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‘Weird’ Al Yankovic Says He No Longer Needs To Worry About Making Mistakes With His Career

By Patrick Frye
Published on: 04:14 PST, Jun 2, 2016

“Weird” Al Yankovic has come a long way in his career. The singer and comedian even stated in an interview that he no longer has to worry about making bad decisions. Of course, this doesn’t mean he’s going to start Twitter feuds or go on racist rants.

The real surprise is that “Weird” Al is still shocked by his own success. He has basically become the Megadeth of comedians. Everybody knows who he is, and as long as he doesn’t do something really stupid, he will continue to be successful with whatever he does. This is why the show Comedy Bang! Bang! doesn’t have to be hugely popular or cater to a wider audience.

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“Weird” Al Yankovic got his start recording in a public restroom due to the amazing natural acoustics. That restroom was where he recorded “My Bologna,” a parody on The Knack’s “My Sharona.” This received radio play from “Dr. Demento” and earned him a six-month recording contract with Capitol Records.

For a few decades, Yankovic took on popular songs and often made them about food. Michael Jackson’s “Bad” and “Beat It” became “Fat” and “Eat It.” Aerosmith’s “Livin’ on the Edge” became “Livin’ in the Fridge.” As he grew more popular and became a staple among the “nerdy” crowd, he started deviating more and more from the subject of food. He even poked fun at his nerdiness and turned “Ridin’ Dirty” into “White and Nerdy,” a music video featuring a cameo by the comedy sketch duo Key and Peele. He has also made songs into homages to popular movies, turning “American Pie” into “The Saga Begins” (about Star Wars: The Phantom Menace), and “Lump” by the Presidents of the United States of America became “Gump” (about Tom Hanks’ mentally slow character, Forrest).

“Weird” Al Yankovic’s latest album, Mandatory Fun, deviates even further from his roots of singing about food. Of course by then, he was a household name, and he’d even started with Comedy Bang! Bang!, a sketch TV series which host Scott Aukerman calls “a narrative sketch show wearing the Halloween costume of a talk show.”

This isn’t the first time Yankovic’s done something like that, having once had fake interviews with celebrities like Eminem, Avril Lavigne, Prince, and Paul McCartney. They were just Yankovic asking ridiculous questions and playing clips of previous interviews.

Some artists didn’t want “Weird” Al Yankovic making parodies of their music, though. One of the most notable was the late Prince. He allegedly said he would sue Yankovic if he ever made fun of his songs. Paul McCartney almost let him make fun of “Live and Let Die” with “Chicken Pot Pie,” but wanted him to rename it due to his vegetarian principles.

Now, “Weird” Al doesn’t face so much of a struggle as he guest stars on Comedy Bang! Bang!.

“If they want to do some really obscure references or inside jokes. There’s not some network head going, ‘Nobody in Nebraska is going to get this.’ It almost feels like a little secret club.”

Several comedians have gone from the show to appearing in music videos for “Weird” Al Yankovic, including Jack Black, Patton Oswalt, and Kristen Schaal.

[Image via Helga Esteb/Shutterstock.com]

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