The rise of YouTube means that anyone can share their own parodies of songs like "Wrecking Ball" or "Gangnam Style" — but the undisputed king of the genre is "Weird Al" Yankovic, who has been churning out parodies of top pop hits for more than 30 years. The singer's latest album, Mandatory Fun, is on the way, and his first music video is vintage Yankovic: "Tacky," a parody of Pharrell's inescapable "Happy."
Clad in clashing colors and patterns, Yankovic and a series of comedians including Jack Black, Aisha Tyler, and Eric Stonestreet lip-sync the song. "Wear my Ed Hardy shirt with fluorescent orange pants. Got my new resume — it's printed in Comic Sans," sings Yankovic. "Think it's fun threatening waiters with a bad Yelp review. If you think that's just fine, then you're probably tacky too."
Mandatory Fun — which also includes parodies of Robin Thicke's "Blurred Lines," Lorde's "Royals," and Imagine Dragons' "Radioactive — comes out tomorrow. --Scott Meslow
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
The pros and cons of buying a new-build housethe explainer Repairs and maintenance will be minimal on a brand new build — but moving into an existing home can be easier upfront
-
Mexico’s forced disappearancesUnder the Radar 130,000 people missing as 20-year war on drugs leaves ‘the country’s landscape ever more blood-soaked’
-
The Week contest: Racoon’s regretsPuzzles and Quizzes
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclubSpeed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, StalloneSpeed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's viewSpeed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talkSpeed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposesspeed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wifespeed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play
