Actors who usually tend to work in film and television seem to show up in different kinds of places. Whether it be television or commercials, actors always seem to be at the forefront of pop culture. So when actors and musicians come together to collaborate on music, it's always interesting to see how the actor will conform to a different space.
On one hand, there are a lot of actors who make music themselves on a semi-regular basis so the transition from acting to music is seamless. While these actors can do both professions at an extremely high level, the ones who are completely unexpected to be featured on an album have the potential to add another level of intrigue to the project they're featured on.
Jim Carrey
Dawn FM by The Weeknd (2022)
Jim Carrey has plenty of classic films under his belt. From The Truman Show, the amount of iconic roles he's stepped into has been great to watch. So when The Weeknd recruited Carrey to narrate his fifth studio album, Dawn FM, it came as an unexpected but welcome surprise.
The two met through the filmmaker duo the Safdie brothers and the two became friends after The Weeknd told Carrey that The Mask was the first movie he ever saw. Throughout the '80s synth wave-inspired album, Carrey narrates as a radio DJ who helps transition some of the songs, provides the outro of the album, and even cameos in the "Out of Time" music video. The album conceptually puts the listener in a purgatory state and the duration of the album is like a transitioning period to the other side.
Chris Rock
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy by Kanye West (2010)
It's been evident that Chris Rock has a pretty deep relationship with hip-hop, going back as far as 1993 with him writing and starring in CB4 which tells the story of an aspiring rapper who tries to emulate his favorite rap group with his friends to get famous. In 2010, Kanye West recruited Rock to feature on the track "Blame Game" where he gives a 2-minute monologue to end the song.
Love and failed relationships are one of the biggest themes of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, and "Blame Game" is one of the best examples from the album. In Rock's skit, he plays the current boyfriend of West's ex-girlfriend in the song. It's presented as an overheard phone conversation where Rock goes on a rant in disbelief of how great his girlfriend is, only for her to tell him that she learned it from Kanye.
Jerrod Carmichael
Igor by Tyler, the Creator (2019)
The Carmichael Show's star and creator has been on a good run over the last few years. Along with his sitcom, he's directed and starred in On the Count of Three and has had a string of standup comedy specials. In 2019, he provides the narration for the Grammy award-winning album Igor in collaboration with his friend, Tyler, the Creator.
The album tells the story of the titular Igor as he tries to navigate through a love triangle. Carmichael appears on different tracks throughout the album, explaining some of the main character's inner thoughts and helping progress the album overall.
Tina Fey
Royalty by Childish Gambino (2012)
Tina Fey and Donald Glover's working relationship goes way back to their days at 30 Rock together after Fey hired Glover for his first TV writing gig. It all came full circle when Glover under his Childish Gambino moniker got Fey to feature on his 2012 mixtape Royalty. Royalty is a deep cut in the Childish Gambino discography and features many of his most underrated tracks to date.
Fey appears on the outro track "Real Estate" after a verse from Gambino and Atlanta rapper Alley Boy where they rap about the various places they want real estate in and the lavish lifestyle that comes with it. Fey closes the song with a self-aware outro by hyping up Gambino, her affinity for Nordstrom Rack, and referencing Young Jeezy.
Jamie Foxx
The College Dropout by Kanye West (2004)
It's well known that Jamie Foxx is a modern renaissance man, excelling in acting, comedy, and music in a single lifetime. He's paved the way for people like Donald Glover who excel in these areas as well and should be considered a living legend. While Foxx did release an album in 1994, his real breakthrough in music wouldn't come until he collaborated with Kanye West and Twista on the hit "Slow Jamz."
"Slow Jamz" was also featured as a single to Twista's album Kamikaze, but is most known for being on West's debut album The College Dropout. On "Slow Jamz," Foxx delivers a smooth hook after he tells Kanye that the party they're at needs some slower music to dance to and he suggests playing some classic R&B. He goes through different R&B legends, set to a Luther Vandross sample.
Zendaya
Lemonade by Beyonce (2016)
In 2016, Beyonce dropped a surprise visual album that dealt with different topics like infidelity and Black American history. It was no surprise that the album became one of the best-selling projects of the year and was certified platinum only 2 months after dropping. While they don't have any speaking parts on the album, the visual album featured a handful of cameos including Zendaya.
Zendaya is featured with the likes of Serena Williams, Amandla Stenberg, Chloe, and Halle Bailey amongst others. Lemonade follows the life story of Beyonce and ties in with current events that impact African American community, even including the mothers of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown in the film, respectively.
Jerry Seinfeld
The Album About Nothing by Wale (2015)
DMV-native Wale has been an outspoken fan of Seinfeld throughout his entire career as an artist. He's even gone as far as naming three of his projects after the classic sitcom and becoming friends with Jerry Seinfeld himself. On his fourth studio album, Wale uses different clips of a conversation he had with Seinfeld and samples from the show to bridge the tracks together.
As Seinfeld narrates the album, he represents Wale's consciousness to help guide listeners through the project. The album touches on many personal themes while also serving as a tribute to his favorite show.
Idris Elba
American Gangster by Jay-Z (2007)
American Gangster was one of the best films of 2007 and in the same year, Jay-Z would release an album of the same name, inspired by the film. The album is full of 1970s funk and soul samples, creating an atmosphere close to the film it was based on. The into track samples some of Denzel Washington's dialogue from the film and features Idris Elba (who is also in the film) as he intensifies the opening minutes of the project.
Elba goes into a minute and a half monologue comparing gangsters and politicians, how they have similar tactics, and references different world events that are rooted in politics.
Chris Tucker
Invincible by Michael Jackson (2001)
Chris Tucker had a solid run throughout the '90s and early 2000s as he became a staple in Hollywood around that time. He also formed a friendship with Michael Jackson, who he had famously done impressions of for years prior. Jackson would give Tucker a guest spot on one of his biggest hits "You Rock My World" on his 2001 album Invincible.
Tucker and MJ introduce the track with a skit about them seeing an attractive woman and Tucker daring Jackson to go talk to her because, in his eyes, she's so fine that she wouldn't give anyone the time of day.
Michael Cera
Man on the Moon III: The Chosen by Kid Cudi (2020)
Kid Cudi and the titular character from Scott Pilgrim vs. The World share two things in common: they share the same first name and are two of the most recognizable Scotts over the last two decades. While not technically a feature, one of Michael Cera's best roles is sampled at the beginning of the track "She Knows This."
Along with a line from Mark Webber as Stephen Sills, Cera and Scott Pilgrim director Edgar Wright personally cleared the dialogue sample between Scott and Stephen for Cudi to use on his most recent album.
