Ever wonder what electronic dance music icon Diplo was like behind the scenes? The trailer for a new Viceland series “What Would Diplo Do?” might give you an idea.
“What Would Diplo Do?” is Viceland’s first scripted comedy series. It stars James Van Der Beek as a fictional version of international DJ superstar Diplo who may have millions of fans, but who can’t seem to keep up with his personal relationships.
He also seems to be trying too hard to keep up in the electronic dance scene. In one part of the trailer, in a quest to find a new sound, he and his crew put a violin in a blender.
“There’s no ‘I’ in team bro,” says one of his crew, played by comedian Bobby Lee.
“Yeah but there’s an ‘I’ in Diplo,” he responds.
The real Diplo, aka Thomas Wesley Pentz, has worked with a number of artists throughout his career, including M.I.A., Skrillex, Gwen Stefani, Bruno Mars, Britney Spears and more. His name shows up in the credits of a number of tracks you probably didn’t even know about, including showing up on Beyonce’s “Lemonade” twice and on Madonna’s 2015 album “Rebel Heart.”
It’s unclear if any of Diplo’s real-life co-collaborators will show up for “Entourage”-style cameos, but we can hope.
If you’re thinking that this concept comes out of nowhere, Van Der Beek has parodied the artist before. For the popular DJ’s annual Mad Decent Block Party concert tour in 2016, the “Dawson’s Creek” star channeled his inner Diplo diva.
The show is executive produced by Van Der Beek and the artist himself Diplo, along with TMWRK’s Kevin Kusatsu and Brandon Dermer, who also directs. Content studio Matador also produces the series.
“What Would Diplo Do?” premieres on Aug. 3. Watch the trailer above.