The real story behind ‘Flashlight’ (the new ‘Cups’?) from Pitch Perfect 2 | EW.com: Thus, “Flashlight” was born from a very specific songwriting brief that Moore and company put out to potential writer-musicians. “We knew it needed to have an emotional component about friendship; we wanted it to sound great in a big, gospel-type arrangement; and since we needed the audience to invest quickly, it had to create a hook that very instantly got inside your ear,” Moore explains.
“Sia was the one who nailed it.”
Sia’s song “Titanium” got such good play in the first Pitch that she developed a friendship with Moore in the ensuing years. “Chandelier” hadn’t happened yet, but the singer was in the studio working on her 2014 album when Moore contacted her personally to gauge her interest in the songwriting challenge. With assistance from Sam Smith (who was still under-the-radar at this point) and Christian Guzman, she submitted “Flashlight”—and the filmmakers loved it.