World of Weird Al Yankovic

Going solely based off of who won AMAs with the word "rock" in the title, I'd say we're looking more for Justin Timberlake, One Direction, and Imagine Dragons. Even without the rock element I wouldn't be surprised if at least one of these names popped up on the next album somewhere.

Also, Taylor Swift is still popular (no surprise) but she was on the last album. It seems like a lot of people from the last album are still around for this one so it's kind of hard to tell, but there are some newbies roaming around.

And Rihanna is kind of a big deal. Just sayin'.

I kind of hope he does Stay by Rihanna, a parody, not polka

I feel like Imagine Dragons might be decent candidate for the next album; they've got two songs that seem to be unavoidable in modern pop radio ("Radioactive" and "Demons"), and "Radioactive" in particular seems like good parody fodder -- there's that weird gasp that the singer does halfway through the first verse that seems like the type of thing Al might keep consistent in a parody.

I'm also starting to anticipate something with the folk act revival that seems to be dominating the airwaves these days. I remember reading something around when Poodle Hat came out where Al had been throwing around the idea of doing a polka medley containing songs by all the "The" bands, but since there were four in particular that were very popular, he stuck with those (The Vines, The Hives, The White Stripes and The Strokes). I could foresee something similar in the next medley with Mumford & Sons, The Lumineers and Of Monsters And Men (especially The Lumineers, whose "Ho Hey" is practically begging to be included in a polka).

I mentioned Maroon 5 a while back, and I agree with everyone else who's thrown their name out as a candidate. It seems like Maroon 5, Justin Timberlake and (to a slightly lesser extent) Linkin Park are the three ongoing (meaning for the last decade) biggest acts that Al hasn't touched yet. I don't know if Linkin Park has any real irons in the fire right now; their last album seemed to disappear as quickly as it came, but they've got a distinct enough sound that Al could probably pull a style parody out of them.

Personally, though, I would really love to see a Vampire Weekend style parody. I may have said this a while back, too, but they're critical darlings, and they've got a very unusual sound that I think would be fun to hear Al tackle. If we're looking into classic rock (like, actual classic rock, not Smash Mouth), I'd be interested in seeing what Al could do with Simon & Garfunkel or Fleetwood Mac. Or Creedence Clearwater Revival! Oh, the possibilities!

(P.S.: I realize I use a lot of parentheticals. I am currently seeking a support group for this.)

MissyMoo38 wrote:Going solely based off of who won AMAs with the word "rock" in the title, I'd say we're looking more for Justin Timberlake, One Direction, and Imagine Dragons.

Well, at least no one is also describing them as "classic" yet.

minnick27 wrote:I kind of hope he does Stay by Rihanna, a parody, not polka

I so agree. Out of all the hits from her new album, this one seems to lend itself the easiest to parody.

Moneyags wrote:I remember reading something around when Poodle Hat came out where Al had been throwing around the idea of doing a polka medley containing songs by all the "The" bands, but since there were four in particular that were very popular, he stuck with those (The Vines, The Hives, The White Stripes and The Strokes).

When Al did his olbigatory Dr. Demento interview for "Poodle Hat", he also talked about how directing the video for Ben Folds' "Rockin' The Suburbs" made him think about how there were a ton of "Angry White Boys" dominating the music scene at the time. I think this may have also inspired him to expand the theme for this polka to include the big "nu metal" and early 2000s alt rock acts (Limp Bizkit, System of a Down, Papa Roach, etc.)

This isn't exactly "speculation," but if Al does like a One Direction parody with a live-action video and he doesn't do a casting call for fangirls then I will be very sad.
Even if it isn't One Direction but come on if anything it would be One Direction
I just want an excuse to go fangirl over Al, really


Anyway One Direction is pretty popular anyway and their new album just came out so like you know a girl can dream

I think that would be a pretty big "If", Alicia. You would probably have to count on many things for this to happen which would need to at least include One Direction not breaking up in the next three years (boy bands don't seem to have the greatest shelf lives, after all and I heard somewhere that one of their members has already recorded solo material) so they could be around long enough as a unit to release ANOTHER new album around 2015/16. So far, this is my most realistic expectation of the album's release as Al hasn't indicated he's made any real progress on the parodies yet.

Al and One Direction would both have to be ready to release new albums around that time in order for Al to consider parodying them as the LEAD single and only then do I see him planning a live action video for it and tweeting a link to a casting call post on his blog (or posting it on whichever social networking platform the most people are following him on by then if a new one comes along and everyone abandons Twitter for it like they abandoned myspace). Al did do it for W&N and PTW after all, so I don't see why he wouldn't continue the trend for this next album.

