Grant Kirkhope, the renowned composer behind the iconic DK Rap from Donkey Kong 64, has shed light on why he wasn't credited in The Super Mario Bros. Movie. In a conversation with Eurogamer, Kirkhope revealed that Nintendo opted not to credit composers for any music they own, which includes the DK Rap.
"They said we decided that any music that was quoted from the games that we owned, we wouldn't credit the composers - apart from Koji Kondo," Kirkhope explained. "Then they decided anything with a vocal would get credited, so the DK Rap scores there. But then they decided if we also own it, we won't credit the composers. And that was the final nail in the coffin."
Kirkhope shared his disappointment, noting the futility of credits appearing after the audience had left the theater. "I said I appreciate you've got your policies and all the rest of it, but by the time the credits roll in the movie to show the songs, the theatre's completely empty, everyone's gone, it's only me and my wife and my two kids sat there going 'look daddy's name!'. I said 'for the sake of a couple of lines of text…', but that was that," he said.
Expressing his frustration on social media in 2023, Kirkhope tweeted, "I was really looking forward to see my name in the credits for the DK Rap, but alas as expected it's not there ........ fml."
While other Nintendo-owned songs like Bowser's Fury were also not credited, licensed tracks in the film did receive proper credits for their composers and performers.
Kirkhope described the use of the DK Rap in the movie as "bizarre," suggesting it sounded like a direct sample from the N64 game. "It's like they just plugged in the N64 and sampled it and looped it," he said. Despite his contributions on guitar and the vocals by "the lads from Rare," none were credited.
When asked about the possibility of the DK Rap appearing on the Nintendo Music App, Kirkhope responded, "I wonder. They have put some of [David Wise]'s stuff on it. They do own it all so it's up to them. I don't think they ever really liked [Donkey Kong 64] that much. That's a rumor we got back through the cycle of whispers from Nintendo when we were at Rare. I don't know if that's true or not."
Interestingly, Donkey Kong 64 is absent from the N64 Switch Online lineup, though the Rambi theme may feature in Donkey Kong Bananza.
For more insights from Kirkhope, including discussions on potential new projects like Banjo Kazooie and Donkey Kong Bananza, as well as the role of nostalgia in gaming music, check out the full interview on Eurogamer.
Meanwhile, the next installment in Mario's cinematic universe, a new Super Mario Bros. movie, is slated for release in April 2026.
