Weird Al Yankovic has carried the torch of musical parody more fervently than anyone in his genre since the likes of Allan Sherman. His music has caused the laughter of kids and adults alike since 1976, selling more than 12 million albums by 2007 and selling out more than 1,000 live shows. His profound yet silly work has earned him more than 5 Grammys and notoriety as a director when other artists such as Ben Folds, Hanson and The Black Crows asked him to direct their videos. Born an MTV star, the decline of music television made Yankovic decide to utilize the incline in social media, by publishing his videos on streaming platforms such as Youtube. This was integral in promoting his upcoming albums, such as, ‘Mandatory Fun’.
So the question remains, who was Weird Al before he was weird? Alfred Matthew Yankovic was born in the suburbs of Los Angeles California. An only child, Yonkovic’s parents were of the philosophy “do whatever makes you happy”. Yankovic's translation to that just so happened to make others happy, too. “It was an accordion lesson that began my music career” says Yankovic, which was a gift he received on his sixth birthday after a door to door salesman offered his parents the choice between guitar or accordion lessons. Their supposed reason for choosing accordion over guitar was so that there would be one more accordion playing Yankovic in the world. Little did they know, that would come with some of the greatest parody writing in comedy history.
Labeled as the ‘nerdy’ kid, Yankovic skipped a few grades in elementary school, leaving him younger than most of his classmates. “They called me rocket science kid” Yankovic recalls. He was not active in sports, however reminicesses on the extracurricular clubs he helped start in highschool, one of which was called ‘The Volcano Worshippers Club’. “It did nothing,” said Yankovic. “We only did it to get an extra picture in the yearbook.” After graduating highschool, Yankovic attended California Polytechnic State University where he earned a bachelor's degree in architecture.
1976 marks the beginning of his career, when a 16 year old Yankovic met Dr. Demento as he spoke at Yankovic's school. An ambitious artist, Yankovic handed a tape of his original parody songs played on his accordion to Dr. Demento. "If there hadn't been a Dr. Demento, I'd probably have a real job now." Yankovic said on Dr. Demento’s radio show. He gave Yankovic his first taste of the spotlight, playing his song “Belvedere Cruising”, Yankovic wrote about his family's car, on his radio show.
By 1981, Yankovic caught the eye of manager Jay Levey when he performed at Dr. Demento’s live show. From there, Yankovic signed with Scotti Brothers Records and released a self titled album that year.
In 1984, the world would never be the same. Following the infamous song “Beat It” by Michael Jackson, Yankovic released his own rendition titled ‘Eat It’. Being told he had an ‘uncanny resemblance’ to Michael Jackson, ‘Eat It’ hit number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100. This remained his legacy until ‘White and Nerdy’ hit number 9 in October of 2006.
There was no mistaking Weird Al Yankovic; with his comically large glasses, curly afro-like hair and a mustache that you couldn’t look away from. It wasn’t until 1999 that Yankovic unveiled a completely new look after proceeding with LASIK surgery, prompting him to start fresh. Now, Yankivic said goodbye to the glasses, ditched the mustache and grew out his hair, going from the once beloved 'white guy' afro to the long, curly tendrils carefully draping over his shoulders that we all love today. "If Madonna's allowed to reinvent herself every 15 minutes, I figure I should be good for a change at least once every 20 years." Responded Yankovic.
In October of 2008, Yankovic started digitally releasing his songs such as ‘Whatever you Like’, the parody of the TI song with the same title. When asked about why he decided to go digital, Yankovic said "I don't have to wait around while my songs get old and dated—I can get them out on the Internet almost immediately."
From rocket science kid to polka-playing parody sensation, Weird Al Yankovic is without question one of the heaviest hitters responsible for changing the music industry today. While skeptical at first, today singers and comedians alike beg to be parodied by the legend himself. There are few artists to date that achieve the notoriety that Alfred Matthew Yankovic has attained, all while inspiring comedians to follow in his footsteps. Yankovic’s commentary on pop culture and the social structure of music truly spoke to so many, making his music both timeless and, as always, weird.
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