SINGER and musician Boris Gardiner’s Every Nigger is a Star is featured on the original motion picture soundtrack for the American filmMoonlight.

The soundtrack – which also features songs from Barbara Lewis, Goodie Mob and Nicholas Britnell – was released late last year by Lakeshore Records.

The now 74-year-old Gardiner co-wrote Every Nigger is a Star with his older brother, Barrington. The song was first featured in the 1973 film Every Nigger is a Star, which starred Bahamian actor Calvin Lockhart.

In an interview with the Jamaica Observer yesterday, Gardiner said he was contacted by an agent last year, who said the filmmakers were interested in using the song.

“I haven’t seen the film, but I heard the song is in the beginning of the movie. I plan to see it though, as I heard it did well at the recent Golden Globe Awards in the US, which is very good,” he said.

Moonlight won Best Motion Picture – Drama at the 74th Golden Globe Awards held at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California, last weekend.

Gardiner said the title of the song was Calvin Lockhart’s idea, who was doing a film of the same name. He (Lockhart) contacted Eddie Knight and Teddy McCook, who owned the nightclub The Bronco, where Boris Gardiner Happening was the resident band.

“Calvin asked if I could write some music for the film. I got some ideas they wanted and my brother and I worked on it. It turned out to be a great song,” said Gardiner.

In 2015, the song was sampled by rapper Kendrick Lamar in the song Wesley’s Theory, which is featured on his platinum-selling, Grammy-winning album To Pimp a Butterfly.

Gardiner, a respected session musician, played on several hit songs, including The Heptones’

Equal Rights and Nanny Goat by Larry and Alvin.

As a singer, he has had hits with It’s So Nice to be With You, I Want to Wake Up with You (number one on the UK pop chart in 1986) and The Meaning of Christmas (number 97 on the UK pop chart).

Directed by Barry Jenkins, Moonlight is based on the play In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue by Tarell Alvin McCraney. The film stars Trevante Rhodes, Andre Holland, Janelle Monae, Ashton Sanders, Jharrel Jerome, Naomie Harris and Mahershala Ali.

Filmed in Florida, Moonlight was released on October 21 and has since grossed US$14 million.

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