The 2001 song has recently become a viral hit thanks to Emerald Fennell’s movie Saltburn
Sophie Ellis-Bextor brought the party to The Tonight Show with a lively rendition of her hit “Murder on the Dancefloor.” The confetti-filled performance marked Ellis-Bextor’s U.S. TV debut, decades after the song’s release in 2001. The singer was accompanied by house band the Roots, with the excited audience dancing along.
“Murder on the Dancefloor,” which originally appeared on the singer’s debut LP Read My Lips, has seen a resurgence over the past few months thanks to its placement in Emerald Fennell‘s movie Saltburn. The track plays during the final scene of the movie in which its star, Barry Keoghan, dances nude — a visual that has inspired a trend on TikTok, helping propel the song onto Billboard’s charts and landed it at No. 2 in the U.K.
Ellis-Bextor is set to perform the song this weekend at the 2024 BAFTA Film Awards in London. Saltburn racked up a number of nominations at this year’s BAFTAs, including Outstanding British Film. Keoghan earned a nomination for Leading Actor for his role as the scheming Oliver Quick, with Jacob Elordi and Rosamund Pike earning nods for Supporting Actor and Supporting Actress, respectively. Anthony Willis, who helmed the film score, is nominated for Original Score.
“It actually feels really magical, and if I’m honest, I don’t think I’ve completely processed it really,” Ellis-Bextor recently told the BBC about the 23-year-old song’s resurgence. “It’s extraordinary. It’s a song I’ve been singing for over 20 years. I still love singing it. I love the way people react when I do it live. But for new people to be discovering it, for it to be making new memories with people is kind of beautiful.”
“Murder on the Dancefloor” will be released on vinyl for the first time this month. The single will be available on a limited edition red 7-inch, as well as a limited edition red CD single, from Feb. 16. Both are available to pre-order now.
The song continues a trend in recent years of older tracks growing popular again. Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill” became ubiquitous four decades after its release thanks to Stranger Things, and Matchbox Twenty’s “Push” enjoyed the Barbie bump last year, close to a quarter of a century after it came out.
