gonna get sued' after Arman Tsarukyan appeared to punch fan during walkout

'We'll deal with that Monday,' Dana White said about Arman Tsarukyan appearing to punch a fan during his UFC 300 walkout.

Rob Gronkowski's first pitch before the Red Sox's Patriots' Day game was typical Gronk

Never change, Gronk.

76ers' statue for Allen Iverson draws jokes, outrage due to misunderstanding: 'That was disrespectful'

Iverson didn't get a life-size statue. Charles Barkley and Wilt Chamberlain didn't either.

'Sasquatch Sunset' is so relentlessly gross that people are walking out of screenings. Star Jesse Eisenberg says the film was a ‘labor of love.’

“There are so many movies made for people who like typical things. This is not that," the film's star told Yahoo Entertainment.

Early MLB season evaluations, which teams are up and which are down, Jack Leiter debut

Jake Mintz & Jordan Shusterman give their early season assessment of all thirty MLB teams at the three week mark, as well as discuss the long-awaited debut of Texas Rangers pitcher Jack Leiter.

Mock Draft Monday with Daniel Jeremiah: Bears snag Odunze, Raiders grab a QB

It's another edition of 'Mock Draft Monday' on the pod and who better to have on then the face of NFL Network's draft coverage and a giant in the industry. Daniel Jeremiah joins Matt Harmon to discuss his mock draft methodology, what he's hearing about this year's draft class and shares his favorite five picks in his latest mock draft.

Tesla layoffs hit high performers, some departments slashed, sources say

Tesla management told employees Monday that the recent layoffs -- which gutted some departments by 20% and even hit high performers -- were largely due to poor financial performance, a source familiar with the matter told TechCrunch. The layoffs were announced to staff just a week before Tesla is scheduled to report its first-quarter earnings. The move comes as Tesla has seen its profit margin narrow over the past several quarters, the result of an EV price war that has persisted for at least a year.

The Scorecard: 10 fantasy baseball hot takes to know through two weeks

Fantasy baseball analyst Dalton Del Don debuts The Scorecard, a weekly series featuring his takes on key MLB player notes.

TechCrunch Minute: New Atlas robot stuns experts in first reveal from Boston Dynamics

This week Boston Dynamics retired its well-known Atlas robot that was powered by hydraulics. Then today it unveiled its new Atlas robot, which is powered by electricity. The change might not seem like much, but TechCrunch's Brian Heater told the TechCrunch Minute that the now-deprecated hydraulics system was out of date.

Longtime voice of Yankees John Sterling is retiring, effective immediately

Sterling has called Yankees games since 1989, a span including the Derek Jeter era that saw the franchise win five World Series championships.

Former Colts QB Andrew Luck never considered returning to the NFL

Andrew Luck returned to Indianapolis for a charity event, six years after he retired as the Colts quarterback. He says he's never considered making a comeback to pro football.

How Victor Wembanyama's rookie season ranks in NBA history

Victor Wembanyama's rookie NBA season is finished. The San Antonio Spurs will sit him in Sunday's regular-season finale. Where does his first season rank among the league's greats?

Scott Boras loses Jordan Montgomery as client after super-agent's disaster offseason

Boras reportedly demanded at least $170 million for Montgomery. The pitcher ended up getting $25 million.

Concocting fake win-win trades for Vikings, Cowboys, Chiefs, Bills, Falcons | Zero Blitz

Jason Fitz and Frank Schwab hop in the lap to concoct the best blockbuster trades possible that are a win-win for both sides. First, the dynamic duo start with the news that Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Devonta Smith is receiving a big-time contract extension, meaning the Eagles are now paying two wideouts $25M annually. Can they manage to keep up the talent and depth on their roster with cap numbers like that? In other news, the New York Jets announced they're wearing their 1980s throwbacks full-time next season, which makes Frank a very happy man. Fitz and Frank have some fake trades they'd like to see, and they go one-by-one down the list as they send Justin Jefferson to the Buffalo Bills (and Arizona Cardinals), the Minnesota Vikings up to fifth overall, Brandon Aiyuk to the Los Angeles Chargers, Tee Higgins to the Kansas City Chiefs, Dak Prescott to the Minnesota Vikings, Brock Bowers to Kansas City and Micah Parsons to the Atlanta Falcons. The duo finish off the show by snake drafting the best first overall picks of all time.

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser First Drive Review: Brief taste shows promise, but 1958 questionable

Our mostly off-road first drive reveals a well-executed off-roader with cool style and a high-quality interior. Well, not so much the interior in the 1958.

• More to Explore
• Series & Movies

Published Jun 21, 2023

10 Favorite Star Trek Musical Pieces

For World Music Day, let's look at how music played an intrinsic part of Star Trek's enduring legacy.

StarTrek.com / Rob DeHart

From the first notes of Alexander Courage’s theme for The Original Series up through Michael Giacchino’s soaring scores for the most recent films, and everything in between, music has been an intrinsic part of Star Trek’ s enduring legacy.

Music plays a big part in helping me with my writing. Classical, film scores, and pretty much anything else without actual lyrics, is a candidate for helping me “get in the zone” as I push words. When it comes to writing Star Trek , you might guess that I listen to a lot of music from the different episodes or films, and you’d be right. To be honest, though, it isn’t only a tool for working. I also just simply enjoy it as a fan. I own the scores for all of the feature films, as well as the complete soundtrack collection from The Original Series and a smattering of selections from each of the other television series. I even have a suite of music from The Animated Series . Hey, it’s for work, people.

"The Way to Eden"

StarTrek.com

Naturally, I have my favorite pieces and cues. Doesn’t everybody? I could write for days about the music of Star Trek and how it inspires my writing, or how it’s just something I enjoy listening to during long drives. Given my “Ten for Ward” format, I’d only be scratching the surface so far as compiling a list of music from any of the series or films, so I’m hoping folks will chime in with their own favorites.

Still, I’m going to be cheating a bit here and there, rather than just trying to limit my selections to ten individual pieces of music. This isn’t intended to be a definitive or “best of” list, and I’m not citing each television series’ standard opening or closing music, as those are easy picks, but otherwise? Here’s a list to get the discussion started.

“The Doomsday Machine,"  Star Trek

"The Doomsday Machine"

To tell you the truth, I could fill up several lists just with music from The Original Series before I even thought about moving on to anything else. I forced myself to pick one example, and I think it’s a doozy. How many films of the era wish they could’ve had a musical arrangement as compelling as the one created by composer Sol Kaplan for this fan-favorite episode?

It’s space opera at its finest as Kaplan punctuates the tragedy of Commodore Matt Decker and the torment inflicted upon him by the mammoth automaton that has destroyed his ship, the U.S.S. Constellation . Likewise, the cues servicing the battle between the machine and the Enterprise are first-rate, and the entire score is a high water mark for a series where music was already one of its defining strengths.

“Stealing the Enterprise, ”  Star Trek III: The Search for Spock

Star Trek III: The Search for Spock

James Horner had already hit it out of the park with his score for Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan , and he comports himself well with this follow-up. However, the original release of the third film ’s soundtrack was something of a disservice to him, as it omitted many of the pieces that set this movie’s music apart from the previous film.

The 2010 “Complete Score” release corrects that oversight, even though my favorite cue appeared on the original vinyl album. While borrowing and reworking some elements from his Star Trek II music, Horner still offers an exhilarating piece that highlights the hijacking of the Enterprise from space dock by Admiral Kirk and his command crew.

“Life Is A Dream (End Credits),”  Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

It’s impossible to overstate the importance and lasting appeal of Jerry Goldsmith’s musical contributions to Star Trek . His score for Star Trek: The Motion Picture holds a permanent spot on my personal “Top 10 Film Scores Ever” list.

However, his end theme for the fifth movie is my favorite variation of the end credits theme he created for the first film. There’s a little more pomp and flourish in the now-familiar notes, and Goldsmith does a masterful job weaving other themes from the film, including a new take on his familiar “Klingon” music, as well as Alexander Courage’s iconic “ Star Trek fanfare.”

“Borg Engaged” and “Captain Borg,”  Star Trek: The Next Generation

"The Best of Both Worlds, Part I"

Star Trek: The Next Generation 's third season ending cliffhanger, "The Best of Both Worlds, Part I," deserved its own score worthy of the silver screen, and Ron Jones delivers in fine fashion for this episode as well as the next season’s “Part II.”

The ominous image of the massive Borg cube on the Enterprise ’s viewscreen and — later — the shock of seeing Jean-Luc Picard assimilated by the Borg Collective is rammed home by Jones’ haunting themes, which are just two highlights from a superb score written for one of The Next Generation ’s most memorable episodes.

“Sign Off,”  Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country

Kirk bids farewell to Captain Sulu and the Excelsior , before the entire Original Series cast says goodbye to us after 25 years of bold adventures in the final frontier. This moving piece by composer Cliff Eidelman, accompanying Captain Kirk’s final log entry along with William Shatner and the rest of the cast affixing their signatures to the end of the film, perfectly underscores the melancholy felt by so many longtime fans as we realized that “our” Star Trek had finally come to a close.

“Overture,”  Star Trek Generations

Star Trek Generations

Despite its name, this is actually the end credits theme for the first film to feature the cast of The Next Generation . The stirring theme incorporates music from other cues that Dennis McCarthy crafted to give weight to scenes set in the Nexus as well as defining the courage of our heroes, including Captain Kirk’s valiant acts at both ends of the film. Capping off the whole thing is an emotive rendition of the classic “Star Trek fanfare” that acts as a true passing of the baton from one generation to the next.

“Flight of the Phoenix ,” Star Trek: First Contact

Star Trek: First Contact

The score for Captain Picard and the Enterprise -E’s second film outing is an underrated effort by Jerry Goldsmith, who once again succeeds at combining familiar themes with new pieces that give each Star Trek film its own musical identity.

