‘Sinners’ Songwriter Raphael Saadiq Reveals What Inspired The Film’s Iconic Song

The “I Lied to You” co-writer “had no idea” that audiences would declare the horror film’s surreal montage scene a phenomenon in its own right.

In Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners,” the horror-infused film compels us to believe that music has the power to conjure spirits from different times and places. Those with the gift of making music can “pierce the veil between life and death” and bring healing to communities, as well as attract unknown evils.

One particularly arresting moment from the film captures this belief in what’s become known as the “surreal montage scene” — a time-blurring musical sequence in which Sammie (Miles Caton) is called onstage at Club Juke to showcase the gift his preacher father (Saul Williams) warned him against using: singing the blues.

Still, in that sweeping scene, Sammie proudly performs “I Lied to You,” a song written for his father that miraculously transforms the juke joint dance floor into something otherworldly. The dream-like performance opens a portal of sorts, summoning twerkers, B-boys, DJs, West Coast gangsters, a P-Funk-esque electric guitarist, an African drummer and dancers from different eras across the diaspora, all sharing the same space.

To this day, audiences have remained fixated on the now-iconic scene, and by extension, the song that anchors it all. As a result, “I Lied to You” took on a life of its own, emerging as a breakout hit and a frontrunner this awards season. So far, it’s nabbed nominations from the Grammys, Golden Globes and Critics’ Choice Awards, and with any luck, it’ll notch one from the Oscars, too (it already made the shortlist for Best Original Song).

That level of attention was far from expected for co-writer Raphael Saadiq, who worked on the track with “Sinners” composer Ludwig Göransson in the latter’s Los Angeles studio, the same day he was asked to join the film.