Jhené Aiko Drops New Song ‘Lead The Way’

As Disney+ prepares the release of its new film, Raya and the Last Dragon, the streaming service taps on Jhené Aiko for the official soundtrack.

Aiko lends her contribution to the record, “Lead The Way.” Teaming up with Oscar-nominated composer James Newton-Howard, Aiko states it was a dream come true being able to contribute to the upcoming animated film.

“The number one thing was I heard dragon, and I love dragons. I have a big dragon tattoo on my back. I was born in ’88, which is the year of the dragon. And I just think it’s a beautiful, mystical creature that is just so many things, symbolizes so many things for me, personally,” the Chilombo singer told Apple Music. “I’ve always had this little fantasy of being a Disney princess, voicing one, or like being the character. And so this was the closest that I’ve gotten, so I was pretty excited.”

A music video has already been shot for the song and is set to premiere next month. Directed by Raya and the Last Dragon director Carlos López Estrada, Aiko wanted to make Disney proud.

“I wanted to make Disney proud, because I grew up on Disney,” she added. “And yeah, it’s special. Where I live right now, they’re just put up a big billboard for the movie. So I was just like, ‘Look at that. Look at life.’ Just happy.”