For this piece, the legendary composer’s son, Joel Goldsmith, brings vitality, hope, and triumph to what in one respect is the “birth” of the Star Trek universe to come as Zefram Cochrane (with the help of Riker and La Forge) pilots the fragile Phoenix spacecraft on humanity’s first warp speed flight.

“Bride of Chaotica,”  Star Trek: Voyager

"Bride of Chaotica!"

David Bell’s unrestrained musical homage to Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers is an utter treat on all counts. Though the episode also includes cues more consistent with Voyager ’s usual lower-key offerings, the “Captain Proton” pieces are delightfully loud and bombastic, in keeping with the 1930s science fiction movie serials to which they’re paying loving tribute.

“In A Mirror, Darkly,”  Star Trek: Enterprise

"In A Mirror, Darkly, Part I"

What begins as a beautiful callback to Jerry Goldsmith’s themes from Star Trek VIII: First Contact takes on a sinister twist as Dennis McCarthy plunges us headlong into the cruelty of the “Mirror Universe.” The score for this landmark two-part episode includes a new theme to accompany an alternate take on the series’ opening credits sequence, preserving the effect of the entire storyline taking place in the parallel universe with no connection to our own. McCarthy goes all-out as he accentuates all of the backstabbing and scheming weaving around the story’s action sequences, including a foreboding final cue as Hoshi Sato declares herself “Empress.”

“Enterprising Young Men,”  Star Trek  (2009)

Star Trek (2009)

While fans debate the merits of the most recent Star Trek movies, few take issue with the effort composer Michael Giacchino channeled into his musical scores . Nowhere is that more evident than this signature piece from the first film, which encapsulates in rousing fashion the energy of these “new” Star Trek voyages as well as the journey of this modern, bold incarnation of our beloved heroes.

Okay, that’s my 10, and that was playing fast and loose with my own rules. Now it’s your turn. What’s your favorite piece of Star Trek music? Let us know on Social!

Get Updates By Email

This article was originally published on May 29, 2015.

Dayton Ward (he/him) is a New York Times bestselling author or co-author of numerous novels and short stories including a whole bunch of stuff set in the Star Trek universe, and often collaborating with friend and co-writer Kevin Dilmore. As he’s still a big ol' geek at heart, Dayton is known to wax nostalgic about all manner of Star Trek topics over on his own blog, The Fog of Ward .

April 18, 2024 75 °F PBS Passport .st0{fill:#0A145A;} .st1{fill:#5680FF;} .st2{fill:#FFFFFF;} UH Search for: Search MENU CLOSE News & Information Features Hello Houston inDepth Topics Local News Statewide News Business Education News Energy & Environment Health & Science Immigration Politics Transportation All Stories >>> Arts & Culture Arts & Culture Main Classical Music Music Opera & Musical Theater Dance Visual Art Literature Theatre & Film Voices and Verses: A Poem-A-Day Series Awareness Hispanic Heritage Pride Month: Better Together! Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Black History Women’s History Education Programs & Podcasts Local Programs Party Politics Houston Matters with Craig Cohen I SEE U with Eddie Robinson Texas Standard UH 100 Years of Houston Bauer Business Focus Briefcase Engines of Our Ingenuity Health Matters UH Moment Features Dead and Buried Career Frontier Podcasts Below the Waterlines: Houston After Hurricane Harvey Party Politics Skyline Sessions Encore Houston All Podcasts >> Support Membership Update Payment Method Upgrade Your Monthly Gift Give a Gift Membership Giving Programs Affinity Council Studio Society In Tempore Legacy Society Innovation Fund Volunteers Foundation Board Young Leaders Council Mission Ambassadors Donations Thank-You Gifts Vehicle Donation Giving Opportunities Employee Match Program More Ways to Give Partnerships Corporate Sponsorship About About Us Meet the Team Join the Team Contact Us Ethics and Standards Reports & Financials Press Room Listen Watch Donate Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube Linkedin Mastodon googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1488818411584-0'); }); This article is over 7 years old Music

Songs of the stars: the music of star trek.

A look back at the history of Star Trek film scores, as well as a few other space-themed hits.

Star Trek Beyond opened Friday (July 22, 2016), the third film in the rebooted franchise begun by J.J. Abrams in 2009. As a whole, the Star Trek franchise turns 50 this year, so let's take a look back at the series' long history in film and the music that has taken us as moviegoers on so many adventures with the crew of the Starship Enterprise (with some other notable films mentioned along the way)!

Star Trek: The Motion Picture

10 years since the original series was cancelled, syndication had made the show a huge hit. So in 1979, after much pressure from creator Gene Roddenberry, Paramount brought this universe to the big screen with the entire original cast. Though certainly not the most beloved of the series, it did set things in motion for many superior sequels. And through the craft of composer Jerry Goldsmith came one of the most memorable themes in the franchise, later used for Star Trek: The Next Generation :

What else happened around this time?

1979 was a big year for enduring sci-fi classics about space, particularly Alien (also with music by Goldsmith ) and Close Encounters of the Third Kind (with those unforgettable five notes from John Williams).

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

Where The Motion Picture is a bit lackluster to some, The Wrath of Khan has received almost universal praise as one of the best films in the franchise. The new composer, James Horner, was specifically told not to use any of Goldsmith's music from the previous film. But, wanting to retain some familiarity, Horner did adapt some of the original fanfare from the television series in the opening title music, which has its own swashbuckling, space-faring feel:

As far as memorable musical scores in 1982, it's hard to beat John Williams' work on E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial , especially that magical bicycle flying scene .

Star Trek III: The Search for Spock

This film and its immediate successor are notable for being directed by Leonard Nimoy, who portrays Spock in the series. Following the plot directly after The Wrath of Khan , this story pits the Enterprise crew against Klingons, who were frequent antagonists in the series. James Horner remained on board for this film, and wrote a brooding, ominous theme to represent this new (old) threat:

Though not the most revered of science-fiction films, particularly in comparison to its source material, David Lynch’s Dune does have some particularly memorable music from the band Toto with additional work by Brian Eno.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

Probably the most broadly appealing entry of the six films based around the original series cast, this time-travel caper brings the crew of the Enterprise to present-day Earth (in 1986, that is). This time around, Leonard Rosenman took the reins as composer after Horner declined to return. Given the modern setting, Rosenman inflected his score with a number of eclectic elements, from traditional classical-inspired sounds to music that feels very much at home in the 80s . But he kept that timeless fanfare music for the opening theme of course:

In another case of James Horner coming in to do the sequel to a franchise that had begun with Jerry Goldsmith, Aliens was one of his three collaborations with director James Cameron, and the music was suitably more action-oriented like the film , contrasting from Alien’ s focus on horror.

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

This is yet another film in the series directed by one of its stars, this time by the leading man, Captain James T. Kirk himself: William Shatner. After a poor showing with critics and at the box office, The Final Frontier tends to be one of the more forgettable films in the franchise. Still, this is when Jerry Goldsmith returned to the franchise, 10 years after scoring the first film. And finally, we have a marriage of the two defining musical elements of the series:

Though it doesn't take place in outer space, The Abyss has all of the hallmarks of an alien encounter story, and features music by science-fiction veteran Alan Silvestri .

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country

Much better received than its predecessor, this movie has prominent themes of espionage and subterfuge, given the political climate of the Cold War that had just ended. Suitably, the new composer Cliff Eidelman wrote a score that was much darker and less bombastic than previous Star Trek scores. He essentially composed everything from scratch and did not base his material on older themes from the series:

https://youtu.be/DzqJSaM41S4

While 1991 did not have many successful space oriented movies, the following year brought another film in the Alien franchise, Alien 3 . Scored by Elliot Goldenthal, one of the most striking moments in the score is during the famous 20 th Century Fox fanfare , which then melds into this haunting track .

Star Trek Generations

Worlds collide as the old meets the new! Featuring the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation , as well as William Shatner, James Doohan, and Walter Koenig of the original cast, this is the passing of the torch to the new Enterprise crew, who would go on to star in the next three films. Though not a smash hit with critics, it was an important moment of transition for the series at the least. Dennis McCarthy, composer for the numerous Star Trek TV series from The Next Generation onward, scored this film.

In somewhat a reverse of Star Trek's trajectory, Roland Emmerich's 1994 film Stargate spawned a television franchise of its own 3 years later! David Arnold composed the music for this film , as well as another popular Roland Emmerich sci-fi hit a couple of years later...

Star Trek: First Contact

Since the Klingons had made peace with the Federation by the time of The Next Generation , the series was in need of a new set of recurring antagonists. Enter the Borg, a hivemind of different species assimilated into a cybernetic Collective. Present throughout the TV series, the Borg made their theatrical debut with this film, where they attempt to rewrite history in order to rule supreme in the future. Directed by cast member Jonathan Frakes (William Riker), First Contact was received positively, and Jerry Goldsmith even returned as composer!

https://youtu.be/X9rtsG21ncg

You have David Arnold to thank for providing rousing music to President James Whitmore's equally rousing speech in 1996's event of the summer: Independence Day . And how about those end credits ?

Star Trek: Insurrection

Continuing the trend of every other Star Trek movie receiving praise and every other movie receiving mixed to negative reactions, this film is decidedly… mixed. Still, Paramount was on a roll with releasing a Star Trek film every couple of years or so, and given that this one was right on the cusp of the new century, they took advantage of growing movie technology by creating every space scene with CGI. Like it’s predecessor, Insurrection was also directed by Jonathan Frakes, and it was the 4th film in the series for Jerry Goldsmith.

There were a number of science-fiction movies about space or aliens in 1998, but none of them seem to quite top the popularity and bombast of Michael Bay’s Armageddon . With former Yes guitarist Trevor Rabin taking on the music, some of it has a distinctly different quality than many of the films mentioned on this list, but it seems to suit its director perfectly.

