Black Panther is one of the most-anticipated superhero films to date, so it's no surprise it also has an equally hyped soundtrack.

This weekend will see the release of Black Panther: The Album , curated and produced by Kendrick Lamar.

In an interview with NPR , Black Panther director Ryan Coogler detailed how he and Lamar came together to collaborate on the film's soundtrack.

Coogler said he'd been a fan of Lamar since his first mixtapes, and had touched base with him a few years ago about working together on some kind of project.

The opportunity came around April 2017: Lamar had just released his latest album, DAMN , and Coogler saw an opening to get him involved in making some music for Black Panther , which Marvel supported.

Lamar and Top Dawg Entertainment producer Sounwave started developing the album in the winter, with much of the work happening during the DAMN tour, which lasted from July to early September.

Sounwave - who's a comic book fan himself - added how much he admires that Marvel gave them creative control over the album's sound, feel and voice.