‘Monarch’ Music Supervisor on How the Country Series Uses Classic Covers and Indie Artists

variety.com:

Mike Wass “How do we make it uniquely ‘Monarch’?” That’s the question music supervisor Amanda Krieg Thomas asks herself before getting to work on each episode of Fox’s new drama series about a country music dynasty.

The answer is three-pronged: by having the cast (which includes Susan Sarandon, Trace Adkins and Beth Ditto) tackle country classics, by sprinkling in a selection of unexpected pop covers, and, on the licensing side, by championing upcoming country artists. “We really wanted to focus on covers because that’s a strong entry point,” Thomas says, before elaborating on her mandate: “Always be unexpected, always feature different eras and styles.” By that criteria, episode 3, which aired Tuesday night, was a resounding success.

Beginning with a twangy take on Lizzo’s “Juice,” the show segued into a soaring rendition of Faith Hill’s “Breathe.” Throw in guest star Tanya Tucker singing “Delta Dawn” and a Miranda Lambert hit from the ‘00s, and you have a decidedly eclectic lineup. “In every episode, we make sure that these different boxes are checked,” Thomas says, “and I really love episode three because it runs the whole gamut.” She’s particularly proud of the Lizzo cover. “It’s a great way to kick off an episode because it’s not what you expect from a country show,” continues Thomas, who previously supervised music for music-led fare such as “The Prom” and “Pose.” Songs like “Breathe” and “Delta Dawn” then cover more familiar ground – albeit from very different eras. “‘Delta Dawn’ came out in the ’70s, ‘Kerosene’ by Miranda Lambert is more recent, and there’s even a cover of ‘Always on My Mind’ by Willie Nelson,” Thomas lists. “So purely in the covers alone, you have a lot of different eras of country music