And it was only a year later that we were treated to what many might consider the greatest Star Trek movie of all: Galaxy Quest . Okay, sure, it doesn’t actually have Star Trek in the title, but with so many references and nods to the fans, this meta-parody is a loving homage to the series that even Star Trek cast members love . And as far as the music goes, David Newman created a unique score that pays homage to the series much like the movie itself.

Star Trek: Nemesis

Perhaps a bit bittersweet for fans of The Next Generation and Jerry Goldsmith, this film was the last Star Trek entry to feature both. Unfortunately, critical response was not kind to this one either, and going all the way back to The Motion Picture , the gap between this and the next Star Trek film was the largest in the series (7 years). Of note, however, is the inclusion of Tom Hardy in one of his first film roles, who has now become quite a bankable star with films like Inception , Mad Max: Fury Road , and The Revenant under his belt. Fittingly, Goldsmith’s score still holds on to that famous Star Trek fanfare from the TV series, but with a noticeably darker aura to fit the film’s plot:

Given that CGI was on a big upswing at this time, science-fiction movies were coming in left and right. But there’s one score that seems to outshine its own movie: James Newton Howard’s music from Signs . To be fair, Signs does not seem to be as reviled as future M. Night Shyamalan suspense films like Lady in the Water or The Happening , but the music seems so absolutely crucial for this film’s success, and it certainly provides some heart-racing suspense .

And here we are with a rebooted universe that sort of takes place within the original series’ timeline… but not quite. This new, flashy franchise from J.J. Abrams features an entirely new cast in the roles of the original Enterprise crew, with Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto taking the roles of series leads Kirk and Spock, respectively. Though some die-hard fans of the series have likely been turned off by these newcomers, it can’t be denied that the new film series has allowed for a new fan base to develop. Much like Star Wars: The Force Awakens , this revival is drawing in an entirely new generation and getting them interested in a decades-old franchise that has endured so strongly. Plus, with music by frequent Abrams collaborator Michael Giacchino (kind of a Spielberg-Williams thing), there are some suitably exciting new themes for the series:

Speaking of frequent director-composer pairings, the James Cameron-James Horner train started a good thing with Aliens , and both would subsequently be involved in the two highest-grossing films of all time: 1997’s Titanic , and 2009’s Avatar . A sprawling epic, Avatar has a fairly familiar story of the soldier joining the local indigenous tribe to fight against his imperialist masters, but the film’s unique look and sound is what seemed to make it such a success, with a score from Horner that draws from a number of musical styles found around the world.

Star Trek Into Darkness

Though generally well-received, this film had a bit of controversy over some of the story elements and its main villain, portrayed by Benedict Cumberbatch. Given that it’s a relatively recent release I won’t spoil any of it, but Abrams was definitely taking a cue from previous films in how he approached this one. Still, it delivered what was essentially promised from the 2009 film: an action-packed space adventure with attractive young actors and actresses sharing witty banter. And Giacchino returned with his usually thrilling action cues, as well as some more somber moments like this Philip Glass-esque track:

For 2013 movies set in space, Alfonso Cuarón’s Gravity took a strong lead with breath-taking visuals, and a tense, Academy Award-winning score by Stephen Price that really tries to get under your skin.

It’s interesting to see how much the music for this genre has evolved over the years, yet also what elements remain the same. The idea of space as the “final frontier” seems to inspire a sense of adventure and looming danger, which many of these scores also attempt to evoke in their own unique way. I suppose we’ll see where the music of space boldly goes next!

Resources like these are made possible by the generosity of our community of donors, foundations, and corporate partners. Join others and make your gift to Houston Public Media today! DONATE

Sign up for our daily weekday newsletter - hello, houston sign up now.

Screen Rant

Every musical sequence in the star trek franchise explained.

Since the 60s, Star Trek has included various musical scenes which add creativity to the sci-fi drama and there is a history behind all of them.

SPOILERS for Star Trek: Picard Season 2 below. 

With a cast rife with Broadway experienced actors and professional singers, the Star Trek franchise has subsequently entertained various musical interludes that serve the purpose of both character development and distinctive entertainment. Recently, Picard season 2 gave Alison Pill a scene to show off her singing talents with a powerful rendition of Shadows of the Night. Picard is continuing the Star Trek tradition of sprinkling musicality into its narrative, reminiscent of its predecessors, so here is an exploration behind the musical sequences in the franchise.

From Nichelle Nichols to Alison Pill, there have been a vast amount of practiced singers within each cast in Star Trek.  Star Trek: The Original Series likely popularized the phenomenon of including musical moments in the franchise due to the 1960s appeal of hiring singers or band members to be guest stars and extras so a marketable song could be created, an example being the ragtag band from "The Way To Eden." Professional singers from the franchise include Robert Picardo, Nana Visitor, Brent Spiner, and James Darren. Music is a huge element of Star Trek and has inspired a pattern in every installment including the most recent series  Picard, where Alison Pill pays homage to these interludes, the song most notably a homage to Jeri Ryan's interrupted cover of That Old Black Magic from Star Trek: Voyager season 4 episode 18 "The Killing Game."

Related: Star Trek Just Made Uhura's Best TOS Scene Even Better

The musical instances in Star Trek set it apart from most sci-fi properties by adding an ecstatic and altogether bubbly vibe to its universe. While there is war and mayhem in space, these songs highlight the franchise's ability to focus on the light in the darkness and the optimism its concept represents. The performances are consistently charismatic, bright, and creative which adds to the earnest nature of Trek. In large, the universe's humanity is what Star Trek attempts to extract, and remains as strong as ever with these scenes. Music, especially, gets that point across in the franchise.

Uhura's Song

"Uhura's Song" is first heard in TOS season 1 episode 2 "Charlie X" as the communications officer sings along to Spock playing his instrument. This is Uhura's first stand-out moment in the series and perhaps one of the most memorable of her character. It is sung by Nichelle Nichols herself who later put the song on her album Down To Earth which contains covers such as "Feelin' Good" or "That's Life" . Before taking on the role of Uhura, Nichols performed with the legendary Duke Ellington. The purpose of the song in Star Trek is to establish Uhura's outgoing and convivial personality. She is a good influence on her friends and crewmates, as shown during her song when she playfully goads Spock into playing longer and joining in on the fun. This song became a significant catalyst for various instances of musical interludes in the franchise.

Maiden Wine

Leonard Nimoy was a prolific singer in the 1960s-1970s, creating 5 studio albums in his time. It is not altogether surprising Spock is given a moment to shine with his uniquely angelic voice. In TOS season 2 episode 10 "Plato's Stepchildren" Spock is forced through mind control to sing "Maiden Wine" . Nimoy wrote the song himself for the episode and it can be found with a second verse on his 1969 album The Touch of Leonard Nimoy. Though most well-known for a chipper  Lord of the Rings- themed song "The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins" , Nimoy is an accomplished singer who can claim a vast collection of music. "Maiden Wine" puts Spock's internal conflict on naked display. He is forced to show emotions which is a human failing he has avoided all of his life. The song is an extension of his pain towards mind control and its consequences.

A British Tar

In the third installment of the Star Trek  TNG  sequel films, Star Trek: Insurrection, Picard and Worf begin to sing "A British Tar" over the comms of their ship in order to distract Data from his dangerous instance of malfunctioning. The song is from the comic opera H.M.S. Pinafore and was composed by the lyricist duet Gilbert and Sullivan in the 19th century. The song choice on Picard's part is in character since he and Data in TNG share a mutual interest in Shakespeare and seemingly pre-20th-century culture. Several of the TNG actors can sing professionally, including the Broadway experienced Brent Spiner, so this brief scene of levity in Star Trek: Insurrection inspires a jovial and sing-a-long vibe with a harmony of strong voices.

Related: How Star Trek: Picard Connects Data's Death Back To Nemesis

Having performed in the hit musical Chicago on Broadway, Nana Visitor bewitches the audience with her musical interlude of Fever in DS9. In season 6 episode 20 "His Way" of Deep Space Nine Lola Chrystal, who is a holographic replica of Kira, sings her sultry rendition of the song to Odo. Fitting with the theme of Vic Fontaine's club, "Fever" was a song written in 1956 by Eddie Cooley and Otis Blackwell which has been previously covered by classic singers such as Elvis Presley and Madonna. Lola's appearance in the episode is an attempt by Vic Fontaine to aid Odo in his goal of romancing Kira. The lyrics of the song reflect Odo's feelings towards Kira, especially the lines "Never know how much I love you, never know how much I care." Throughout DS9, Odo has significant trouble opening up about his feelings for Kira choosing instead to repress them.

The popular song written by Irving Berlin in 1926 "Blue Skies" makes its first appearance in Star Trek in the fourth installment of the TNG sequel films Star Trek: Nemesis. Data pays tribute to Deanna Troi and Will Riker at their wedding by jazzily singing it. The song becomes much more than a brief journey into Brent Spiner's vocal talents when B-4 sings it at the end of the film following Data's death. Data is thought to be dead but the final appearance of the song confirms that Data, at the very least, installed his memories into his brother and will live on that way. It further represents Data's newfound emotions which set him apart from his android brethren since he is a creative and inspired character in the show and films.

Augment Chorus

Season 7 Episode 5 of Deep Space Nine "Chrysalis" is one of the few episodes starring the genetically-enhanced, but behaviorally divergent, group of Augments Bashir has become familiar with being an Augment himself. They bring their friend Sarina to Bashir in hopes of restoring her voice which he finally succeeds in doing. This inspires an extravagant chorus Patrick, the childishly blunt character in the team, leads of Do-Re-Mi. The simple song serves as a revelation for both Sarina and Julian Bashir since she is able to find the voice she's been without all her life, and especially for Bashir since his main goal in the series is to make a significant difference in someone's life using medical means. This DS9 moment centering around found family and optimism is perhaps the most heartwarming scene in all of Star Trek  since it reflects Trek's theme of a hopeful, better future.

