The soundtrack and score of a movie can be very important. When used correctly, music can be used to help set the tone of the film, provide a sense of time and place, aid in characterization, and emphasize important scenes and meaningful moments.
Music has often been used to great effect throughout the MCU. Within the long list of Marvel movies and shows, music has been used to make memorable and note-worthy moments--whether it be for a cool and powerful action scene, for comedic purposes, to make audiences emotional, or to introduce a character. Popular songs of various genres, original music, and powerful scores have all been used in the MCU.
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Music is an important component of Guardians of the Galaxy and Guardians of the Galaxy 2, and there could be a list solely for memorable musical moments from those films. This list is limited to one song from each of those movies. Even beyond that, there are so many amazing uses of music in the MCU that it is very difficult to list them all.
It's impossible to make a list of musical moments in the MCU without including at least one scene from Guardians of the Galaxy. While it is very hard to single out only one moment from the film, this sequence is too good to ignore. Redbone's "Come and Get Your Love" plays near the beginning of Guardians of the Galaxy, when the audience meets adult Peter Quill, aka Star Lord, for the first time.
Quill is listening to the song on an old Walkman, the tape labeled "Awesome Mix Vol 1." He sings and dances along to the song while making his way through a cave on an alien planet. Right away, this not only sets up Quill as a fun-loving and comedic character but the music on Awesome Mix as an important component of his character as well as the story. This scene is by far one of the most memorable introductions to a character in the MCU.
The importance of music continues into the second Guardians of the Galaxy movie. "The Chain" by Fleetwood Mac is used twice in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2. The first time occurs when a Celestial being named Ego meets the Guardians and reveals himself to be Quill's father. "The Chain" plays as Quill, Gamora, and Drax board Ego's ship to follow him to his own planet, with Rocket, Groot, and Nebula looking on. It plays for a second time near the end of the movie, when Ego has Quill tied up in magic while the rest of the guardians are trapped by magic in different ways.
Quill thinks about the love and friendship he has with the Guardians and Yondu, and "The Chain" starts playing again as he comes into his Celestial powers and fights Ego while the other guardians are freed from their own traps. Both times the same part of the song plays; "And if you don't love me now, you will never love me again, I can still hear you saying, you would never break the chain." Using the song when Quill first meets his father and then repeating as he defeats him makes for a very interesting and meaningful reprise.
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At the end of episode seven of WandaVision, nosy neighbor Agnes is revealed to actually be the witch Agatha Harkness, who has been causing trouble and messing with Wanda's sitcom life and universe the whole time. As is in line with the sitcom theme running through WandaVision, Agatha gets her own villainous theme song, "Agatha All Along." While it plays, clips are shown revealing some of the things she has done over the course of the series, including influencing the neighbors, bringing in the fake Pietro, and killing the twins' dog.
The song became an instant hit with fans after the episode, racking up streams and YouTube views. This is very impressive considering this is the only song made specifically for an MCU project on this list. Performed by Agatha's actress, Kathryn Hahn, "Agatha All Along" was written by husband and wife writing team Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, a pair who have previously collaborated on films like Frozen, Frozen II, and Coco.
ACDC's "Back in Black" is one of the first songs heard in the MCU as fans know it today. It plays in the opening scenes of Iron Man, being heard in-universe as Tony Stark rides in a car with soldiers on the visit that would lead to him eventually becoming Iron Man. The scene quickly establishes Tony as rich, successful, and charming, and is so fitting and memorable that other songs by ACDC are used in later movies in conjunction with Iron Man.
"Back in Black" reappears in Spider-Man: Far From Home. Over the course of that film, Peter Parker has been mourning Tony and dealing with the pressure he feels to live up to his expectations. Gearing up to fight, Peter uses Tony's tech to create a new Spider-Man suit for himself. Watching him work with tech in a way that is reminiscent of Tony, Happy plays "Back in Black" as Peter works. The moment is both touching and comedic, with Peter cheerfully remarking "I love Led Zeppelin!" when the song starts playing.
This musical moment is often regarded as one of the coolest and most memorable scenes not only in Thor: Ragnarok, but in the entire MCU so far. This time, it really is a Led Zeppelin song. As Thor fights his sister Hela, he comes into his lightning powers, using them for the first time without the help of his hammer.
As Thor descends from the sky into the battle for Asgard, crackling with lightning, the scream from the beginning of "Immigrant Song" plays. It's an epic moment. The song continues as Thor, Valkyrie, Hulk, Loki, and the rest of their allies battle Hela's forces. The combination of the visuals, the song, and the context makes for an amazing fight sequence. The song is a perfect choice lyrically too, referencing the Norse mythology Thor hails from with lyrics about the "hammer of the gods" and "Valhalla."