Every few scenes in “Bridgerton,” you’ll encounter a score that sounds similar to a pop song you have on your own playlist. The enchanting background score of the Regency drama adds contemporary touches through its music, which features the likes of fan favorites Harry Styles, Ariana Grande, and even Nirvana — only, their songs are rendered as regal-sounding, old-timey classical pop, as they would have sounded had they been composed in the 19th century.
Each featured track is apparently selected carefully to be meaningful to the plot running in the foreground. Music supervisor Justin Kamps, who worked on Season 2’s score, said about Nirvana’s “Stay Away,” which plays when Anthony Bridgerton scours for a wife, “It’s this frenetic sound, mimicking the stresses that are put on him. … It matches the standoffish way that Anthony’s going about his life.”
As noted by InStyle, fans are obsessed with the show’s music as much as with the show itself, appreciating the way it streamlines high art and pop culture. One such number on the tracklist, which plays during Edwina Sharma’s wedding prep, is the title from Bollywood film “Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham.” It sent emotions soaring among netizens, according to Kamps. Kris Bowers, “Bridgerton” music composer, revealed the idea to include the song came from his assistant who told him “how, growing up, he heard this song all the time” (via Shondaland).