M. Night Shyamalan’s daughter and “Trap” star Saleka presents her new song “Save Me”

Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

Singer and actress Saleka Shyamalan, daughter of star director M. Night, has released the single “Save Me”.

The song is from M. Night Shyamalan’s new thriller Trap, which is due out August 2 and stars Saleka, Josh Hartnett, Hayley Mills and Marnie McPhail. In the film, Saleka plays fictional pop icon Lady Raven, while Hartnett plays a loving father who takes his teenage daughter to the singer’s concert. However, things take an ominous turn when it becomes clear that a large number of police officers are at the concert, searching for a serial killer.

“Save Me” is one of the 14 songs she composed, performed and produced for the film’s soundtrack album, “Lady Raven,” which also features Kid Cudi, Russ and Amaarae.

Saleka was actually the inspiration for the film: In conversation with diversity Jenelle Riley, M. Night said he was inspired to write the story after watching his daughter perform and worked closely with her, writing the script while she wrote the songs for the film.

“I said to Saleka, ‘This is the sketch and we need this moment here. This is what he’s doing and I need a song here,’ and she just went and wrote it, put a little bit of music to it, like she wrote the songs,” he said. “I didn’t ask her to do it, she just felt it and commented on the scenes.”

Speaking about the film’s soundtrack, Saleka said: “There is a duality. I wanted to make an album that could stand on its own and embody the sounds and genres that I love. At the same time, each song was written with a clear intention for a specific scene.

“The external storyline was so inspiring to the process,” she continued. “I was able to write incredibly freely, not thinking about myself. I ended up editing less on myself and exploring facets of my own emotions that I wouldn’t have been able to delve into if I didn’t have Lady Raven to speak through.”

The film was also inspired by Shyamalan’s love of Bollywood and musicals.

“‘Purple Rain’ is our favourite film,” said Saleka. “Film and music are equally important in Bollywood too. We deliberately wanted to bring these two art forms together. The concept started in the kitchen and I wrote many of the songs in the living room. I was able to try out musical ideas that I had never had before. It’s so pure and special to me.”

Listen to “Save Me” below.