"Stuber" Soundtrack Lyrics

"Stuber (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)" – Album Guide to Tracks and Key Scenes

Overview

Can a rideshare playlist keep up with a day of gunfights and eye surgery? Stuber answers with a split personality: a tight electronic–orchestral score propelling the buddy-cop mayhem, and a crate-digging set of needle-drops that hop from vintage pop to indie bangers. The result matches the movie’s tone — deadpan, then suddenly loud — as a nearsighted detective hijacks an earnest driver’s day.

The core album is a score release by Joseph Trapanese, built around pulsing synths, clipped percussion, and neon-noir bass. Around it swirls the film’s song bed: everything from Shirley Ellis’s hand-clap classic and Nelson Riddle’s cheeky “Lolita Ya Ya,” to Arcade Fire’s “Sprawl II,” The Avalanches’ “Because I’m Me,” Styx’s “Come Sail Away,” and April Wine’s “Say Hello” rolling over the credits. Trailer marketing even flexed a Beach Boys cut — because of course it did.

Genres & themes in phases — sleek hybrid score = chase tension, surveillance, and late-night L.A.; retro pop & rock (’60s–’80s) = ironic counterpoint to violence; blog-era indie = “quieter” connective tissue; Latin-leaning cumbias & library picks = location flavor in Koreatown/DTLA detours.

How It Was Made

Trapanese approached the action-comedy brief with lean motifs and rhythmic beds that editors could cut on — cue titles map directly to set-pieces (“Koreatown,” “Sriracha Showdown,” “The Plane Chase”-style momentum but on foot and wheels). Fox Music issued the score alongside release, while Disney Music (post-acquisition) circulated an “official playlist” collecting the prominent source songs.

Tracks & Scenes

“Stuber” / “Penthouse” / “The Setup” (Joseph Trapanese)

Where they play:

Opening movements into the first bust — a glassy, low-end throb as Vic pushes toward a hotel floor, then everything fractures into fast, percussive edits when the firefight erupts.

Why it matters:

The palette — tight synths, sharp drums — sets the film’s action grammar in the first reel.

“The Clapping Song (Clap Pat Clap Slap)” (Shirley Ellis)

Where it plays:

Inside the hotel incursion, a deceptively playful needle-drop cuts against muzzle flashes and panic — a classic pop earworm framing the chaos.

Why it matters:

That cheerful clap-pattern turns the violence into an off-kilter joke — very Stuber.

“Koreatown” / “Abbot Kinney” (Joseph Trapanese)

Where it plays:

Location swings: GPS re-routes, alley turn-ins, and Stu’s reluctant detours. The cues shimmy between tense ostinatos and lighter, ticking patterns as the pair bicker.

Why it matters:

Micro-motifs give L.A. neighborhoods their own pulse without breaking the chase.

“Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)” (Arcade Fire)

Where it plays:

Brisk transition after the pet-store shootout, during the come-down drive toward an art event — headlights, reflections, and a breath before the next mess.

Why it matters:

Shimmering synth-pop as decompression; it buys empathy time for Stu.

“Because I’m Me” (The Avalanches)

Where it plays:

Montage-y cruising beat under mid-movie repositioning — brass stabs and buoyant samples riding alongside the pair’s uneasy truce.

Why it matters:

It’s the most smile-forward needle-drop; the optimism rings false in a funny way.

“Sriracha Showdown” (Joseph Trapanese)

Where it plays:

Big brawl beat — a store fight escalates, somebody weaponizes condiments, and the cue spikes into a stop-start dance of hits and sight-gags.

Why it matters:

The score flexes pure choreography here, cutting cleanly with each comic beat.

“Come Sail Away” (Styx)

Where it plays:

Cranked on the stereo during a gun-chase turn — an arena-rock swell as the night goes full ridiculous and the partners decide to actually team up.

Why it matters:

Maximalist irony — power-ballad catharsis for two guys who barely like each other.

“Lolita Ya Ya” (Nelson Riddle & Bob Harris)

Where it plays:

A lounge-cheeky interlude needle — the kind of puckish cue the film uses to sand down sharp edges between action spikes.

Why it matters:

Winks at classic Hollywood while the plot stomps through modern L.A.

