Mario Kart 8’s music is one of Nintendo’s greatest musical soundtracks… but what makes it so good? It turns out the music from this game was 20 years in the making, and there’s a key ingredient in the game’s music that you’re probably not aware of! Here’s my breakdown of Mario Kart music, Japanese jazz fusion, and how those two worlds collided with Mario Kart 8!
PATREON –
MERCH –
TWITTER –
SOURCES
DIMENSION: J-Fusion Officially Made Mario Kart Music
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(This is the video that got me interested in this topic, so thank you to Cuevas Productions!)
Wikipedia – Le Mans Japanese theme songs
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Wikipedia – F1 Grand Prix opening themes
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YouTube – F1 Grand Prix title sequences
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YouTube – More F1 Grand Prix title sequences
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YouTube – More HD F1 Grand Prix title sequences
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YouTube – Le Mans title sequences
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YouTube – Dimension’s Le Mans album
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YouTube – Mario Kart 8 Music recording playlist
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Kotaku – Mario Kart 8 sound team interview
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Iwata Asks – Kenta Nagata Mario Kart 7 interview
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Mario Wiki – Mario Kart 8 liner notes
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CREDITS
Xylophon – Glissando hoch.wav by BockelSound
– — License: Attribution 4.0
1987 Model Car Formula 1 photo taken by Takayuki Suzuki
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@SturmAH
06.05.2024I might have to check out some of these bands! 🎉
@pfm57
04.05.2024This kind of well researched deep videos videos is what YouTube is (should be) all about. Thank you!
@Toadiferous
04.05.2024I never knew the artists on the MK8 soundtrack were actually from those bands. Just goes to show how the ways Nintendo chooses to use their wealth to fuel creativity rather than just cutting corners for profit when it comes to these IPs. You would never know that they just casually brought in some of the fathers of the entire genre. That'd be like John Williams hiring Mozart to play on one of his tracks for the next Star Wars movie and not saying anything about it lol
@astrid3321
04.05.2024This is so interesting! Gives me a whole new appreciation for the soundtrack:)
@identitysmiles
04.05.2024I feel like the title of this video should be more about the fusion aspect of Mario kart 8s music, I sort of expected it to be about how well it works as a total, to see mk wii and all the others get brushed over in terms of how good their music is felt strange
@heatherchaundy1943
04.05.2024i love mario kart and f1, i had no idea they had such a big connection!!
@Ludofonia
04.05.2024Your videos are always amazing! Top level content, thank you so much for your investigations!
@FuelFire
04.05.2024Mario Kart 7's Rainbow Road and its MK8 version has got to be the best soundtrack ever
@egerngaming7978
04.05.2024imo mario kart wii is the best one
@AlexMft1
04.05.2024CASIOPEA MENTIONED RAAAAAAAH 🗣🗣🗣‼️‼️‼️💯💯💯💯
@cubecubed335
04.05.2024Mario Kart 8’s soundtrack? You mean Melody Motorway?
@KyosukeKI
01.05.2024Your appreciation for video game music is SO pure, thank you!!
@podio_km4g532
01.05.2024I mean gt5 literally has satoshi bandoh songs
@kidgamerdylan
01.05.2024Hi
@Fnqii
01.05.2024Very cool
@blakejohnson9823
01.05.202414:00 what song is this?
@thatrandominternetgeek
01.05.20244:20 MKW Rainbow Road??
@kytkeyboardsyoureterrific439
01.05.20242:07 WHAT THAT THE BI-
@marmite-land
01.05.2024Hey everyone,
Check out the band Casiopea (albums recommended : Crosspoint, Mint Jams, Funky Sound Bombers, Super Flight)
You're welcome
@markusdied5569
01.05.2024TLDW; Nintendo composer assembled the Japan jazz fusion avengers for Mario kart eight
@fabovondestory
01.05.2024Yes, this music makes me feel like true racist 😎
@Apenknul
24.04.2024Yo, this is awesome! Love your video's! I do wonder if you could make similar video's about the music in Splatoon, Animal Crossing and Smash. Would love to watch that!
