This spring, press play on SOUNDTRACK (on sale from Listening Library, June 3, 2025) by the acclaimed New York Times bestselling author, MacArthur Fellow, and former National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Jason Reynolds. In his new literary work, which has been produced as an audiobook original, Reynolds transports us back to the early 2000s, where a group of young and gifted New York City friends will use their talent and love of music to lift them to unexpected heights.
Author Jason Reynolds
Photo Credit: Adedayo “Dayo” Kosoko
Reynolds says: “I’m excited that the story I wrote years ago finally gets to be experienced through a medium I never imagined. It’s a story that celebrates the creative genius of children, especially those who are willing to express themselves at all costs.”
In SOUNDTRACK, we meet Stuy, a young Black teen who wants to play the drums just like his mom, a founding member of the punk band The Bed-Stuy Magic Dusters. With his mother as his teacher, Stuy starts busking in the subway with his friends Dunks on guitar, Alexis on bass, Keith on trumpet, and Frankie as hype man under the name Soundtrack. To everyone’s surprise, including their own, they become an underground sensation, and their success changes the course of their lives.
Recorded by four-time GRAMMY® Award-winning producer Dan Zitt, SVP of Content Production for Penguin Random House Audio, and 2025 Odyssey Honor-winning producer Brian Ramcharan, SOUNDTRACK shows us a found family coming of age in a wonderfully complex city.
Ramcharan says: “Working on the SOUNDTRACK audiobook original has been unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. Jason Reynolds has a way of storytelling that ignites the senses, and Dan and I worked tirelessly to ensure this audio original immerses the listener within Jason’s brilliant writing. It is a story combining friendship, family, and most importantly, music that translates perfectly to audio.”
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- Soundtrack producers Brian Ramcharan (left) and Dan Zitt (right) with author Jason Reynolds
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- Cast members of Soundtrack in the studio
The production team auditioned more than a hundred actors to cast fourteen voices for the project:
Nile Bullock as Stuy
Mekhi Hewling as Dunks
Jade Williams as Keith
Brandon Miles as Alexis
Ryan Vincent Anderson as Uncle Lucky
Amir Royale as Frankie
Jasmin Richardson as Stuy’s Mom
Christopher Grant as Dom
Khaya Fraites as Ashley
Nadine Simmons as Mrs. Dyson
Robb Moreira as Mr. Garcia
We Ani as Lisa
Rocky Anicette as Dylan
Brandiss Seward as Frankie’s Mom
In addition to the full-cast narration, SOUNDTRACK is scored by GRAMMY® Award-winning composer, sound design artist, and Yale lecturer in sound design Justin Ellington, whose credits include working with music legends Usher (Raymond vs. Raymond) and Nicki Minaj (Pink Friday).
Penguin Random House Audio’s growing audiobook-exclusive and audio-first publishing program includes titles with authors like Ali Hazelwood, Erik Larson, Fiona Davis & Greg Wands, J. Michael Straczynski, Kim Harrison, Liv Constantine, Najwa Zebian, Nick Offerman, Star Wars™, MeatEater’s Steven Rinella, and more.