Sisko & Fontaine Duet

Vic Fontaine perhaps sings more than any character in Star Trek. He is supposed to be reminiscent of 1950s-60s singers such as Frank Sinatra or Dean Martin. The main characters of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine often visit his hologram in Quark's holosuite. In season 7 episode 15 of DS9 "Badda-Bing Badda-Bang" Avery Brooks playing Sisko joins Fontaine actor James Darren in a memorable duet cover of Sinatra and Count Basie's "The Best Is Yet To Come". Darren is an experienced singer yet Avery Brooks shows equal vocal and performance talent when he joins him. The duet is significant in the plot due to Sisko's prior reluctance to visit this specific program in the holosuite. He has fears about the morality of enjoying a simulation of the 1960s, feeling as if it would be betraying his own heritage and history. However, by going to the holosuite and joining Fontaine in a song, DS9 shows he is able to overcome many of these concerns. It is a moving scene that speaks of union, acceptance, and necessary self-indulgence.

Related: Star Trek: Picard's Opening Song Is A TNG Movie Callback

You Are My Sunshine & My Darling Clementine

In Star Trek: Voyager, the Emergency Medical Hologram  forms a bond with the recently reformed Borg Seven of Nine. The world of the Federation is new to Seven and her newfound interest in music and its technicalities inspires the EMH to introduce her to the art through singing lessons. During their duets together, they practice both "You Are My Sunshine" and "Oh My Darling, Clementine" . With Jeri Ryan's higher-pitched angelic voice and Robert Picardo's exercised operatic tone, they create a pleasant harmony that emulates their mutually beneficial dynamic. The lessons serve to develop their relationship and divulge the growing feelings EMH has for Seven of Nine. The lyrics of these songs, especially "You Are My Sunshine" , truly reflect his unrequited love for her. " You'll never know, dear, how much I love you,"  is a lyric offering more tragedy in these scenes than levity.

The EMH's Opera

One of the more prolific professional singers in Star Trek, Robert Picardo, excels in operatic vocals and music. In Voyager, Picardo is often utilized for scenes centering around opera such as the extravagant dream sequence where he himself sings one of the EMH's favorite songs, "La Donna E’Immobile" , to Tuvok . The most notable operatic moment for Picardo's character is in VOY season 6 episode 13 "Virtuoso" where the EMH attempts to maintain the fame he's found on a planet previously lacking music. This is the only instance where Robert Picardo doesn't actually sing, the vocals belonging to singer Agostino Castagnola. Despite this, Picardo portrays the depth of emotion required of the final song in the episode, "Rondine al Nido" .   Voyager's  EMH is being cast out of a society that does not understand the meaning of music in culture. The existence of the song, which was fittingly composed as a lament about lost love, is a final tribute to the necessity of inspired art and why society needs it to connect to their humanity and passions. It is a touching yet futile scene due to the loss of creativity on this planet and Picardo exudes the tragedy with great expression.

Shadows Of The Night

In season 2 episode 6 "Two of One" of Picard, Alison Pill as Agnes Jurati sings "Shadows of the Night" . Alison gives an impressive performance both in voice and in character since Jurati is under pressure. The scene serves as a transition from Jurati's firm clutch on the control of her own mind and body to an overtaking from the Borg Queen. The lyrics represent Jurati's internal struggle with the Queen in season 2 and how she succumbs to her influence after the powerful song concludes. "Surrender all you dreams to me tonight, they'll come true in the end," are lyrics most informative about the Devil-on-the-shoulder manipulation the Borg Queen supplies while also acting as an explanation for what Jurati is sacrificing by giving in to her. Alison succeeds in portraying the intoxication of her co-dependency with the Queen as well as the poisonous temptation of what she's being offered.

Even now, Trek is upholding a long-held tradition of including unique scenes of musicality in its franchise. Picard has proven its consistent pattern in the Star Trek universe with Agnes' season 2 song, and hopefully, a new installment will deign to continue the trend. The history of the musical interludes in S tar Trek is incredibly broad and every song has a story, these being the explanations for each of them.

Next: Picard: The Secret Meaning Of Agnes' Song In Season 2 Episode 6

Star Trek: Picard Season 2 is streaming on Paramount+.

• Movies & TV
• Big on the Internet
• About Us & Contact

Let’s Rank the Songs of ‘Strange New Worlds’ Musical Episode, ‘Subspace Rhapsody’

At last, the Star Trek: Strange New World s musical episode is here! TMS’ Lauren Coates has us covered with a review of “Subspace Rhapsody” as a whole, but I’m here to talk specifically about the music . After all, a musical is judged by how likely you are to keep singing and listening to the songs long after the show is over. At least, that’s how I rate musicals.

So, how does the music stack up? Allow me to provide a humble ranking of the songs from “Subspace Rhapsody” from least to most awesome. Feel free to disagree with me about the order in the comments!

10. “ How Would That Feel ” – La’an Noonien-Singh (performed by Christina Chong)

Sadly, my least favorite song was performed by one of the characters I was most looking forward to hearing from.

La’an’s going through a lot: she traveled through time, she’s not supposed to talk about it, and she had romantic feelings for a version of Kirk who is now dead. She’s also one of the more guarded members of the crew, due to her harrowing experience with the Gorn and the assumptions people make from her last name. I was sure we wouldn’t hear from La’an for a while, but when we did, it would be meaningful .

Instead, we got a La’an song way too early, singing feelings I’m not convinced she’d sing, even on her own. Especially since she had the self-control not to sing when revealing her actual strong feelings to Kirk later in the episode. Imagine how much more powerful Kirk’s rejection would’ve been if it followed a heartbreakingly honest musical confession. Instead, we were served an emotionally incoherent, lyrically generic ballad way too early in the episode.

9. “ Keeping Secrets ” – Una Chin-Riley (performed by Rebecca Romijn)

Una Chin-Riley is another character who’s way more fascinating than the songs she was given. Unfortunately, Una’s two numbers in the episode are among the weakest. “Keeping Secrets” is the weaker of the two, as Una commiserates with La’an by comparing her unrequited love of Kirk to … her own battle to keep her identity a secret to avoid persecution? Una, all secrets are not equal. And in this context, Number One doesn’t know the timey-wimey reasons why La’an’s feelings for Kirk are so complicated. So, the fact that her approach is this serious in this song makes little sense.

I’d be able to forgive that if the music or lyrics were more interesting, but like “How Would That Feel,” this was another plodding, generic ballad during which I found myself checking my phone.

8. “ Connect to Your Truth ” – Una Chin-Riley and James T. Kirk (performed by Rebecca Romijn and Paul Wesley)

“Connect to Your Truth” was a stronger song for Number One, not only because it was a fun callback to her love of Gilbert & Sullivan—which she expressed in the Short Treks episode “Q&A” —but because it was a duet with a James T. Kirk who is not yet a captain. This allowed Una to give Kirk advice on how to be a better leader by staying true to who you are and connecting to your crew through vulnerability.

Also, this song was fun , which goes a long way. While this song is only slightly better than the first two songs on this list (and it’s probably the cheesiest song in the episode), both Romijn and Wesley seemed to be having a great time singing it. The song also makes sense on a character level as well as thematically.

7. “Main Title (“Subspace Rhapsody” Version)” – composed by Jeff Russo

I love when a themed episode of a TV show goes to the trouble of creating something different for the opening title sequence. SNW already did this once with a Lower Decks -inspired opening for “Those Old Scientists.” For “Subspace Rhapsody,” composer Jeff Russo orchestrated a boppy, choral version of the opening theme that will give you chills.

Hearing this version in the trailer truly got me excited about watching the episode! Literally the only reason for its “low” placement on this list is that it’s an instrumental and not really a “song,” but it needed to be on here!

6. “ Private Conversation ” – Christopher Pike and Marie Batel (performed by Anson Mount and Melanie Scrofano)

“Private Conversation” is a fun and hilariously awkward moment between two characters who are still trying to figure out what their romantic relationship looks like long distance.

Before any of the singing starts, we know that Pike and Batel have been discussing taking a vacation together. As Batel shares her preferred destination, it’s clear that Pike isn’t into it. But rather than being upfront about it, he deflects. Then, despite being so not thrilled about the singing, Pike is forced to reveal how he feels in song when Uhura patches a call from Batel to him on the bridge.

Hearing them both absolutely hate that they’re being compelled to sing while also having an awkward lovers’ squabble in front of subordinate crew members was an absolute delight.

5. “ Status Report ” – Enterprise Crew (performed by the SNW Cast)

“Status Report” understood the assignment, and is a perfect opening number for a Star Trek musical. It manages to sound very Trek (technobabble and all), while also sounding like a true musical number. Every cast member takes part in the number in a way that is true to their character. The song is a perfect, fun, and funny introduction to the unique nature of the problem: there’s nothing technically “wrong” on the ship, and yet there’s something very, very wrong on the ship.

I mean, just look at Pike’s face above. He really, really hates that this is happening, and I love it so much .

4. “ I’m the X ” – Spock (performed by Ethan Peck)

This darker, angrier reprise to Nurse Chapel’s song (which is slightly higher up on the list) is not only a perfect song for Spock at this point in his life, but it marks the beginning of the more stoic Spock that we (and Boimler) will come to know in the future. Freshly dumped by his fiancée, Spock learns that the woman he basically left her for has no qualms about leaving him to take a fellowship. So Spock decides that the only way to handle this is to put away emotions entirely . Oh, Spock. You adorable stupid jerk.

