Scott Dudelson/Getty Don’t count on getting a new album from "Weird Al" Yankovic, perhaps ever again. In a new interview with Spin, the king of music parodies, 64, doubled down on his belief that he released his final album a decade ago with 2014’s Mandatory Fun. “I said it at the time, and I am sticking with it: Mandatory Fun is most likely going to be the last traditional album that I ever release,” he shared. “I just wanted to focus on other things.”
Elyse Jankowski/Variety via Getty Images 'Weird Al' Yankovic Reflects on His 40-Year Career and Responds to Critics with Mantra: 'Be Weird!' The musical comedian confirmed that he hasn’t “retired from making music” just yet but has seemingly given up on the album format that’s put “limitations” on his comical style. “I am just tired of the album format because there were so many limitations for me, one being that a lot of my humor is topical,” Yankovic noted. “And if I get a great idea for a song and it’s topical, I then need to come up with 11 more songs to release the whole album. So, releasing singles seems to be a better way for me to go.”
Todd Owyoung/NBC/Getty That said, on Friday, July 19, the “Party in the CIA” artist released his first single in two years, “Polkamania!” in honor of the 10-year anniversary of his last album. The four-minute polka medley features rips of recent pop hits, ranging from Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy” and Taylor Swift’s “Shake It Off” to Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” and Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s “WAP.” The song arrives after an iconic career run for Yankovic that began with his 1979 breakout hit “My Bologna,” a reimagined version of the Knack’s chart-topping hit “My Sharona.” His knack for making unconventional parodies helped his rise to fame as he reworked more uber-popular hits through the years like Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” (1984’s “Eat It”), Madonna’s “Like A Virgin” (1985’s “Like A Surgeon”), Coolio’s "Gangsta's Paradise" (1996’s “Amish Paradise”) and Chamillionaire’s “Ridin'” (2006’s “White & Nerdy). He’s also released 14 total studio albums. Al Yankovic Posts Tribute to Coolio as Late Rapper's Views on 'Amish Paradise' Re-Emerge It’s been a little over a year since the “Polka Face” performer has gone out on the road, last wrapping up his The Unfortunate Return of the Ridiculously Self-Indulgent, Ill-Advised Vanity Tour in March 2023. However, Yankovic teased potential plans to Spin, saying, “We will be touring at some point in the future.” “That’s another reason that I did the song,” he added of his new single. “It’s nice to be able to play new material when you’re doing a show. So, now we’ll have this to incorporate in the setlist." |