# Where did this melody come from? (Easy Listening/Elevator Music, now oft used as musical shorthand for waiting) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 10, 2026, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-melody-come-from-easy-listening-elevator-music-now-oft-used-as-musical-shorthand-for-waiting/1032965 "2026-09-10T14:00:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2026, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-melody-come-from-easy-listening-elevator-music-now-oft-used-as-musical-shorthand-for-waiting/1032965/1 "2026-09-10T14:00:22Z")
I can’t seem to link to YouTube shorts in such a way that the link starts the video at a specific time, so you’ll just have to do it the old fashioned way and scroll (or wait) till :31 in [this video](https://youtube.com/shorts/HjWN2YOsk8k?si=wRd-AkUwTxpfkyKf). It’s almost certainly elevator music or 70’s “on hold” music, and I’ve heard it a thousand times. Do we know where it originated? ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2026, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-melody-come-from-easy-listening-elevator-music-now-oft-used-as-musical-shorthand-for-waiting/1032965/2 "2026-09-10T19:48:24Z")
I don’t think your link is working like you want. But if it’s the elevator scene from The Blues Brothers, that is “The Girl from Ipanema”. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2026, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-melody-come-from-easy-listening-elevator-music-now-oft-used-as-musical-shorthand-for-waiting/1032965/3 "2026-09-10T19:56:51Z")
No it’s not that. His link worked correctly. This might be the music you’re thinking of, @HeyHomie. Check it out around 2:00. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/s9PyqVt5hAU/maxresdefault.jpg "Track 10 Near Twilight") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9PyqVt5hAU) ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2026, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-melody-come-from-easy-listening-elevator-music-now-oft-used-as-musical-shorthand-for-waiting/1032965/4 "2026-09-10T20:29:01Z")
It’s the first 8 seconds of this video (East Side Flow by Sidhu Moosewala), but it’s obviously sampled from somewhere else. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/Ou92g4q-klQ/maxresdefault.jpg "East Side Flow - Sidhu Moosewala | B&W Video | Sunny Malton | Juke Dock") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ou92g4q-klQ) ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2026, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-melody-come-from-easy-listening-elevator-music-now-oft-used-as-musical-shorthand-for-waiting/1032965/5 "2026-09-11T00:09:23Z")
This version of the Roku startup screen originally had music very similar to the OP’s melody. It was intended to closely resemble elevator music, and was a self-deprecating comment on the fact that the user was having to wait for the unit to boot up. The animation is also a commentary on the “waiting” theme, with each of the letters showing boredom (the R is looking around vaguely, the O is yawning, the K is tapping its foot, and the U is nodding off and then jerking awake). Before release, the music was replaced with another version which also resembles elevator music, but not as strongly as the original version. I liked the original better, and thought it was more to the point. With the released music, a lot of people didn’t get the joke and referred to the letters as “dancing” or something like that. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/9LXVuy16mik/maxresdefault.jpg "Roku startup compilation") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LXVuy16mik&t=168s) ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2026, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-melody-come-from-easy-listening-elevator-music-now-oft-used-as-musical-shorthand-for-waiting/1032965/6 "2026-09-11T00:11:45Z")
Can’t edit the previous post since it includes a video, but I wanted to be clear that this video shows the released, inferior version. There may have been some copyright issue with using the original music. ---
**Author:** ![Xocomil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xocomil/32/14927_2.png) [@Xocomil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xocomil)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2026, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-melody-come-from-easy-listening-elevator-music-now-oft-used-as-musical-shorthand-for-waiting/1032965/7 "2026-09-11T00:52:22Z")
It’s “Local Forecast - Elevator” by [Kevin MacLeod](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_MacLeod) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/5IyL1l34PIs/maxresdefault.jpg "Kevin MacLeod: Local Forecast - Elevator") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IyL1l34PIs) You’ve certainly heard some of his other work. He specializes in royalty-free music. ---
**Author:** ![ShadowFacts](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shadowfacts/32/2934_2.png) [@ShadowFacts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShadowFacts)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2026, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-melody-come-from-easy-listening-elevator-music-now-oft-used-as-musical-shorthand-for-waiting/1032965/8 "2026-09-11T01:51:36Z")
Kevin MacLeod is awesome. I’ve used his work many times in a variety of video projects. ---
**Author:** ![Reeses\_Monkey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reeses_monkey/32/2885_2.png) [@Reeses\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeses_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2026, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-melody-come-from-easy-listening-elevator-music-now-oft-used-as-musical-shorthand-for-waiting/1032965/9 "2026-09-11T02:06:23Z")
When I open that link I get a video of someone playing a slot machine. Is that right? ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2026, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-melody-come-from-easy-listening-elevator-music-now-oft-used-as-musical-shorthand-for-waiting/1032965/10 "2026-09-11T02:16:41Z")
Yes, the music portion starts at 30-31 seconds in.