Weird Al Yankovic Tickets

With 12 million career album sales under his belt already, Weird Al Yankovic has remodeled himself as one of music's biggest entertainers. Yankovic has excelled as a humorist, parodist and comedian, incorporating over-the-top takes on famous music videos and general popular culture. The Lynwood native pulls out all the stops in his outrageously hilarious music videos and coupled with a killer wit for songwriting, he has truly found the winning formula. Yankovic's longevity on the music scene since 1976 is an indicator of the successful method behind the madness. The accordion player is also talented as a true musician behind the quirks.

Weird Al Yankovic has lately expanded his repertoire to work as a music director, record producer and film director. When singing live, his chameleon voice helps him perfectly ape the singer, making sure that the legions of fans with Weird Al Yankovic Tickets who turn up are thoroughly entertained. Yankovic's creativity is irrepressible and a breath of fresh air to an industry which otherwise may seem formulaic.

Yankovic has relied on comic parody of the lyrics of famous songs, using the same backing track and ideas for videos with caricatures of characters. While making his own original music, Weird Al Yankovic is known for his proficiency in the polka genre. He was born as Alfred Matthew Al Yankovic in Downey, California to a father of Serbian descent and a mother of Italian descent. Brought up in Lynwood, Yankovic received his early accordion training courtesy a door-to-door salesman who offered his parents a choice between guitar and accordion lessons. While Elton John's accordion-infused work was a great source of inspiration, he was always attracted to the Dr. Demento Radio Show and the eclectic artists it highlighted, including the novel works of Frank Zappa, Spike Jones, and Tom Lehrer.

Weird Al Yankovic stood valedictorian in senior class, showing an aptitude for extra-curricular activities, before studying architecture at California Polytechnic Institute. He became a DJ at the university's radio station and even got Dr. Demento to play a well-received self-recorded tape, and the single My Bologna (a parody of The Knacks' chart-topping My Sharona). It drew a great response and when Yankovic introduced himself to the actual band after a show at his college, they were surprisingly big fans of the parody and helped get a contract with Capitol. By that time he had earned the nickname ?Weird Al' at university and proceeded to recruit bassist Steve Jay, guitarist Jim West and drummer Jon Schwartz (after a chance meeting at Dr. Demento's set) in his musical project.

Starting with 1983's self-titled debut album, Weird Al Yankovic rattled off a string of hits, many gaining popularity with their catchy videos. The Compleat Al, a mockumentary of his own life, was another famous project. Keyboardist Ruben Valtierra joined in 1991, allowing Yankovic to focus on his singing alone. Tragedy struck with the death of his parents with accidental carbon monoxide poisoning in 2004, but Yankovic carried on entertaining fans, getting greater mainstream recognition of late. He also starred in the satirical film UHF, which he co-wrote.

Yankovic always makes a point to take the consent of the original acts before releasing their parodies. While Michael Jackson, Kurt Cobain, Nirvana and Lady Gaga are amongst those who promptly granted permission, notable acts like Led Zeppelin, Paul McCartney and Prince have declined. Yankovic has released 13 studio albums with 150 parody singles since 1976. Six of the albums went Platinum, and 2006's Straight Outta Lynwood became his first album to crack Billboard's Top Ten (Apocalypse also climbed to #9 in 2009). His highest charting singles include Eat It (#12, parody of Michael Jackson's legendary Beat It), Smells Like Nirvana (#35, poking fun at Cobain's undecipherable vocal delivery in Smells Like Teen Spirit), and White and Nerdy (#9, parody of Chamillionaire's Ridin' Dirty). Yankovic has three Grammy wins: Eat It (Best Comedy Recording), Fat (Concept Music Video), and Poodle Hat (Comedy Album).

Fans turning up at his concerts know that they will get their money's worth for their Weird Al Yankovic Tickets. His satirical takes on popular culture, juxtaposed with his versatile singing and a perfect backing band, make him irresistible live. He visits Denver and Grand Prairie next.

Weird Al Yankovic is widely respected for making a career out of parody, which had earlier been vilified as plagiarism. Yet Yankovic's bright creative spark is for all to see in his multi-talented exploits and fans with Weird Al Yankovic Tickets will be excited at the prospect of catching him in his true spontaneous element.