@qqjonson1234
24.04.20241:08 Coconut mall
@aldog4535
24.04.202410:00 I heard this line and thought "I know for a fact the Mute City song is about to play in 5 seconds", and it did lol.
@harrisonallen651
24.04.2024Fusion is the key
@matticolo
24.04.20241:03 what game is this? Thx!
@essiejazzy4067
24.04.2024Casiopea mention!
@ScaerieTale
24.04.2024"Fusion music and race cars had truly been linked together" You might even say… fused? Sorry 🤣 I never realized it, but thanks to this video I now know I can blame Nintendo for my lifelong love of jazz (in particular, upbeat jazz fusion)
@Someguyiguess69420
24.04.2024im typing this without using the lttr "E"
@Deadgirl97
24.04.2024Nice now i have a new music genre to dive into!
@sjodinable
24.04.2024This might be your best video yet. Thank you so much, just utterly fantastic =)
@NemraV1.1
20.04.2024Was't exepecting Cyprien Iov at the credits 😂 , as he is a famous youtuber in france,
@jacksugmoma1060
20.04.2024FACT CHECK (probably): Fuji TV stopped using TRUTH for other songs somewhere around 2006. If you go on YouTube & look at a compilation of intros from over the years, past 2006 you won’t find any sort of rendition of TRUTH. Personally, I need this theme back
@nintendolife25
20.04.2024One of my favorite aspects of MK8’s music is how it’s the first Mario Kart game to feature orchestrated tracks. The music in this entry really slaps. Thanks so much for the history, Thomas!
@someonecalledeulogio2280
20.04.2024Wait, did you slowly became a woman?
@PieJee1
20.04.2024Never realised it's the music that influenced me in judging the Mario kart games so much. I thought the series went downhill after mario kart double dash and got it's moments back in mario kart 7. The Mario Kart World Tour track songs that were added later still contained a few stinkers though.
@sirvee_
20.04.2024thanks again for stuffing my brain with nintendo information i didnt know
@JustJulyo
20.04.2024Everyone knows that the sound of space was always Jazzy
@zenuko620
20.04.2024The genre of music I personally associate with racing is eurobeat, and seeing mario characters race to it would be pretty funny
@JonathonV
20.04.2024Do you know how involved Nagata was with the Mario Kart Tour soundtrack afterwards? I know Dimension was hired to do the live versions of the songs that eventually made it into MarioKart 8 (via the Booster Course Pass), but even the original versions of the songs in MarioKart are so jazz fusion! Sydney Sprint has a sax solo that sends shivers down my spine, and London Loop is a rock banger just like the F-ZERO tracks or Rock Rock Mountain. If it was composed by someone else, they certainly drew heavy inspiration from Nagata and the work he did with Dimension!
@Stac.
20.04.2024Very great!
@user-zw3on4bx2t
19.04.2024Eveyone be fighting over whether jazz or eurobeat fits racing better
Me, who thinks drum and bass is the ultimate racing genre, thanks to Forza Horizon: 😎
In all seriousness, MK8D has one of my favorite soundtracks in gaming history.
@ViewtifulSam
19.04.2024Incredible work, and I was blown away by your fusion tracks!
@T2norway
19.04.2024loved the storytelling, excellent video!! ˙ ͜ʟ˙
@Kictor
19.04.2024This video was so awesome! And your music sounded incredible!
@GoHomeStayHome
19.04.2024Insane video I absolutely loved it. thank you
@AndrewMalkin
19.04.2024Eurobeat is my favorite racing music genre
@JustJulyo
19.04.2024Space is Jazzy of course
@Vaskonga
19.04.2024I already knew about this, but even after that, when I was 10y/o and first listened to Mk8 music I was absolutely fascinated
@ShadowDetrayaMusic
19.04.2024Thomas, love your vids! Also, really love how it went basically full-circle with 8! Always fun to learn about gaming history from ya, you go gal! ❤❤❤
Edit 2: at the outro now, you look truly beautiful!