Otherwise, Al would include one of their current songs like "What Makes You Beautiful" or "Best Song Ever" as a supporting parody on the album or (more likely) bury it somewhere in the polka medley and have someone throw together a cheap animated video leaving you to fangirl in a more limited capacity and wax nostalgic about what might have been. I agree that, love 'em, hate 'em or passively tolerate 'em somehow, One Direction is still too big for Al to ignore and they'll probably wind up somewhere on his next album. If he doesn't parody them, he will probably include one of the two songs I mentioned in the polka (the latter of which would probably sound best there).

Incidentally, I did happen hear their song "Story Of My Life" somewhere recently and I thought how it might lend itself well to a parody since it does sound like an emotional introspective ballad. It could be pretty funny to hear Al put a goofy satirical twist on what may be the least goofy song from one of the goofiest male pop acts in recent memory. Hell, Shane Dawson did a "Story Of My Life" parody on YouTube and from what I saw, he set the bar low enough for Al to easily clear if he wanted to do this. Plus, it appears to be the only parody of that song on YouTube so far, so I think Al should go for it.

Yeah, I think that One Direction will be present (in some form) on album 14. I mean, they've reached that point of "everyone knows them" that Al doesn't usually ignore. It doesn't have to be a lead single, but it also doesn't have to be released within moments of their next album or single; I mean, that's going from Al being topical and timely to Al basically trying to undermine them, haha. The album is going to drop about two months after they finish recording the lead, no matter what. If Al comes up with a good idea in the infancy of a big hit target (song), it will be about as timely as it can be by the time the album is ready to hit the shelves. (This situation will definitely change when Al's contract is up.)

If Al were to go with an older song, it would probably be put in the polka, because "I Kissed A Girl" was two years old when they recorded "Polka Face," and IKAG was certainly not her most current hit at the time. Either way, the two month wait (traditional to Al's album release methods) is usually not so much time that the lead target can readily release a new, bigger song in the meantime. If One Direction is going to be target of the next lead single, Al will have to go ahead and knock out the rest of the album first, and hope it coincides shortly after their next big hit. It'd be useful to take note of artists/bands that plan on studio visits in the future simply to get an idea of what a good target down the line might be.

Also, I think we're looking at a late 2014 release at most; Alpocalypse was just one instance of weirdness (for lack of a better word), given the sporadic touring with only half an album in the can. 2009-early 2011 was also a big year for non-album-related Weird Al stuff, which easily could've impact the near-five-year wait between 12 and 13.

Killingsworth, what are you ever talking about ever, you nefarious rapscallion????

1) 1D has to be seen as a VERY likely target for the next album, whether polka, parody, or even lead.
2) 1D is one of the most popular acts in the world right now. They will be around (or at least culturally relevant enough that they merit discussion for a Weird Al parody) in 2016.
3) I think that in general you are putting WAYYYYYYYYY too much emphasis on slight patterns that are not actually real. One or two things does not equal a trend. You really can't see any reason why Al might not have extras in his next video? Any reason at all? What if they aren't needed? I mean, yeah it seems like a cool thing he has been doing lately, but that doesn't guarantee there will be fan extras in every lead single going forward.
4) Having said that, Al is halfway done the album, and if there IS any trend over all of Al's career it's that an album usually comes out around a year after the last originals are recorded. I am betting on a 2014 release at some point, maybe very early 2015. Why are you so pessimistic???

Alicia, I hope you have a chance to appear as an extra in Al's next big budget video!! (but also hoping it's not a One Direction parody!! )

By the way - the Grammy nominations come out on Friday.
If the last album is any indication, pay VERY close attention to the list of performers that will ensue.

Jon, you do raise some valid points in your rebuttal to my post which I'd like to very quickly respond to..

1) I actually share this viewpoint with you. I'm just saying that I think polka/parody is MORE likely than lead in terms of where the album might be right now, but that's just me.
2) No comment. We'll just have to wait and see.
3) You're probably right. This was something I genuinely didn't think about before making this post. Al may not need "extras" in his next live action video but then again, that's a rare occurrence. "Craigslist", "Bedrock Anthem", "One More Minute" and YDLMA may be the only times he actually did this.
4) I keep remembering interviews where he talks about mainstream music being more fragmented nowadays making it harder to find the universal "next big thing" and thinking this might actually be stalling Al's parody process (unless he's in the middle of actually writing some as we speak). I'd like the album to be released by 2014/15 as much as the next guy, but the search for an elusive lead single caused Alpocalypse to be delayed long enough to create a five year gap between full albums. Who's to say this will never be able to happen again?

I hope this clears things up!