Weird Al is world famous for parodying some of the most famous songs in history, and has made some famous friends along the way. He’s even made some enemies (check out the reference to Prince and the incredibly strange telegram he sent Weird Al , and why), but one of his closest celebrity friendships was born out of a request to create a parody song.
We’re talking about Michael Jackson. If someone had to guess what Michael Jackson’s response would have been if someone asked him for permission to create a parody version of one of his world famous blockbuster songs, most would have been pretty sure his answer would have been a big N-O.
But as it turns out, that wasn’t the case at all. The New Zealand Herald , in their article announcing Weird Al’s upcoming Australian and New Zealand tour , reported that Weird Al rose to fame in the mid-1980s after creating parodies of two Michael Jackson blockbusters: “Eat It,” his version of “Beat It,” and “Fat,” his version of “Bad.”
On July 9, 2009, in the wake of Michael Jackson’s death, Rolling Stone published an article written by Weird Al , a kind of tribute/remembrance piece.
In the article, Weird Al talked about the first contact he had with the King of Pop, and how even he was surprised about the warm reception that his request was given.
“The first time around I pursued Michael Jackson about a song parody, it was a shot in the dark. We’re talking about the most popular and famous person in the known universe, and here I was, this goofy comedy songwriter. He not only returned our phone calls, but he approved it. He thought it was a funny idea.”
The fact that #MichaelJackson let Weird Al parody his songs showed a wonderful sense of humor. I’ll never forget! pic.twitter.com/pHzg4aLU7y
— Bobbi JG Weiss (@BobbiJGWeiss) August 29, 2015
Weird Al went on to describe his conversations with Jackson when Weird Al wanted to create a second parody . Not only did Michael Jackson approve the request, but he also offered Weird Al the real set from his “Badder” music video, Mental Floss reported.
The resulting “Fat” music video went on to win a Grammy award in 1988 for Best Concept Music Video, which may not have come to pass had Michael Jackson not been so generous with his offer.
The New Zealand Herald reported that Weird Al said that these days it is rare for a recording artist to turn down his request to create a parody version of their song. However, that hasn’t always been the case.
“When I first started out in the early 80s it was a lot more common because nobody knew who this Weird Al was and what I was about. Nowadays, artists usually look at it as a badge of honour or a rite of passage to get a Weird Al parody.”
In his Rolling Stone tribute, Weird Al remembered that, not only did Michael Jackson approve his request to record “Eat It,” but he also signed a contract to say that the two artists were co-creators of the new parody song.
“There’s a contract somewhere that has his signature next to mine, proving that we are the co-writers of ‘Eat It,’ which is surrealistic in and of itself.”
This is the contract that Weird Al and Michael Jackson signed for “Eat It.” pic.twitter.com/w60nDqwQlq
— Vexy Vox (@Vexyvox) November 18, 2014
Weird Al has also previously recalled fond memories of a time when he and Michael Jackson each happened to be putting in plenty of studio time working on their respective albums. As Mental Floss reported, Weird Al would sometimes receive a note on his studio door from the King of Pop himself.
“Hello from next door. Love, MJ”
Weird Al largely credits his success to Michael Jackson, which seems generous and kind of him. Yes, it’s certainly true that Weird Al might still have found the same level of international fame and recognition even if Michael Jackson had taken the same road as Prince and denied Weird Al the right to create his parody songs, but it seems that Weird Al’s star really started to rise after those two Michael Jackson songs went viral (or, the 1980s version of “viral”).
“I don’t know what kind of career I would have today if it hadn’t been for Michael Jackson. In a very real sense, he jump-started my career. ‘Eat It’ basically changed me from an unknown into a guy that got recognized at Burger King.”
Tickets for Weird Al’s Australian and New Zealand tour go on sale tomorrow, Thursday, October 1, 2015.
[Photo: Chip Somodevilla, Mike Coppola / Getty Images]