“Indestructible” (The Fratellis)

Where it plays:

Fast-cut driving montage and scramble — high-tempo guitars over Stu’s “I am not built for this” face.

Why it matters:

Injects forward motion without stepping on dialogue.

“Say Hello” (April Wine)

Where it plays:

End-credits lead — classic-rock chug as the story lands and the vibe loosens.

Why it matters:

Old-school swagger for the curtain call; it leaves you grinning instead of wired.

Trailer cue: “I Get Around” (The Beach Boys)

Where it plays:

Marketing only — the official trailer leans on surf-pop bounce to sell the road-movie energy.

Why it matters:

Signposts the film’s summer-comedy DNA in one flip of the dial.

Notes & Trivia

• Composer Joseph Trapanese’s score album runs 19 tracks and was released with the film; label credit ties to Fox Music.
• Disney Music circulated an official 30+ track playlist of the film’s prominent songs (post-Disney acquisition of Fox).
• The end-credits song is April Wine’s “Say Hello” (1979), not a modern cover.
• Arcade Fire’s “Sprawl II” and The Avalanches’ “Because I’m Me” are two of the most-asked “what’s that song?” moments among viewers.
• Trailer #1 used The Beach Boys’ “I Get Around.”

Music–Story Links

• Score vs. song: whenever Vic seizes control, the movie drops into Trapanese’s tight motifs; when Stu briefly drives the vibe, needle-drops sneak in.
• Retro cues (“The Clapping Song,” “Lolita Ya Ya”) turn firefights into gag machinery — violence framed as prank.
• Pop anthems (“Come Sail Away”) mark the partners’ turning points — from hostage driver to co-pilot.
• Indie picks (“Sprawl II,” “Because I’m Me”) arrive in the few breathers, aligning us with Stu’s point-of-view rather than Vic’s mission.

Reception & Quotes

Critics called the movie a throwback buddy-action comedy; score fans clocked how efficiently the music punches transitions and fights while leaving room for the needle-drops. It’s streamlined work that plays great with car speakers.

“A violent buddy comedy with ’80s bones — and a modern, elastic score to match.” — festival/capsule reviews

Availability: The score album streams widely; a studio playlist collects the songs. The trailer and several scene clips are hosted on the studio’s YouTube channels.

Interesting Facts

• The score cue list is basically a plot outline (e.g., “Koreatown,” “Storage Locker,” “Sriracha Showdown”).
• The studio playlist features deep cuts (Prince Buster’s “Madness,” The Go! Team’s “She’s Got Guns”) alongside chart staples.
• “Say Hello” dates to April Wine’s 1979 LP Harder… Faster, giving the credits a knowingly retro snap.
• A trailer surf-pop needle (“I Get Around”) never appears in the feature; it’s marketing only.
• Fox Music issued the score; after Disney acquired Fox, Disney Music handled the playlist and ongoing promotion.

Technical Info

• Title: Stuber — Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
• Year: 2019
• Type: Original score album + numerous licensed songs in-film
• Composer: Joseph Trapanese
• Label: Fox Music (score); studio “official playlist” curated by Disney Music
• Representative placements: Shirley Ellis “The Clapping Song”; Nelson Riddle “Lolita Ya Ya”; Arcade Fire “Sprawl II”; The Avalanches “Because I’m Me”; Styx “Come Sail Away”; April Wine “Say Hello” (end credits).
• Trailer cue: The Beach Boys “I Get Around” (Trailer #1)

Questions & Answers

Who composed the score?

Joseph Trapanese — a sleek, hybrid action-comedy score released as a 19-track album.

What song plays over the end credits?

“Say Hello” by April Wine.

Is the Beach Boys track in the movie?

No — “I Get Around” was used in the trailer only.

Where can I hear the songs from the film?

Disney Music published an official playlist collecting 30+ source songs from the movie.

What’s the big fight cue everyone mentions?

On the score album it’s “Sriracha Showdown” — the gag-heavy store fight built on stop-start hits.

Key Contributors

Sources: official trailer uploads; studio playlist listings; score album pages; soundtrack indexes with scene notes; composer/discography pages; festival reviews.

November, 27th 2025