The first time Disney released a movie called Mulan, Christina Aguilera was only 16-year-old aspiring singer looking to nab her big recording break. RCA Records turned her down due to financial difficulties in the late ‘90s, so Aguilera decided to send Disney a rendition of Whitney Houston’s “Run To You” as an audition to sing the Mulan's signature song. She was selected to record “Reflection,” and the rest is history. It helped launch her massive pop star career that still is very much alive today.
Over twenty years later, Disney has remade Mulan in stunning live-action, and Aguilera is once again on the soundtrack. She wrote the new end-credits song “Loyal Brave True” and re-recorded a new version of “Reflection” for the soundtrack. She spoke about the honor to ET with these words:
Being a warrior and a fighter is what has been the thread throughout all the music in my career. So to now be bringing that to light once again in such a beautiful film is so amazing, nostalgic and very meant to be.
The release of Mulan gives Christina Aguilera a chance to reflect on her career (ha… sorry I had to) and, two decades later, she feels like the Disney character really embodies what she has been writing about all along. “Fighter” was a major single for her in the early days, and she has continued to write empowering music that Mulan would likely jam to on horseback rides, if CDs had been part of Imperial China anyway.
Check out the new song Christina Aguilera wrote for Niki Caro’s Mulan, “Brave Loyal True,” which highlights the remake’s central themes:
Aguilera, now a best-selling and Grammy-winning artist, has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and is famous for judging artists on The Voice. Now, she gets to share her Mulan experience with her kids – her son Max is 12 and daughter Summer is 5. She continued with these words:
It feels so amazing, just to come full circle as a grown woman who has had an amazing career thus far and to be able to take my children to -- now -- the live-action movie.
Disney itself has been a huge part of her career from the beginning since she started with the studio at age 11 for its reboot of the Mickey Mouse Club alongside young Ryan Gosling, Keri Russell, Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears. It’s become somewhat of a tradition for the original artists from ‘90s Disney films to contribute to the live-action versions. Composer Alan Menken returned to write songs for Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin and is also contributing to the upcoming Little Mermaid. Conversely, Elton John slammed The Lion King filmmakers for their treatment of his music, wishing he had been “invited to the party more.”
Mulan is available to view until November 2 for $29.99 and will drop on Disney+ without charge in December.
