RIIA — the people who are building the spamigation capability to sue each and every of their customers — officially lost the culture war today. Despite all their efforts to define any form of copying as “piracy,” and to frighten children away from fair use, despite their efforts to blanket college campuses with their anti-downloading videos (contains several artful true but misleading statements), on this evening their efforts come to naught: yes, tonight Weird Al Yankovic unveils video for his latest tune, Don’t Download This Song. And you can download it now…
I think that even Captain Copyright won’t be able to overcome the Weird Al effect on impressionable young minds.
I had a strange moment a couple of months ago when I was visiting my aunt and uncle in Tampa. My cousins (ages 8-13) were chatting eagerly about the latest Weird Al song and how cool he was. They were startled when I (age 34) started singing “The Saga Begins.” (“So bye, bye / this here Anakin guy / Maybe Vader someday later / Now he’s just a small fry.”) They thought it was the coolest thing ever I knew who he was. Then they completely freaked out when my aunt (age 44) sang along with me on “One More Minute.”
They really had no idea whatsoever how long he’s been making records. But I’m glad to see his appeal lives on.
“Even Lars Ulrich knows it’s wrong”. What more can be said?