And leave it to Spock to sing a song about emotions and romantic relationships that uses math as a metaphor. I mean, it’s no “ The Math of Love Triangles ” from Crazy Ex-Girlfriend , but it is more accurate about math.

3. “ I’m Ready ” – Christine Chapel (performed by Jess Bush)

Thankfully, not all the women of the cast got sub-par songs to work with. “I’m Ready” has the distinction of being the only song in the episode that truly works both as a song for Chapel (in the context of the story) and as a completely standalone song that I cannot wait to hear someone crush at karaoke.

It’s also a great song musically and has a fun, flirtatious energy. Not flirty as in “with a person,” but flirting with the possibilities of life. And I love that the song subverts TOS Chapel, whom we see pining after Spock all the time. “I’m Ready” gives us a Christine who has feelings for Spock, but is more in love with her own future. Like Billie Eilish .

2. “ We Are One ” – Enterprise Crew (performed by the SNW Cast)

“Subspace Rhapsody” came out of the gate strong with a solid opening number, and it ended strong with a finale as optimistic as Star Trek is at its best. Of course the solution was going to be that we need more voices singing . Of course the solution was going to come from Uhura, Trek’s Queen of Communication. And of course, Uhura was going to highlight that music isn’t just about expressing one’s bad or secret feelings, it’s about expressing the good ones too!

She rightfully points out that cultures throughout history have used songs to celebrate and engage in communal activities, and she reminds the Enterprise crew that they are always at their best when they work together. “We Are One” ended the episode on a joyful note that made me proud to be a Trekkie.

1. “ Keep Us Connected ” – Nyota Uhura (performed by Celia Rose Gooding)

The clear standout of the episode is Uhura’s passionate ballad, “Keep Us Connected.” This song is an emotional roller coaster, and it was the one song in the episode that made me cry.

First, it honored a Trek legacy character whose contributions can never be praised enough. Second, it was deeply personal for Uhura, charting her journey from experiencing the death of her family at a young age to making a career out of bringing people together, giving her a depth that she’s rarely been given elsewhere. And third, because this song resonates on the same level as Encanto ‘s “Surface Pressure,” relatable to every woman who’s ever felt the pressure of, and recognized the strength required for, the invisible labor in which they so often engage in to care for others.

And Gooding performs the song brilliantly. They have an amazing voice, and while it took the entire cast to make me feel this strongly during the opener and the finale, Gooding was the only cast member able to elicit this level of emotion all on their own. I loved that what started as a song of grief and self-pity turned into Uhura recognizing that her ability to help others communicate is a gift. And in recognizing this gift, they arrive at the solution that saves the Enterprise from being a forever musical.

I will be listening to this song on a loop all weekend. You can, too, as the soundtrack for “Subspace Rhapsody” is available wherever you stream music.

(featured image: Paramount+)

To Boldly Sing

Star trek has inspired plenty of pop culture, but nothing is as bizarre as the musical fandom following its warp trail..

 Filed under: filk , music , novelty music , star trek , star trek music , star trek songs

Hey all, Ernie here with a fresh one from David Buck , who is helping us maintain our mental-health-break status for this week. If you’re a Star Trek enthusiast, you will enjoy this one.

Today in Tedium : Some readers might have noticed my absence last month. Unfortunately, my father passed suddenly and I was out of commission for a while. As I looked through some of his stuff, I came across some things that reminded me of the times we would sit down together to watch Star Trek: the Next Generation or Star Trek: Deep Space Nine . Thinking about those moments reminded me of some old files and pitches that I was working on a few years ago. I came across one idea and decided to flesh it out a bit: a piece on songs about a certain science fiction television show. If I recall correctly, the original outline of the piece was written for a certain site that ghosted me a few years ago. So, here it is, completely rewritten with fresh insights. So set your phasers to stun and beam up your sense of humor because in today’s Tedium, we’re going where no one has gone before: down the black hole of songs about Star Trek . — David @ Tedium

Today’s GIF comes from a claymation music video for the well-known novelty song “Star Trekkin’” by The Firm.

Sponsored By … You?

Keep Us Moving! Tedium takes a lot of time to work on and snark wise about. If you want to help us out , we have a Patreon page where you can donate. Keep the issues coming !

We accept advertising, too! Check out this page to learn more .

“And on no other show do I police myself as much, because I’m such a fan of Star Trek that it’s important to me that we are as funny as we can be without breaking Star Trek at all times and without being mean about Star Trek. With the network and with the studio, the conversations are mostly when I’m pitching an episode, I’ll be like, ‘Here’s what inspired this episode.’ And it’s always coming from a thing that I love about Star Trek, and then ‘Here are the things that we love about these characters, here’s how we want to explore them, and then this is why it’s going to be funny.’”

— Mike McMahan , creator of Star Trek: Lower Decks , discussing his approach to comedy on the show in a 2021 interview with Collider .

Where no musician has gone before (well, not really)

Last year, I discovered something rather silly: a radio station with an apostrophe in its call letters. I joked with Ernie that it reminded me of the Klingon language. This led to a very interesting journey about Klingon that ended up going pretty far and even made an appearance on Vice’s Motherboard —something for which I am eternally grateful. Revisiting this idea only further brings home the point that science fiction television can be a goldmine for weird stuff.

Star Trek has always been a great source of humor. Where Deep Space Nine and Picard readily take on more serious themes, there’s something to be said about the ever present sense of humor that runs a deep vein through most Trek shows. It’s in “The Trouble With Tribbles,” all over TNG (especially in some of Riker’s most memorable scenes ), interspersed between more maudlin moments of DS9 , and encapsulated by certain characters on Voyager . And that’s only naming a few shows! It’s not difficult to see the humor in the shows.

A few years ago, a surprising new Star Trek show was announced, focusing on the non-bridge crew of a “second contact” starship called The Cerritos . That show was Star Trek: Lower Decks . Created by Mike McMahan (who also worked on shows like Rick & Morty and Solar Opposites ), the show centers on a few quirky characters who aren’t officers but perform the ship’s grunt work. It’s hysterical and the characters are quite fun to spend 22 minutes with each episode.

With Star Trek: Lower Decks already two seasons into its run and a plethora of Trek shows coming out, it’s almost as if a renaissance for the series is upon us. Also, Strange New Worlds looks amazing.

Lower Decks goes out of its way to take itself less seriously, proving there’s definitely some room for a bit of comedy interspersed with the more abstract seriousness the show often aims to hit. What Lower Decks does so well is how it leverages that crazy sense of humor into the fandom at large. It sort of reminds me of what happens when enthusiastic, musically inclined fans get together to write songs about the show.

Music has always been integral to Star Trek . From the opening theme of Star Trek (TOS) onward, music has been an integral part of Star Trek , inspiring viewers and musicians alike. While each show’s own music is instantly recognizable, the program also inspired a great deal of music by other artists (often related to TOS ). You’ve probably heard “ The Trouble With Klingons ,” a pastiche created by Dennis Williams for a certain novelty song contest or “Spock Rap” by the animators at Will Vinton Studios (under the name The Neural Paralyzers ) in the ’80s. Admittedly, not everything in this category is great, but there are plenty of gems around. Here are a few artists/songs that explore strange musical worlds, seek out new melodies, and boldly sing where no one has sung before!

You won’t find William Shatner’s The Transformed Man or Leonard Nimoy’s Two Sides of Leonard Nimoy here. Likewise, we won’t revisit the original Trek theme and its lyrics . Rather, these songs and sketches represent unique takes on Trek by various musicians and comedians past and present.

5. “Banned from Argo,” Leslie Fish & the Dehorn Crew

“ And we’re banned from Argo every one, banned from Argo just for having a little fun…”

Filk music is full of talented musicians who share a love of science fiction and community. Filk music—folk music with lyrics based on science fiction—has a rich history , with a strong connection to Trek.

Leslie Fish is perhaps the genre’s best known figure. With her 12-string guitar and larger than life persona, Fish writes about science fiction and beyond.

“ Banned from Argo ” is an upbeat shanty with slightly twisted lyrics. The Enterprise crew goes on shore leave and various hilarious hijinks ensue. It doesn’t reference TOS characters by name, it’s obvious which crew members she’s singing about.

The first few lines of a song explore the mischievous misadventures of the crew checking out “every joint and bar” on Argo during their shore leave. Listeners then learn about the Captain’s sinful tastes and complex methods, the engineer’s ability to “outdrink space marines and a demolition crew,” and the first officer teaches the computer how to swear. It’s a shame what happened to the doctor … but I digress.

Surprisingly, Fish doesn’t seem to like the song much. As she states in several interviews (notably her brief appearance in Trekkies 2 ), the tune was written as quickly to fill out an album. It rapidly became her best known song—something she is a bit cranky about .

Leslie Fish has a large ouvre of other songs, both Trek related and otherwise. Her exuberant performances and love for storytelling shine during her performances. If you’re not a fan of folk music and/or sea shanties, you may want to give this one a pass.

If you enjoy her Trek music, check out the song “Carmen Miranda’s Ghost” and its accompanying anthology . For the full Leslie Fish experience, give Folk Songs for Solar Sailors a spin—if you can find it .

4. “Everything I Do, I Do with William Shatner,” Warp 11

”I don’t want to go to work, just wanna hang with Captain Kirk and if I had my way, I’d make it so…”

Dedicated to all things Trek , Sacramento’s Warp 11 built a career playing Trek -themed music. Originally devised as a “band that only plays Trek songs” for a one-time video project of bass player/singer Karl Miller, the idea stuck and Warp 11 was born. Two decades and six albums later, the band is still on their musical journey.

Through incredible energy, crunchy electric guitar, and hilarious lyrics, “ Everything I Do, I Do with William Shatner ” from 2002’s Red Alert perfectly reflects the band’s “mission statement” —to convert listeners into Trek fans. Despite its title, the song is about Captain Kirk rather than Shatner himself.

