On the heels of a critically acclaimed second season, it was announced that Andor had been submitted to the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in 23 different categories for the Emmy Awards. Two of those categories were for music, with composer Brandon Roberts for Music Composition for a Series and composer Nicholas Britell and showrunner Tony Gilroy for Original Music and Lyrics for the chilling song, "We are the Ghor."
The Star Wars franchise and its television series have a long history of being recognized by the Academy in the musical areas of production. Let's take a look back at it.
Kevin Kiner scored Star Wars: The Clone Wars during its run and received three nominations for his work in the music composition and directing categories. The last one was for work in the same category, but for a children's or animation program in 2021. Kiner also received a nomination for his work in the finale of Star Wars Rebels in the same category. Matthew Margeson followed Kiner by receiving two nominations in the same category for a children's or animation program for his work on Young Jedi Adventures.
Ludwig Goransson won back-to-back Emmy Awards for his work on Seasons 1 and 2 of The Mandalorian. Both wins were for Original Dramatic Score. Mando wasn't the only big nominee in live action, because Britell achieved two nominations for his Season 1 work on Andor. One was for the Original Dramatic Score, and another for the opening theme for the series.
The music for the franchise has been important since John Williams first raised his baton for the opening theme to A New Hope. The legacy provided by Williams was a tall task for any composer who followed in his footsteps..
In fact, in terms of the Grammys, John Powell became the first composer not named Williams to receive recognition for his work on Solo: A Star Wars Story in 2019. He was nominated in the category for best instrumental composition for the track "Mine Mission."
Said, Zanobird Reviews for Andor's Season 2 score, "The orchestra is a bit more colorful with Roberts’ side, but the structural album split between worrisome ambience, tense action and upbeat diegetic cues is largely the same, with the ever-tense-yet-determined Andor theme naturally still center stage (and no complaints here, as it’s a genuinely great piece)."
It would be very surprising, in my opinion, this year for either Britell or Roberts to not receive a nomination for their work on Andor Season 2. Time will tell if it receives a nomination, but based on the history, it does seem likely.