BBC's Kingdom is set deep in Zambia, where leopards, hyenas, lions and wild dogs compete to make the land their home. The story of survival was shot over a five-year period, detailing the interactions of four rival families that are inextricably linked. As the rise of wild dog queen Storm takes place, chaos ripples through the kingdom, with families such as Rita’s lion pride and Tenta’s hyena clan struggling for dominance.
Segun Akinola (pictured) served as composer for the series, which spans six 60-minute episodes, and is Emmy nominated in the Outstanding Music Composition for a Documentary/Nonfiction or Reality Program (Original Dramatic Score) category.
For Akinola, scoring Kingdom meant finding a way to bring audiences closer to the animals at the center of the series without losing sight of the natural world surrounding them. The project gave Akinola the chance to build a score that could be both intimate and dramatic, including recordings made with Zambian singers and musicians.
In a recent conversation with Post, Akinola spoke about approaching his first nature documentary, finding the sound of the series and the role that emotion continues to play throughout his work.
Congratulations on your Emmy nomination! What initially excited you about the project, and what were your earliest conversations about what the score should feel like?
“I was immediately drawn to the fact that this series would take a narrative approach to the animals, charting their experiences across five years. It naturally required music that would be a little different and more intimate for the main characters. It was these points which dominated the early conversations about the score. The music needed to be thematic to really connect viewers with the characters and their dramatic arc across the series. To that end, it had to have a great deal of variety in its scale to illuminate their highs and lows, plus everything else in between. The filmmakers were also very clear on the need for the score to bring out underlying emotion for this reason too.”
When you’re scoring documentary material, how do you think about the line between supporting what's happening on-screen and using music to create a dramatic narrative around it?
“This was my first nature doc, and it became very clear early on that it’s a distinct proposition from fiction projects and even other documentaries. In a drama, I might hold back in an emotional scene to ensure the music doesn’t become overbearing, but here, I was encouraged to push the emotions to the fore much more to clarify just how significant the moment was. I think this aligned with the fact that the music was generally looking to connect audiences with the characters on an emotional level throughout.”
Talk about how the geography influenced the score.
“Geography was of vital importance! It’s the longest the BBC Natural History Unit have filmed in one location, so it inevitably amplified the importance of the South Luangwa National Park in Zambia, where they were based. I knew from the moment I heard about this series that recording musicians and singers in Zambia would be crucial, so that’s what I did! I spent a little over a week in Zambia recording singers, musicians and instruments, the majority of which made it into the final score.”
Is there a particular sequence that you think best represents what you were trying to accomplish with the score?
“There’s a sequence in the second episode where Mutima, the leopard daughter, has flown the nest and is trying to hunt for food. She has multiple unsuccessful attempts and ends up trying to steal from her mum, Olimba. Needless to say, that didn’t end too well for Mutima! Musically, this sequence contains everything from the leopards’ theme: synths accompanied by hand claps, lounge jazz, loops of traditional Zambian marimbas I’d made, a string orchestra and more, so it’s a really good example of breadth and scale of music that I felt the series would need.”
When you’re experimenting, when do you know you’ve found the sound of the project?
“It’s difficult to describe, but for me at least, I always know when I’ve landed on an idea that could work. It just feels right, even if it’s an idea that isn’t quite what I was expecting. But the real test is when I send in a demo and get the reactions of the directors and producers.”
You’ve had opportunities to compose for projects of dramatically different scales and subjects. What do you think has remained consistent about your voice as a composer?
“Connecting the audience with the characters on-screen by bringing out the underlying emotion is at the heart of my approach as a composer. It might sound obvious, but ultimately everyone is inspired by different parts of a story. For me, if I’m ever stuck or unsure of what to write, I ask myself what the character is feeling and it’s always the most reliable way for me to find the true purpose of the music for a scene.”
Is there musical territory you feel you haven’t explored yet that you’d like to take on?
“I’ve been very fortunate to work with Indian, Chinese and Zambian music within my scores, and I’d love to use Nigerian music in something as well, since that’s my heritage.”