Top 10 Songs That Sample Showtunes

Full of creepy synthesizers and a hard-thumping beat, this boastful 2006 track from Young Jeezy and featured artist T.I. has a hook that should be familiar to any musical fan. Andrew Lloyd Webber’s title song from “The Phantom of the Opera” is a creepy and unexpected choice for any song on the charts. Its repeating motif, usually played on the organ, is identified with the show’s main antagonist, the mysterious and homicidal phantom. As used in this song, the sample gives “I Got Money” a strange sense of doom. It gives all the flexing about money, drugs, and suede seats a dangerous edge.

Back in 2009, Donald Glover was still writing for “30 Rock” and his music career was still in its early days. Childish Gambino was only on his second mixtape and hits like “This Is America” were still a few years away. “So Much Better” shares its name with a song from the “Legally Blonde” musical. That show’s lead performer, Laura Bell Bundy’s fierce belt can be heard throughout most of the song. Once you know what it’s from, it’s kind of hilarious. Her singing has been almost frozen in time, stretched to impossible lengths like a sustained horn for Gambino to rap over.

At first glance, rap and musical theater probably seem like polar opposites. But Jay-Z found the common denominator. “Oliver!” is a musicalized version of Charles Dickens’ “Oliver Twist,” a story about impoverished orphans in 19th Century London. The song turns up the bass and adds lyrics about community and love in the face of poverty and struggle, tapping into the musical’s themes and reflecting them in his own experience. It wasn’t the first time the rapper would look to musicals for inspiration, but more on that later. The song charted modestly, with its highest ranking at number 2 on the UK’s Hip Hop/R&B charts.

While the Rodgers and Hammerstein songbook might be a little too cheery for some, it was a source of inspiration for baroque pop band “Panic! At The Disco.” Fronted by Brendon Urie, the band always veered toward the theatrical. For this song, they took inspiration from “The Sound of Music.” “Build God, Then We’ll Talk” is both a take-off and a twisted parody of “My Favorite Things.” Featured on their first album, its gloomy lyrics of seedy back rooms and illicit goings on soon give way to some truly diabolical rewrites of the song that inspired it.

The Danish band who had a major hit with the 2015 song “7 Years” also had traction with this single from the same album. “Mama Said” is a bittersweet song with the narrator remembering a working class childhood. Children sing along on the choruses. The beat and inclusion of the children’s voices is what makes its inspiration obvious. The song samples “It’s the Hard Knock Life” from “Annie.” While the inhabitants of Miss Hannigan’s orphanage sing of their woeful existence, Lukas Graham uses the tune to reflect on a rough early life and celebrate how far they’ve come.

Set in the universe of “Wizard of Oz,” “Wicked” tells the story of the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch of the North in their younger days. “Popular” is Glinda’s self-celebratory anthem. “Grace Kelly” singer Mika would later interpolate the song into the endlessly catchy “Popular Song.” The original’s influence is most obvious in the chorus. It’s a bizarre case of real-life foreshadowing. Mika enlisted a pre-pop stardom Ariana Grande to spice up the radio cut of the song. Grande would later play the character Glinda in the 2024 film adaptation of “Wicked.”

If you were alive in 2006, you might remember every word of this one. Gwen Stefani’s 2006 single didn’t exactly win over the critics, but it received considerable airplay and did well on the charts. Featuring an infectious beat and some top-notch yodeling, not only did the track take inspiration from “The Sound of Music,” but the music video made the influence even clearer. The video features Stefani and dancers in nun’s habits and dresses suggested by the Austrian setting of the movie. The imagery continues from there, with very clear recreations of its most famous numbers.

The love for “The Sound of Music” continues with Ariana Grande’s chart-topping, record-breaking 2019 hit. Yet another take on “My Favorite Things,” this one is a lot more straightforward in its inspiration. “7 Rings” is a celebration of the finer things in life. Those favorite things Grande lists are less raindrops on roses and more bottles of champagne and wearable diamonds, but to each their own. It’s probably fair to say that Rodgers and Hammerstein never predicted their song would get a trap-pop cover. They’d probably just ask what trap-pop was. “7 Rings” debuted at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, and was also nominated for 2 Grammy Awards.

In the musical “Fiddler on the Roof,” the main character, Tevye, is a milkman concerned with upholding tradition in a modernizing world. Gwen Stefani took his signature song, “If I Were a Rich Man,” and its iconic chanting, and spun the whole thing on its head. With the help of producer Dr. Dre, Stefani used Tevye’s number and a 1993 reggae song of the same name as a jumping off point. “Rich Girl” is a fusion of all these sounds. While some killjoy critics pointed out the absurdity of Gwen Stefani, who’d had massive success fronting the band No Doubt, singing about what she’d do if she were rich, the song was a hit.

Critics were skeptical when they learned the rapper behind “Dead Presidents” was sampling a song from “Annie,” but they changed their tune when they heard it. “Hard Knock Life” would earn Jay-Z his first Grammy nomination and the album it’s featured on gave him his first Grammy win. The single also was his first real taste of international success, a testament to how innovative it was. Showtunes being used as samples wasn’t necessarily in vogue then. The number about Annie and her fellow orphans’ mistreatment provides the backing for Jay-Z’s story of strife, hard times, and crime. The childish voices of the show’s ensemble, mixed with that thumping bass and the evocative lyrics proved to be a winning combination.

Which showtune sample was your favorite? Tell us in the comments.