Effortlessly juxtaposing the manic energy of The Presidents of the United States of America and the killer chops of The Ramones with a wider mix of blues, rock, and punk styles. Add their DIY punk-meets- TOS cosplay aesthetic, and you get one very eclectic listening/visual experience.

With Warp 11, you’ll find songs about Q and Betazoids, an entire album covering The Borg, and a few sporadic tunes about Voyager . The band’s healthy mix of TOS and TNG material is the epitome of Trek music created by fans, for fans.

While I enjoy their music, it skews toward a teenager/adult audience and is definitely not for kids. Warp 11 are well known for their sense of humor and double entendre and they can be a bit R-rated at times, with mildly NSFW album art. Some of their stuff can be a bit of an acquired taste, but if you dig pink, scifi, humor, and Star Trek , they’re worth checking out!

For those interested in Warp 11, start with Red Alert , then dive into any of their post-2007 work from It’s Dead Jim onward, available at their website and most streaming services.

3. “StarDrek,” Bobby “Boris” Pickett and Peter Ferarra

“ To boldly go where everyone has gone before !”

What do The Godfather , the most famous Halloween song of all time, and Star Trek have in common? Bobby “Boris” Pickett, of course. After having his breakout smash with “The Monster Mash” in 1962 (we wrote about this classic novelty tune in 2018 ), Pickett forged a career as a writer, playwright, comedian, and songwriter.

In 1975-1976, Pickett got together with producer Peter Ferrara to record “Godfather’s Respect”—a song about the 1972 film set to the tune of Aretha Franklin’s “Respect”—and an original spoken word spoof of TOS called “Star Drek” (not to be confused with the MAD Magazine spoofs of a similar name).

The sketch follows the daily operation of a parody version of The Enterprise and its crew, focusing on the most exaggerated aspects of each character.

It isn’t an outright mockery of the franchise and its fans, either. “Star Drek” is a carefully crafted satire of the genre that plays to the absurdity of the occasional technobabble used on the show, taking a light hearted approach to the action. We won’t spoil the punchline for you here.

Barrett Hansen—a.k.a. radio host Dr. Demento—included the sketch on his 25th Anniversary collection, writing the two were on opposite coasts during the recording process so Peter ended up doing all the voices himself. They shared the credits, as Pickett helped write the piece.

The sketch is uproariously funny every time you hear it—a rare accomplishment for a comedy/novelty song—full of nuance and spot-on characterizations. Of course, your mileage may vary. The humor may be a bit dry for some, but it’s a fun piece that holds up remarkably well today.

If you like Pickett and Ferrara’s style consider listening to Pickett’s The Monster Mash LP. For more Peter Ferrara, watch the Jonathan Winters specials On the Ledge and Spaced Out .

(via Terry McGovern’s website )

2. “Beam me up Scotty,” Terry McGovern

”Beam me up Scotty, oh beam me up Scotty, life sure is trouble below …”

Terry McGovern is known today for his voice acting (he was the voice of Launchpad McQuack in the original Duck Tales ), but he began his career as a radio broadcaster . Later, he would work in movies and television as well. In 1976, he released a Trek song of his own, “Beam me up, Scotty” on Baseball Records as a B-side to his rendition of the classic tune “ Pachalafaka .” You can hear the entire thing on SoundCloud .

Not to be confused with an obscure country tune of the same name, McGovern’s song is a quiet rumination on how boring/awful life on earth can seem sometimes. The singer longs to join the crew of The Enterprise and escape the banality of modern life.

The song received airplay on various radio shows, but languished in obscurity for years until being officially re-released on a compilation album in the early 2000s. While it may not be the most well known Trek tune, it’s certainly well loved .

McGovern regularly attends conventions and teaches acting classes—on top of his legendary voice work.

1. “Star Trekkin’,” The Firm

“ There’s Klingons on the starboard bow, starboard bow, starboard bow… ”

The final entry in our list may be the best known: “Star Trekkin’” by The Firm. No, not Jimmy Page’s post Zeppelin band; this group was a side project of John O’Connor, a British music producer.

The song was popular in its own time—it hit Number One in the UK music charts and stayed there for quite awhile back in 1986—but took on new life in the internet age. It was used in one of the episodes of a Flash-based web series called Stone Trek (a mashup of The Flintstones and TOS ) and a claymation video makes the internet rounds every so often. Not bad for a novelty song that was rejected by every record company O’Connor approached. Then it became a million seller, prompting O’Connor’s move to America, where he went on to compose for television .

The Firm released a full-length LP, Serious Fun , that’s worth at least a slip of gold pressed latinum. “Star Trekkin’” is the best and catchiest of the tracks. Good luck getting the tune out of your head.

The number of songs in the Star Trek musical Boldly Go! Written by a Caltech theoretical physics graduate , Grant Remmen, and his brother Cole, the show is a humorous and satirical take on The Original Series . With songs like “Dammit Jim, I’m a Doctor” and “Captain’s Log (As Great As I Know I Am),” the show is well worth watching for its two hour runtime. According to a 2016 Caltech ad for the show, Boldly Go! is ”a story about being true to oneself and one’s convictions, about friendship and love, about discovery and wonder, about the triumph of the individual over adversity, and about the joy of sharing with each other this vast and mysterious Universe.” For those interested in such things, it’s available in its entirety on YouTube .

When I originally outlined this —several years ago now—it had quite a few more songs. But over time, my interest and enthusiasm for Trek has waned somewhat.

And of course we couldn’t fit all of our favorite goofy science fiction songs into this piece. But there are plenty of great Trek bands around like “one-chord punk rockers” No Kill I (and NKI: the Next Generation and NKI:Deep Space Nine; they’re all different bands), modern filkers Ookla the Mok , and the Klingon metal group Stovokor , whose performances take Trek music to the next level.

Songs and sketches about Trek continue to endure well into the 21st century and beyond and it will be interesting to see what strange musical moments the future of Trek fandom holds.

And although this piece no longer resembles anything close to the original idea I had for it, I’m glad I was able to take a quick reprieve from the insanity of our modern world to find—and share—some humor from the bridge of The Enterprise that can still resonate with audiences today.

Thanks again to David for the great piece. Find this one a worthy read? Share it with a pal ! And see you all next week.

Your time was just wasted by David Buck

David Buck is a former radio guy/musician who researches and writes about all manner of strange and interesting music, legacy technology, Nintendo and data analysis.

Like this? Well, you should read more of our stuff.

 Get more issues in your inbox

More Attention Ploys

The hard pivot, considering companies that ended up in a far different place from where they started. you know, like samsung, shell, hasbro, and american express., inventing daylight, on the evolution and growth of fluorescent colors in modern culture—especially in bright, neon, dayglo form..

What is Tedium? | Support us on Patreon | Share your ideas! | Privacy Policy | Advertise With Us | RSS feed | Ernie on Mastodon

Disclosure: From time to time, we may use affiliate links in our content—but only when it makes sense. Promise.

P.S.: If you email me asking about doing a guest post or posting a backlink, you forfeit ownership of your site to me.

Proudly built on Craft CMS using the Bulma framework.

Copyright © 2015-2023 Tedium LLC. All rights reserved. Please, try the fish .

Like what you're reading? Be sure to check out the front page of the website , too—it's full of cool stuff that you probably haven’t read yet.

All 9 Star Trek TV show theme songs ranked from worst to best

Who doesn't love a good intro song? Let's look at all the ones that had us jamming before our favorite Star Trek episodes.

Welcome to the ultimate cosmic countdown where we traverse the musical star fields of the Star Trek universe . Our mission? To rank the iconic opening anthems that have been the gateway to countless adventures among the stars.

These theme songs have done more than just precede episodes of our favorite Star Trek TV shows – they've captured the essence of exploration and the pioneering spirit of the beloved franchise. From the whimsical to the wondrous, the serene to the soaring, every intro has left an undeniable mark on the hearts of Trekkies across the galaxy and in the fandom of science fiction as a whole. But which ones truly stand out as the best in Star Trek's expansive universe of shows?

Buckle up as we set our phasers to 'fun' and warp into the world of Star Trek intros – where each note tells a story and every melody takes us boldly where no one has gone before. Oh yeah, and let's rank them as we do so.

9. Star Trek: Enterprise ("Where My Heart Will Take Me")

The theme song for Star Trek: Enterprise , delightfully titled "Where My Heart Will Take Me," is a refreshing departure from the classic sounds that have long accompanied the voyages of the Starfleet. Featuring the vibrant voice of Russell Watson, this pop ballad injects a warm, human touch into the saga, striking a chord with its buoyant message and Watson's earnest performance. Though it falls into the ninth spot in our musical trek through the stars (ha), its unique melody captures the essence of adventure in a way that's as endearing as it is unexpected.

In a collection of scores that speak to the grandeur of space exploration, "Where My Heart Will Take Me" stands out as a song that, while straying from the orchestral majesty typically linked with Star Trek , and celebrates the franchise's pioneering spirit in its own right. It's a testament to the diversity of the Star Trek universe, a place where human (and alien) emotions finds its voice amidst the echoes of the unknown.

8. Star Trek: The Animated Series

Now to take some time to acknowledge what might just be the most overlooked chapter in Star Trek history. That's right, it's time to appreciate the short-lived  Star Trek: The Animated Series , which ran on NBC for two seasons between 1973 and 1974, and continued the adventures of our favorite universe after the premature conclusion of the original series some years earlier.

Falling into the eighth spot on our chart, the zippy theme tune from the underrated animated show is memorable in its own right. Picture this: the song is like a mini rocket, packed with all the zip and zing of the Starship Enterprise's animated shenanigans. It's not the big, booming orchestra we're used to, but hey, it gets the job done with a wink and a smile.

