Composer, arranger, and music producer
Joseph Trapanese is perhaps best known for his sleek, ominous scores for hit films like Oblivion (2013),
Straight Outta Compton (2015), and the Raid series. His diverse output also includes the score for the blockbuster musical
The Greatest Showman (2017) and lighter fare such as the action-comedy film Stuber (2019). In addition to his work for film, television, theater, and video games,
Trapanese has collaborated behind the scenes with recording artists including
Dr. Dre,
Moby, and
Kelly Clarkson.
Born in New Jersey,
Trapanese earned his B.A. in composition from the Manhattan School of Music. He went on to study at UCLA for his M.A. in music for visual media and ended up teaching electronic music and composition at the school from 2008-2011. Around this time, he also began collaborating with a number of mainstream musical acts. His first major break came in 2010 when he worked with
Daft Punk on the sweeping digital soundtrack to
Disney's Tron reboot/sequel.
Trapanese followed that success by creating a score with
Mike Shinoda of
Linkin Park for the American release of the 2011 Indonesian martial arts film
The Raid: Redemption (he would continue without
Shinoda in 2014 with The Raid 2). That same year, he helped with arrangements on a handful of tracks for
M83's breakthrough hit
Hurry Up, We're Dreaming, which led to the pair's collaboration on the 2013 Tom Cruise sci-fi epic Oblivion. He also reworked
Moby's "Extreme Ways" for The Bourne Legacy.
Highlights of his scores over the next couple of years include
Earth to Echo (2014);
The Divergent Series' second installment,
Insurgent (2015), and the landmark rap biopic
Straight Outta Compton (2015). Meanwhile, in the studio, in addition to
M83 and
Moby, he worked with
Active Child,
Dr. Dre,
Kelly Clarkson,
3OH!3, and
Dia Frampton (as the duo
Archis).
Alongside songs by
Benj Pasek and
Justin Paul, 2017's
The Greatest Showman featured a score co-composed by
Trapanese and
John Debney. In 2018, his music could be heard in the adventure films Arctic and
Robin Hood (starring
Taron Egerton) as well as in the USA Network series Unsolved: The Murders of Tupac and the Notorious B.I.G. His work on the detective-ridesharing comedy Stuber hit theaters in 2019. ~ Neil Z. Yeung