A Victoria DJ’s catchy track can be heard in the latest episode of HBO hit series The White Lotus.
Set it Off, an infectious, upbeat electronic track by RUMPUS, is heard in a scene set in a club with characters Jaclyn (Michelle Monaghan), Laurie (Carrie Coon) and Kate (Leslie Bibb), who have come to the White Lotus for a girls trip and to get away from their troubles.
RUMPUS, who goes by Danny Elder when he’s not on stage, only realized that his song would be heard by millions of people watching the show when he noticed that the track had been tagged on a music licensing platform, indicating that it would be used on the third season’s fifth episode.
He had been in negotiations in November about featuring the song, but was kept in the dark on whether it was successful until then.
Elder wasn’t angling for an HBO feature when he composed the song last year.
“I was just kind of trying to make a banging club tune that would be high energy and really fun for people to dance to,” he said in an interview Tuesday.
He suspects the song was chosen for the scene, which included fire spinners at a beach party, due to its lyrics: “We got the fire and we’re burning up.”
Elder’s songs are submitted to a pool through music publishing and licensing company Gravel Pit for filmmakers, video-game makers and advertisers looking for music to use in their work.
It’s not the first time that the DJ and producer has seen one of his songs featured on the small screen: the Hulu-produced American horror anthology Into the Dark picked up one of his songs a few years ago.
But he acknowledges that The White Lotus has greater reach, calling it “one of the biggest shows on TV right now.”
The critically-acclaimed show won a rash of Emmys in its first season and broke streaming viewership records on Crave when Season 3 began last month.
“When things like this come, it’s a nice little reward for all the hard work,” he said.
Elder, who tours at clubs and festivals around the world, put down roots in Victoria in 2021.
“I’ve always wanted to come out here and I just needed the right timing,” said the Regina-born artist, who built his music chops in Saskatchewan’s punk rock scene.
The electronic music scene on Vancouver Island is vibrant and supportive of local artists, he said.“Everyone supports one another and comes out to all the festivals and shows.”
The White Lotus was shot on location at several luxury hotels and resorts in Thailand. When asked about the possibility of playing in Thailand at some point in his career, Elder was upbeat: “Who knows? Maybe we can make it happen now.”
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