Now, this song might not have all the bells and whistles, but it's got its own kind of magic. It's like the fun-loving cousin of the Star Trek theme family – not as flashy , but just as ready to launch us into a new adventure. It might not be the biggest star in the galaxy, but it sure knows how to light up our adventurous spirits.

7. Star Trek: Voyager

Imagine zooming through the cosmic playground that is space, weaving through stars and dodging asteroids, all from the snuggly comfort of your Earthly room. That's what you get from the memorable intro theme of Star Trek: Voyager . This song takes you on a couch odyssey that will be destined to get your pulse dancing to the rhythm of the blinking stars. Each note is a touch of adrenaline, each beat a leap between worlds. It's not just an intro, it's rocket fuel for the imagination, ready to launch you into a thrilling adventure.

A thrilling adventure is exactly what you're in for from this one, and with seven seasons of the show all introduced by this theme song, you are always ready for what's to come when watching it.

Now, the Voyager theme song may be the underdog among the other Star Trek intros, but doesn't mean it's not a good one. It's like that one friend who never raises their voice, but still turns all the heads when they stroll into the room. This tune doesn't scream for attention, it earns it with its blend of charm and daring. So hit play, lean back, and let this sleeper hit serenade you with its subtle power.

6. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Sitting at number six on our star chart of Trek-tastic intros, Dennis McCarthy's musical masterpiece featured in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is a bit two-sided. On one side, it's got this majestic beat that marches along with the pride of a space station that's seen it all. It's not adventuring through the stars like the other Star Trek ships, but it's got its own kind of cool aura about it, standing firm in the starry sea.

The  Deep Space Nine intro theme might not make you want to zoom out of your seat like a photon torpedo, but let me tell you, this intro certainly has its own flavor – and then some. Imagine a symphony in space – there's a plethora of brass instruments giving you what feels like a grand space opera, the kind that's perfect for a show that's deep (pun intended) with plots and space-politics.

So, while it may not be the theme that makes you want to leap into hyperspace, for those who dig the twists and turns that Deep Space Nine has to offer us, this intro is like a warm blanket on a cold night in the cosmos.

5. Star Trek: Picard

Swooping into the number five spot is the out-of-this-world intro tune for Star Trek: Picard . This was the series that Star Trek fans had been waiting years for, as it finally brought back one of the most familiar faces from the whole of the franchise – and boy was it worth seeing Patrick Stewart again in his most iconic role. And then there's the theme song.

Jeff Russo is the maestro behind this little gem, and boy, does it take you on an interstellar emotional ride or what? It's like a space-aged scrapbook of the one and only Jean-Luc Picard, with each note feeling like you're flipping through pages filled with adventures of the past and snapshots of new frontiers.

Now, why does this theme deserve a high-five in our space odyssey of sounds? Whether you've been a Star Trek fan well before this show or just beamed aboard, this song is your personal invite to join Picard on his latest quest. It's not just an intro, it's a musical voyager that captures the heart of the show and plants it right into ours – a stellar addition to the Star Trek universe that resonates with fans of all ages and galaxies near and far.

4. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

The newest entry in the ever-expanding franchise, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is a Star Trek show for a whole new generation. It brings back some popular characters from the franchise's past (albeit played by new actors) while also serving as a new installment, with the Star Trek: Discovery spin-off offering up some wonderful adventures of its own.

The theme song for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is like a warp-speed ride through the stars. It kicks off with a zippy tune that'll have all of you old-school Trekkies grinning from ear to ear, tipping its hat to the classic The Original Series that started it all. But hold onto your phasers, because this isn't just a throwback, we're cruising into new territory here.

As soon as Anson's soothing voice Captain Pike beams us up with his heart-lifting words, the music zooms off with an energy that's all its own, sparkling and spinning like a galaxy of fireworks. It's like the theme knows just where we've been and is super excited to show us where we're headed next. It's an ode to the awesome legacy of Star Trek, and it promises fresh space shenanigans and cosmic curiosities.

3. Star Trek: The Original Series

We're going way back to where it all began for the franchise now.

The opening jingle of Star Trek: The Original Series is not just any old tune – it's an interstellar icon and legend. Coming in at number three on the chart of Star Trek's musical kick-offs, this intro is the brainchild of the maestro Alexander Courage. You hit play, and whoosh – there you are, zooming past stars and through galaxies with your crew, all without leaving your couch. It's like this theme has its own warp drive, propelling us straight into the heart of adventure and mystery, making it the perfect soundtrack for our very own starship daydreams.

Now, let's talk about this earworm that's traveled light-years across the fandom universe. This isn't just a show intro – it's a staple for science fiction lovers everywhere. From the first twinkling note to the last, it's a musical "beam me up" that instantly teleports us to the Starships of our favorite Starfleet heroes. So next time you're stargazing or just needing a little nudge to your inner explorer, hum along to Star Trek's theme and watch the magic happen – it's literally an overture to the stars, inviting us to boldly go where no one has gone before.

2. Star Trek: The Next Generation

Strap in and let your ears take you on a ride with the Star Trek: The Next Generation theme song. It says it in the show's title, but this really was the Star Trek show for a whole new generation, carrying on its predecessor's legacy and introducing the franchise to a new legion of supporters. To help with that, it needed the right theme.

It's the one intro song I heard over and over as a child, and one that my own children have heard in their young years as well. Jerry Goldsmith, the mastermind behind the tune, totally knocked it out of the park when he composed this iconic tune for Star Trek: The Motion Picture . But it was such a good intro that it found its forever home with the TV crew of  TNG .

Every time those notes hit, it's like a high-five to adventure and thumb wrestling with the unknown. It's not just a bunch of snazzy sounds – it's like the Starship Enterprise of tunes, boldly taking your imagination where it's never gone before. While for some that aren't as into Star Trek, it's may be the silver medalist of space anthems, but for the vast majority of Trekkies, it's pure gold.

1. Star Trek: Discovery

Beam me up, Burnham, because every single time that first note of the Star Trek: Discovery theme hits, it sends me. It's like the composer has this magic wand, right? And with a flick, I'm sprinkled with this stardust that takes me light-years away. It's this absolutely gorgeous mix of old-school Trek vibes with a dash of the new, and it really captures what  Discovery really is: a fresh new take on an old world we all love.

And let's talk about that intro sequence – it's not just ear candy, it's a full-on feast for the eyes. The way it matches up with the music is just… chef's kiss . It's as if someone took the essence of adventure, bottled it up, and poured it all over the screen. I'm hooked from the first glimpse of those stars and spaceships, and by the end of it, I'm practically in my Starfleet uniforms, ready to join the crew (preferably Admiral Charles Vance).

So there we have it – our interstellar journey through the sound waves of Star Trek. We've been to the final frontier and back, and sitting pretty at the top is Star Trek: Discovery , with its epic blend of the heart-racing old and the spine-tingling new. But hey, let's appreciate all the intros, as they have been our launchpads into the universe of  Star Trek for decades. Each one has its own flavor of awesome, sprinkling a little bit of starlight on our Trekkie hearts.

Which of the Star Trek TV show themes do you prefer? Do you have a favorite?

• Basic Marketing
• Advanced Marketing
• Digital Marketing
• Case studies
• Marketing News
• Management basics
• Celebrities

Star Trek's Irresistible Musical Soundtrack Dominates Streaming Charts

Star Trek's musical triumph! The captivating soundtrack from Subspace Rhapsody has soared to the top of streaming charts, leaving fans enchanted by its mesmerizing songs Discover why this daring musical endeavor in Strange New Worlds has paid off

• Why Strange New Worlds' Star Trek Musical Gamble Worked

"Subspace Rhapsody" has been a resounding success, praised by critics and fans alike, with the soundtrack topping streaming charts.

The album contains the entirety of the musical episode's original songs along with instrumental renditions of the opening and closing credits. Its success can be attributed to its authentic alignment with the Star Trek franchise, featuring thought-provoking lyrics and exceptional vocal performances by the cast.

The soundtrack for "Subspace Rhapsody," the first-ever musical episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, has been dominating the streaming charts. Praised by both critics and fans, "Subspace Rhapsody" is a resounding success for the show, offering an enjoyable experience while also advancing the character development and storylines of Season 2. Following the musical's airing on August 3, 2023, the album was released on all music streaming platforms the next day and quickly rose to the top of the iTunes album charts. Perfectly capturing the essence of the episode, the "Subspace Rhapsody" album features all nine original songs and instrumental versions of the show's opening and closing credits. Check out the Tweet below from LGBTQ+ Youtuber and poet Donny Winter for more details.

Why Strange New Worlds' Star Trek Musical Gamble Worked

With the collaborative effort of Letters To Cleo's Kay Hanley and Tom Polce for the lyrics and the exceptional vocal performances by the cast of Strange New Worlds, the music from "Subspace Rhapsody" has gained immense popularity. The album of the Strange New Worlds musical continues to hold strong at the third position on the top albums streaming chart and maintains its place at the top of the soundtracks chart on iTunes. Additionally, several individual songs from the album have also made it to the top soundtrack songs list, with "Status Report" claiming the seventh spot.

The second season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has fearlessly ventured into various genres and storytelling formats, garnering an overwhelmingly positive response. One striking example of the show's boundary-pushing creativity is "Subspace Rhapsody," a musical episode that bears similarity to other genre-bending installments. The dedicated team behind Strange New Worlds clearly possesses a deep admiration and understanding of the Star Trek franchise. Even when embracing experimental approaches, such as the musical episode, the essence of Star Trek remains unmistakably present.

"Subspace Rhapsody" in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is a character-focused episode that successfully captures the essence of Star Trek. From the entertaining opening number to the exciting Klingon K-Pop interlude, each song stays true to the show and advances the characters' stories. Fans of Star Trek will undoubtedly appreciate the depth and resonance of the songs in "Subspace Rhapsody." Don't miss the season 2 finale of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, streaming on Paramount+ on Thursday, August 10th.

