Space Jam gets a sequel

If I were to produce a soundtrack for the sequel to the much-loved Space Jam film, the first artist I would want in the line-up would be R. Kelly. After all he came up with the song, I Believe I Can Fly, which is believed by many to be one of the big reasons why that soundtrack has now sold over six million copies. That means six times Platinum.

R. Kelly is a music genius. But the singer, producer, songwriter and a lot else besides is at present in deep trouble. He likes his girls, young. Very young. That means minors for wives, girlfriends, casual encounters, etc. and that is a no-no. So the soundtrack to the Space Jam sequel just has to do without him. Which is what happened.

Yes. There is a sequel to the basketball comedy Space Jam. Not really a sequel in the sense that it is not a continuation of the partly animated blockbuster that starred basketball legend Michael Jordan and the Looney Tunes gang. You know, the one where Bugs Bunny kidnaps Jordan to join the Looney Tunes team so that they can win against the evil Nerdlucks. It was released in 1996 and made over $250 million at the box office.

Twenty-five years later, here is Space Jam: A New Legacy. Jordan is joining the fun in a bit part but the basketball star, this time around, is LeBron James. Again, part-live-action, part-2D animation and part-CGI effects, the picture puts the Looney Tunes gang to work in the digital world helping LeBron save his young son, who was kidnapped by an evil computer algorithm. Lebron and the Tunes must win an important game against the Goon Squad to get the boy back and return to the real world.

The cast members were announced recently in the cutest reveal ever, where, led by LeBron and baddie Don Cheadle, they pass around a basketball. There are voice actors like Jeff Bergman as Bugs Bunny; Eric Bauza as Daffy Duck; Zendaya as Lola Bunny; Bob Bergen as Tweety Bird, plus hardcourt stars like Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, Chris Paul, Draymond Green, Kyle Kuzma, Nneka Ogwumike and Damian Lillard, who also performs in the soundtrack as Dame D.O.L.L.A.

Just like the first one, the line-up is star-studded, with some of the biggest names in the fields of pop, soul and hip-hop. The only act to make both soundtracks is Salt ‘n’ Pepa. The girls, Cheryl Salt James and Sandra Pepa Denton, did Upside Down (Round and Round) in the first one. They join Saweetie and Kash Doll in Hoops for the second.

I have only heard two tracks from the soundtrack. These are We Win by rapper Lil Baby and gospel star Kirk Franklin and the love duet, Just for Me, by SAINt JHN and SZA. Both are too intergalactic for my taste. Also, as far as I am concerned, none of them are in the same league as I Believe I Can Fly or even Seal’s wonderful cover of Fly Like an Eagle in the first one.

Times have changed though. It has been a quarter of a century since. There are plenty of other tunes in Space Jam: Legacy. Maybe one of these will work:

Control the World by 24kGoldn and Lil Wayne; See Me Fly by Chance the Rapper, John Legend and Symba; Pump Up the Jam by Lil Uzi Vert; Crowd Go Crazy by John Legend; Mercy by the Jonas Brothers; Gametime by Lil Tecca Amine; About That Time by Dame D.O.L.L.A, G-Eazy, P.Lo and White Dave; MVP by BROCKHAMPTON; Settle the Score by Cordae and DUCKWORTH; Goin’ Looney by Big Freedia; Shoot My Shot by Joyner Lucas; My Guy by Leon Bridges; and The Best by the star of the moment, Anthony Ramos of In the Heights.

Maybe yes. Maybe no. But no matter. It will be a treat watching LeBron do somersaults in computer land. Besides, those Looney Tunes toons are as funny and endearing as they have always been. Still, it would have been nice to have another I Believe I Can Fly. “I believe I can touch the sky…”