45 Year Old "New" Fan?

[Wizzerkat]

Listening to yet another great Bermuda interview, he mentioned that there isn't a lot of new Al fans who happen to come into the Al game late. He said most fans of that age were Al fans in the beginning who stuck with him over the years. I fall into this category sort of. I have liked Al since the 80's(being a comedy/novely music fan since childhood) but never any kind of hardcore fan until a few years ago. I never bought any AL CDs until the last few years. Is there anyone in this age group who came into new Al fandom in recent years?

[joseyklein]

Like you, I've been a fan since chilhood, but haven't been a hardcore fan until the last couple of years right around Poodle Hat. I'm not in my 40's but I am pushin' 30

[Orthography Enthusiast]

That would be me. I jumped into into Al fandom with both feet (and both ears) in 2002. At the age of 45. And it was for the first time. In the 80's, I was listening exclusively to the local public-radio classical station, I didn't have cable TV (or any TV at all until 1988), hence no MTV, and when a friend told me about this Dr Demento program he'd come upon, my thought was basically "Meh." I can hardly believe it now, but a different friend bought "Running With Scissors" and played me "The Saga Begins" because we were huge Star Wars fans, and even that didn't light the spark (in fairness to myself, I didn't get to hear the rest of the album). But in 2002 I went to a free Weird Al concert at the Orange County Fair and haven't looked back since.

[Yankomaniac]

I joined this forum waaay to late.

[ludovica64]

Also me. I was a New Fan three years ago at age 43....

[DrDecay]

Wow. I haven't really known of a world with out Al. At least your a fan, I dig it.

[Killingsworth]

I think I've mentioned this before somewhere, but I really didn't become a "fan" until I saw the videos for White and Nerdy and DDTS when SOL first came out. I was 15 years old then. A few months later, I was compelled to go on YouTube and find other parodies he did. I was still kind of put off of joining this forum for a couple of years still, but I eventually came around. I guess that doesn't seem as "late to the game" now, does it?

I had always vaguely known who he was as a child (a guy famous just for doing parodies of other peoples songs) but I didn't really become a "fan" until I was about sixteen.

[NH Weird Al Fan]

I also liked Al from the beginning, but didn't buy an album or go to a concert until recent years (I am 42 yrs old).

When I was in junior high (in the very early 80's) my older brothers introduced me to the Dr. Demento show, and I loved it! I remember trying to secretly stay up late on Sunday nights so I could record the Funny Five. I remember hearing Another One Rides the Bus, My Bologna, The Check's In the Mail, among others, and really liking them. We got cable TV around that time, and I also loved Al's music videos.

It never occurred to me back then that Al would be on tour, and my parents weren't keen on letting me go to concerts then anyway. I actually begged my parents to let me see The Monkees in 1986, so they went with me. There were 3 opening acts that I had absolutely NO interest in (other bands from the 60's) and by the time The Monkees came on stage, my parents were ready to go home. I got to hear the first 5 or 6 songs... I was SO disappointed when I learned a few years ago that Weird Al had opened for The Monkees in 1987. If only I had waited one year... then I could have actually ENJOYED the opening act! LOL

Once I left college, I couldn't stay up late listening to Dr. Demento anymore, and I didn't watch MTV much, either. I sort of lost track of what Al was up to for a long time.

Fast forward to 1999. I was married and home with a toddler and a newborn baby. I happened to be watching MTV and saw Weird Al's video for The Saga Begins. I thought it was HILARIOUS and decided to buy the album for my husband's birthday. We both loved the song, but for some reason, the rest of the album didn't excite us too much. I think part of the reason was because we weren't up on the current popular music and didn't recognize the parody targets. Unfortunately, every time we played The Saga Begins on the stereo, my 2 1/2 year old son would start crying! We eventually stopped playing it.

When my kids got older and started watching Star Wars, I played The Saga Begins for them and they loved it - no more tears from my son! We listened to the whole album and laughed so hard... why hadn't we realized how funny it was? My kids wanted to know if Weird Al had any other music, and I said OH YES... I gradually bought every album. In the spring of 2007 I discovered Al's website and found out that he was on tour and he would be playing in Beverly, MA. I bought tickets, but didn't tell the kids. We kept it a surprise until they were inside the venue... they were SO excited!

Since then, we have seen Al's show whenever he comes to our area. We also saw him when we were on vacation in California last summer, which was another surprise for the kids.

[HalifaxKat]

I became a hardcore Al fan at age 19, so I'm in the majority group Bermuda referred to who were college age or younger when they first became Al fans and then stuck with him as they got older. But I definitely envy the 45 year olds who defy that stereotype! Nowadays, I find it so hard to become a "hardcore" fan of any band or celebrity... I really wish I COULD! I miss the thrill, the rush, the excitement!! I certainly enjoy various forms of entertainment, but the passion and addiction for one particular band or one particular celebrity has just never been the same as it was with bands/celebs I got into when I was younger... and that's regardless of how long I have passively known of their existence (FWIW, I knew who Al was since I was 10). Fortunately, Al will forever remain trapped in my college-aged mind, which is great, as for me this creates a type of interest that is virtually unshakeable. But like I said, I certainly envy people who defy the stereotype to which Bermuda referred. That's awesome! I'm not even in my '40's yet, though, so who knows, maybe there will be an upswing in new fandoms I can look forward to... hope so... hmmm, maybe I should start my mid-life crisis early...

[FromOutofNowhere]

Thanks for listening to our podcast interview we did with Bermuda. He was a joy to talk to. If you missed it you can catch Bermuda discuss the "Evangelic-Al's" (or the new 45 year old Weird Al fans) by downloading From Out of Nowhere on iTunes (it's free) or you can grab it on our website here:

Part One: http://fromoutofnowheremedia.tumblr.com ... ode-we-sit" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Part Two: http://fromoutofnowheremedia.tumblr.com ... on-bermuda" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Eric
http://www.fromoutofnowhere.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;