How Sprite Resurrected 'Obey Your Thirst' to Connect with Gen Z

Far-right German politician faces trial for alleged use of banned Nazi slogans

Prince William returns to royal duties following Kate's cancer news

Taylor Swift Finds Comfort and Security in Relationship with Travis Kelce (Exclusive)

Best-selling Author Sophie Kinsella Opens Up About Battling Brain Cancer

Unveiling the Mysterious Founders of the Dominion

The Founders of the Dominion remain shrouded in mystery, their very existence causing fear and chaos throughout the galaxy As the driving force behind the Dominion, their power and influence were felt long before they made their first appearance on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Star Trek: Lower Decks & Strange New Worlds Epic Crossover Teased by Frakes

The Meaning Behind Klingon's Iconic Bat'leth

Uncovering the Mysteries of Star Trek's Andorian Race

Uncovering the Forbidden Power of Disruptors

Discover the Array of Torpedoes in Star Trek

The Fascinating Technology Behind Geordi La Forge's Visor

Unveiling the Untold Secrets: 20 Mind-Blowing Easter Eggs & Hidden Details in 'The Fall of the...

Uncover the captivating hidden details and Edgar Allan Poe Easter eggs in 20 Fall Of The House Of Usher Easter Eggs & Hidden Details Delve into the intense rivalry between Rufus Griswold and Roderick Usher, discover the enigmatic Oculus Mirror, and witness the chilling mummification of Madeline Dive into the mysterious world of Poe's classic tale

The Radiant Rise of Susan Noles: From The Golden Bachelor to NYFW

The Possibility of Night Swim 2: A Dive into the Haunted Pool Universe

Unveiling the Secrets of Metallic Rouge: A Must-Know Guide to Studio Bones' Upcoming Anime Seri...

Yellowstone Season 2 in 1923: A Complete Rundown

The Timeless Charm of Barbie: A Cinematic Masterpiece

Denzel Washington's Redemption: Reuniting with Spike Lee in a New Movie After 4 Years

Editor: Rose

Hello, everyone! I'm Rose (Rose Tran), a recent addition to the Wibu gang. I have a strong passion for creating content, writing articles, PR, advertising, and blogging for websites. In my free time, I enjoy playing a few rounds of games, watching anime episodes, reading manga, and keeping up with the latest technology news.

This website provides you knowledges related to Marketing, Business and Entertainment news such as Movies, Gaming, Celebrity, Technology...

• Basic marketing
• Wibu.top - Entertainment World
• Thành lập công ty

Connect us on social

@ hocmarketing.org

The Definitive Voice of Entertainment News

Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter

site categories

‘star trek: lower decks’ to end with season 5.

However, Paramount+ renewed 'Strange New Worlds' for season four.

By James Hibberd

James Hibberd

Writer-at-Large

• Share this article on Facebook
• Share this article on Twitter
• Share this article on Flipboard
• Share this article on Email
• Show additional share options
• Share this article on Linkedin
• Share this article on Pinit
• Share this article on Reddit
• Share this article on Tumblr
• Share this article on Whatsapp
• Share this article on Print
• Share this article on Comment

Paramount+ has made two big decisions about its Star Trek universe.

Strange New Worlds has been renewed for a fourth season, while Lower Decks will end with its previously announced upcoming fifth season, expected to air sometime this year.

Related Stories

William shatner on living boldly throughout acting career: "the future is unheralded", '9-1-1' star oliver stark "couldn't be prouder" of his character's same-sex kiss: "a show about love".

Meanwhile, Strange New Worlds is currently in production on its third season, which is set to debut in 2025.

“ Strange New Worlds and Lower Decks are integral to the Star Trek franchise, expanding the boundaries of the universe and exploring new and exciting worlds,” said David Stapf, president of CBS Studios. “We are extraordinarily proud of both series as they honor the legacy of what Gene Roddenberry created almost 60 years ago.”

Strange New Worlds is based on the years Captain Christopher Pike manned the helm of the  U.S.S. Enterprise . The series follows Captain Pike, Science Officer Spock, Number One and the crew of the  U.S.S. Enterprise , in the years before Captain Kirk boarded the starship, as they explore new worlds around the galaxy. It stars Anson Mount, Rebecca Romijn, Ethan Peck, Jess Bush and Christina Chong.

THR Newsletters

Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day

More from The Hollywood Reporter

‘gma3’ co-host dr. jennifer ashton to leave abc news to launch wellness company (exclusive), ‘the jinx’ filmmakers revisit that robert durst confession: “we screamed”, dallas cowboys cheerleaders reality show lands at netflix, janelle james on that ‘abbott elementary’ guest star and why it’s time for an ava clothing line, tyler cameron says ‘golden bachelor’ divorce after three months put a “true stain on love”, ‘conan o’brien must go’ review: conan’s max travel series is smartly stupid fun.

• Manage Account

Future & Metro Boomin Announce 2024 We Trust You Tour: Here Are the Dates

The rapper-producer combo hits the road this summer.

By Michael Saponara

Michael Saponara

• Share this article on Facebook
• Share this article on Twitter
• Share this article on Flipboard
• Share this article on Pinit
• + additional share options added
• Share this article on Reddit
• Share this article on Linkedin
• Share this article on Whatsapp
• Share this article on Email
• Print this article
• Share this article on Comment
• Share this article on Tumblr

Future and Metro Boomin are looking to heat up the summer, as the rapper-producer duo will be hitting the road in support of their pair of albums.

Future & Metro Boomin’s ‘We Still Don’t Trust You’ Album: All 25…

Live Nation announced the We Trust You Tour on Tuesday (April 16), and the arena trek is slated to kick off in Kansas City, Mo., at the T-Mobile Center on July 30. Openers and supporting acts have not yet been announced.

Metro Boomin and Future’s 27-date North American tour will be making stops in Detroit, Atlanta, Brooklyn, Boston, Philly, Houston, Toronto, Las Vegas, Seattle and more before wrapping up north of the border on Sept. 9 in Vancouver, B.C., at Rogers Arena.

Trending on Billboard

Future and Metro sprinted out of the gates with their  We Don’t Trust You  album in March, which debuted at No. 1 on the  Billboard 200  with 251,000 total album-equivalent units in the week ending March 28, per Luminate.

Album standout “Like That” featuring Kendrick Lamar’s atomic bomb on the rap game is spending a third week atop the Billboard Hot 100. The fiery track soared to No. 1 on the Hot 100 and is the first rap song to spend its first three weeks at the summit since Drake’s “Nice for What.”

“HIP HOP IS ALIVE AND WELL #WEDONTTRUSTYOU,”  Metro wrote  on social media after learning “Like That” had notched him his first No. 1 hit as a billed artist. (He previously reached the summit as a co-producer and co-writer on Migos’ “Bad & Boujee” and The Weeknd’s “Heartless.”)

The duo could be making yet another splash on the charts as Pluto and Young Metro returned to give fans 25 more tracks packaged as another album, fittingly titled We Still Don’t Trust You .

Find all of the We Trust You Tour dates below.

July 30 – Kansas City, Mo. @ T-Mobile Center July 31 – Saint Paul, Minn. @ Xcel Energy Center Aug. 2 – Milwaukee, Wis. @ Fiserv Forum Aug. 3 – Chicago, Ill. @ Lollapalooza Aug. 4 – Detroit, Mich. @ Little Caesars Arena Aug. 6 – Nashville, Tenn. @ Bridgestone Arena Aug. 8 – Atlanta, Ga. @ State Farm Arena Aug. 10 – Columbus, Ohio @ Schottenstein Center Aug. 11 – Toronto, Ontario @ Scotiabank Arena Aug. 13 – Boston, Mass. @ TD Garden Aug. 14 – Philadelphia, Pa. @ Wells Fargo Center Aug. 15 – Brooklyn, N.Y. @ Barclays Center Aug. 17 – Washington, D.C. @ Capital One Arena Aug. 20 – New Orleans, La. @ Smoothie King Center Aug. 22 – Houston, Texas @ Toyota Center Aug. 23 – San Antonio, Texas @ Frost Bank Center Aug. 24 – Dallas, Texas @ American Airlines Center Aug. 25 – Tulsa, Okla. @ BOK Center Aug. 27 – Denver, Colo. @ Ball Arena Aug. 28 – Salt Lake City, Utah @ Delta Center Aug. 30 – Las Vegas, Nev. @ T-Mobile Arena Aug. 31 – Inglewood, Calif. @ Intuit Dome Sept. 3 – Sacramento, Calif. @ Golden 1 Center Sept. 4 – Oakland, Calif. @ Oakland Arena Sept. 6 – Seattle, Wash. @ Climate Pledge Arena Sept. 7 – Portland, Ore. @ Moda Center Sept. 9 – Vancouver, B.C. @ Rogers Arena

Get weekly rundowns straight to your inbox

Want to know what everyone in the music business is talking about?

Get in the know on.

Billboard is a part of Penske Media Corporation. © 2024 Billboard Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

optional screen reader

Charts expand charts menu.

• Billboard Hot 100™
• Billboard 200™
• Hits Of The World™
• TikTok Billboard Top 50
• Song Breaker
• Year-End Charts
• Decade-End Charts

Music Expand music menu

• R&B/Hip-Hop

Culture Expand culture menu

Media expand media menu, business expand business menu.

• Business News
• Record Labels
• View All Pro

Pro Tools Expand pro-tools menu

• Songwriters & Producers
• Artist Index
• Royalty Calculator
• Market Watch
• Industry Events Calendar

Billboard Español Expand billboard-espanol menu

• Cultura y Entretenimiento

Honda Music Expand honda-music menu