From SNL’s “The Barry Gibb Talk Show” to The Tonight Show’s “Wheel of Musical Impressions,” music has always been a part of Jimmy Fallon’s comedy. Which is why his performance of “Total Eclipse of the Heart” alongside Heart during this week’s solar eclipse was totally on-brand.
Somewhat more surprising, however, was the recent revelation that Jerry Seinfeld asked Fallon to record a song for the soundtrack of his new Netflix movie Unfrosted–especially given that the late night-host has no other role in Seinfeld’s directorial debut. But now that the track has arrived, it’s beginning to make more sense.
The song, a duet with Meghan Trainor titled “Sweet Morning Heat,” was actually co-written by Seinfeld, who also co-wrote, produced, and stars in the film, which revisits the contentious rivalry between the Post and Kellogg’s cereal brands and the invention of the Pop-Tart. Which explains such lyrics as “I used to eat two any time of the day/But somehow it wasn’t ever enough/Is there a reason I just can’t stay away?/I like a rectangle that I can heat up.”
The song also gave super-producer Mark Ronson—the man behind the Barbie soundtrack—yet another chance to get a little playful with his art.
In a conversation with Entertainment Weekly, Fallon explained how this all-star comedy/musical mash-up came to be:
“Almost three months ago, I got an audio text from Jerry Seinfeld saying, ‘Jimmy, I can’t wait to do your show, it’s going to be fun. We just finished editing the movie Unfrosted—it’s very funny, and I think you’ll love it.’ Jerry says, ‘I wrote a song with Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt, and we were thinking of who should sing this, and you were the first person on everyone’s list—you can sing, but you also understand the comedy behind the song.”
Fallon didn’t even have to think about it—he was immediately onboard. And he was even more excited about the project after Seinfeld sent him a quick audio file, which he listened to on his walk to work. “I’m going down Sixth Avenue, and I just sort of started dancing,” Fallon told EW. “It’s a bop. It’s really a good jam. And it’s funny. It made me laugh.”
The song also reunites Fallon with Meghan Trainor. The two first collaborated last year on a Christmas song titled “Wrap Me Up,” which they memorably performed together on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in December.
Unfrosted premieres on Netflix on May 3, 2024.
