Moana 2 Songwriters Barlow & Bear On The Creative Process Of Charting Moana’s Lyrical Journey

Moana 2 is a welcome sequel to Disney’s 2016 box office hit, and it expands the world of Motunui both literally and musically. Though Lin-Manuel Miranda did not return to write songs, composers Opetaia Foa’i and Mark Mancina were joined by the dynamic songwriting duo Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear to pen the sequel’s hits-to-be. Barlow and Bear first came to prominence thanks to their unofficial Bridgerton musical, which went viral on Tiktok before eventually winning them a Grammy, but Moana 2 presents a whole new set of exciting challenges.

Moana 2 introduces several new characters, many of which are introduced in the opening number “We’re Back,” which serves as a great way to catch viewers up on the years in between movies. Once Moana is called by her ancestors to set out in search of the hidden island of Montufetu, Auli’i Cravalho shows off her vocal chops and Moana’s growth in “Beyond.” There are several other numbers that stand out, and the overarching theme that connects them is the importance of connection and community — a fitting message as the heroine seeks to reconnect her people to their ancestral neighbors.

Moana 2 Soundtrack Guide: Every Song & When They Play

Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear take over songwriting duties for Moana 2 and bring some big new hits to the legendary canon of Disney songs.

ScreenRant interviewed Barlow & Bear about the lessons they learned while working on Moana 2. The duo discussed the significance of “We’re Back” as the opening song, how Dwayne Johnson breathed life into “Can I Get A Chee Hoo?”, and why Disney’s collaborative creative process surprised them.

Moana 2 Brings New Characters & Musical Moments To The Disney Canon

“Everything is so perfect in her mind, and we’re about to take her down a journey that’s a little scary.”

Moana showing her sister Simea the ocean in Moana 2

Screen Rant: What inspired the initial song “We’re Back” that you presented in your first meeting with the filmmakers?

Emily Bear: I will just add that it’s terrifying to play the first piece of music to the whole team, but I think we just really wanted to establish that we were right back in the world of Motunui and Moana that we know and love. To show how the island has grown and thrived and introduced some new characters.

Abigail Barlow: Like she said, it brings you right back into the world. We’re introduced to some new characters that we’re going to get to know really well, and it sets us up for the fact that Moana has fallen in love with her dream life. She has everything she has ever wanted. She has the land and the sea, and then you find out right after that she has a little sister. Everything is so perfect in her mind, and we’re about to take her down a journey that’s a little scary.

Screen Rant: Who is your favorite new character in Moana 2?

Emily Bear: It would have to be Moni or Kele. Moni’s Maui obsession is one of my favorite things in the movie. It’s so hilarious.

Abigail Barlow: I love Matangi. I love a villain, you know what I mean?

Screen Rant: I love that you guys incorporate traditional Polynesian music elements into the film. Can you talk about how that happened in the composition?

Emily Bear: We had our guiding stars, Opetaia Foa’i and Mark Mancina, who were so vital in crafting the sound of the first movie. Instrumentation was obviously super important. Everything that Opetaia and Te Vaka added just brought our music to life.

But also, from day one, I asked the music team at Disney [for music]. They have a huge library of drums, skins, logs, and vocal samples from the first movie that’s just kind of sitting there. And I was like, “Hey, can I have some of that?” They sent us a huge Dropbox folder full of stuff that we used as inspiration to start writing the songs.

Abigail Barlow: We also got a big Moana Bible on our first day on the job and talked to the Oceania Cultural Trust a lot. We also got to speak to real-life wayfinders, and they inspired full songs with some of the things that they said.

“It made me fall in love with the collaboration process.”

Maui with his hook in front of a purple bubble in Moana 2

Screen Rant: Moana goes on such a journey in the sequel, and she learns a lot about herself in the sequel. Can you talk about what you learned about yourself through the process of making the music in Moana 2?

Abigail Barlow: I never thought I’d be capable of anything other than a catchy pop song. Working on this project taught me how to be a good collaborator. It taught me how to tell stories through music, and it made me grow as a songwriter. It also taught me how to be collaborative with a huge village of people trying to make pretty much the impossible possible.

Emily Bear: Yeah, I think working on a project like this is so fulfilling. It made me fall in love with the collaboration process — not just with one person, but with a whole ton of people because you feel like you’re part of something way bigger than yourself.

I feel like that’s a big cultural anchor of the Pacific. it’s never an “I” mentality; it’s always a “we” mentality, and I really felt that on this movie. For the first time we became a family. It’s really wonderful.

Screen Rant: Speaking of that, can you break down the creative process of how you guys developed some of these songs working with Disney and each other?

Abigail Barlow: Yeah, yeah. We would spend a couple of days a week at the animation offices, and they would take us through the script and tell us where [they felt] the songs went. And then we would go off.

Our songwriting process is like a game of table tennis. One of us will come to the table, or both of us will come to the table with ideas, and then it’ll just be like ping pong, ping pong back and forth. You go through a million different rounds of notes, and the story goes through a million different lives before it’s the movie you see on the screen.

Emily Bear: Sometimes we can talk about an idea of a song and where it should be, and it sounds really good in practice. But when we start to write, we realize that’s not what it needs to be, and it doesn’t actually work when you put pen to paper. So it’s a rolling conversation, and it never stops until today!

Barlow & Bear Have Nothing But Praise For Moana 2 Stars Auli’I Cravalho And Dwayne Johnson

“We’re obsessed with her; she’s a star and she’s SINGING.”

Screen Rant: You guys beautifully captured Moana’s journey through music in the sequel. Can you talk about working with Auli’i as a collaborator?

Abigail Barlow: She’s a dream. She’s so good, oh my God. She’s got such an incredible instrument, and she’s grown so much since the first film. Getting to rediscover Moana’s new, improved, mature sound was such a joy.

Emily Bear: And also [I loved] hearing her talk about her island and her connection to her people, and how “Beyond” impacted her the first time she heard that song and how she felt connected to it. I mean, that’s all you can ask for. But she’s insane. We’re obsessed with her; she’s a star and she’s SINGING.

Screen Rant: I love Dwayne and his song in this movie. Can you talk about working with him?

Emily Bear: I mean, he is as nice as everyone says he is.

Abigail Barlow: He’s a standup guy. He’s also a really hard worker and came to the table really prepared. And he’s also just so funny. He’s a hoot.

Emily Bear: Abigail’s demo for “Can I Get a Chee Hooo?” was good. It was great; we love her. But here’s the thing, DJ is Maui, and he’s so the character. It lives inside of him, so when he first started singing in the studio on that, we were like, “Oh, yeah. This is the money.” I just wish you could hear the outtakes because the outtakes are the best part!

Screen Rant: The directors are fantastic, and they praised your work on this film. Can you talk about working with them?

Emily Bear: They’re so smart. They love their job, and they’re so passionate about what they do, and that is the most inspiring [thing], as a young writer, to be a part of.

Abigail Barlow: We would have these brain trust meetings, or Story Trust, where the entirety of Disney animation would come together after a screening and talk about the film. They’d take it apart, put it back together again, and ask a million questions. And our directors are just so good at what they do. They know these characters so well, and they were an amazing North Star to guide us through this process.

Emily Bear: Dana and David have such a connection with their heritage, and Jason and Jared are Disney royalty. They just know this process inside and out, and they’re all just wonderful.

I have not met one rude person at Disney since working there. There is something in the air. There’s magical pixie dust.