In our brand new Client Sync of the Month Deep Dive feature we’re spotlighting some of our clients’ most exicting placements and delving into the stories behind them.
First up we speak to Ty Salazar, VP of Creative Synch at LA-based Position Music, who discusses the use of Duomo’s “What About Us” (P!nk cover) in season two of Netflix’s hit show Bridgerton.
Ty Salazar, Position Music
How did the opportunity first come about?
I have been working with the music supervisor Justin Kamps for many years on a variety of different TV shows. When Bridgerton season one was in production he reached out looking for modern songs performed in a classical style. We released the Duomo album Berlin:Redux on our label the previous year so I sent that to them. Duomo’s cover of Taylor Swift’s “Wildest Dreams” from that album made it into Bridgerton season one and was used in a very steamy love scene. Now “Wildest Dreams” has over 50 million total streams, which is crazy good for a “classical” song.
So when Bridgerton season two was going into production, Justin reached out again to see if we had more covers that could work for the show, and that’s when I sent a bunch of new Duomo cover songs over, including the “What About Us” (P!nk Cover).
What did the process look like?
The process was delivering new covers that Duomo had created, which at the time was only the cover of Alanis Morrisette’s “You Oughta Know.” That cover also made it into Bridgerton season two but that was all we had at the time. Meanwhile, Duomo was busy making new covers for their upcoming album, so I let Justin know that I would have more covers from Duomo soon. It was about a week later when I delivered five fresh covers from Duomo which included the Pink “What About Us” cover. I delivered a few more covers to Justin, but “You Oughta Know” and “What About Us” were the winners.
What were the biggest challenges involved in making it happen?
One challenge was only having one cover option (The Alanis Morrisette cover) when they initially reached out for new cover ideas. Another challenge was not knowing which covers would resonate with them or play well in a scene. Additionally, it was also up to P!nk’s camp to approve the use of the cover and I’m very glad they did.
What makes it a great placement?
The songs plays beautifully in the scene. It’s featured for about three and a half minutes and adds a lot of emotion to the story. In addition, even though it is an instrumental use in the show, the lyrics from the original P!nk “What About Us” song add to the context of what’s happening on screen in the actual Bridgerton story— which I think is a cool easter egg for the fans of the original song.
What impact has it had?
Having music in one of the most watched shows on Netflix is always incredible. Fans love the unique sound of the show and we love seeing their comments online talking about Duomo’s covers. In addition to being on Netflix’s official playlist, it’s also on the official soundtrack released by Capitol Records alongside talented artists like Vitamin String Quartet, Kris Bowers, and others. The song has been included in several significant editorial playlists on Spotify and Apple Music, and has already been streamed over 7 million times online, and counting!
Enjoyed this article? Why not check out:
- Building an Independent Powerhouse: A Conversation with Position Music CEO Tyler Bacon
- Are Sync Rights Fit For Purpose?
- “We See Ourselves As Being a Part of the Biggest Sync Team in the World” – Tom Stingemore Talks Hipgnosis Sync
