Weird Al Yankovic Net Worth [The Parody King]

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Profession/Career:	Singer, Actor
Net Worth:	$21 million (2022)
Best Known For:	Song Parodies
College:	California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (started college at 16 years old)
Major/Degree:	Architecture
Real Name:	Alfred Matthew Yankovic
Date of Birth (Age):	October 23, 1959 (63 years old)
Place of Birth:	Downey, California

Frequently Associated With

Daniel Radcliffe
Weird: The Al Yankovic Story
Nirvana

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Net Worth of Weird Al Yankovic

Weird Al Yankovic’s net worth is estimated to be roughly $21 million. The majority of his money comes from his parody hit songs. For all of his song parodies, Weird Al pays royalties to the original artists.

Does Weird Al get permission from the original artist for all his song parodies?

The law allows for creating parodies of songs without the need to get permission from the original artist. You can legally make parody songs and make a living off it, but Weird Al takes the high road and asks for permission anyways. Additionally, he pays the original artist royalties, which is a percentage of any revenue he makes from his parody of their songs. All of this is done out of Al’s own goodwill, as he isn’t required to do any of that. Original artists whose songs he’s parodied have included:

Avril Lavigne
Backstreet Boys
Coolio
Eminem
Green Day
Iggy Azalea
Imagine Dragons
Lady Gaga
Lorde
Madonna
Michael Jackson
Miley Cyrus
Nirvana
P. Diddy
Queen
R. Kelly
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Robin Thicke
Taylor Swift
U2
Usher

Weird Al Yankovic’s Top 10 Most Popular Songs

“Eat It” – a parody of Michael Jackson’s “Beat It”
“White & Nerdy” – a parody of Chamillionaire’s “Ridin'”
“Amish Paradise” – a parody of Coolio’s “Gangsta’s Paradise”
“Smells Like Nirvana” – a parody of Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit”
“Like a Surgeon” – a parody of Madonna’s “Like a Virgin”
“Yoda” – a parody of The Kinks’ “Lola”
“The Saga Begins” – a parody of Don McLean’s “American Pie”
“Word Crimes” – a parody of Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines”
“Dare to Be Stupid” – an original song in the style of Devo
“Fat” – a parody of Michael Jackson’s “Bad”

Weird Al Yankovic Early Life

Weird Al had somewhat eccentric parents, wouldn’t you know. He himself was an only child to his parents with no friends, but that didn’t bother him in the least. While he was still a young child, a salesman had come to his parents’ door and was selling them on music lessons.

They had a choice to either sign up Al for guitar lessons or accordion lessons. As most of us can surmise, they signed him up for accordion lessons, and he got really into it.

The accordion went with him to college, where partially because of it, he was labeled as Weird Al. He rolled with it, performed several times in college, and eventually got recognized and signed to a label.

Did Weird Al Yankovic Grow Up Rich or Poor?

Weird Al grew up in Lynwood, California. His father was a medic during WWII and received two Purple Hearts, while his mother was a stenographer.

They were not super rich but were comfortably middle class. They were able to comfortably provide Al with things he needed or wanted, or even things that they thought would be good for him – accordion lessons for example.

Weird Al Yankovic’s Big Break

Record-wise, Weird Al’s big break came when he released Eat It, a parody on Michael Jackson’s hit Beat It. It quickly became a #12 Billboard single and a platinum album.

He also got a Grammy for best comedy recording. Although he was somewhat known prior to that point, this single secured him as a serious contender in the music industry as opposed to simply an amusing novelty artist.

How Weird Al climbed his way up

Weird Al routinely submitted his songs to the Dr. Demento Radio Show, which is a radio show that plays quirky and novelty songs.

Al first got to meet Dr. Demento at age 13, when Dr. Demento was invited to speak at his school. It was there that Al gave him his first demo tape, and although it didn’t make the cut, it was the beginning of a persistent and eventually fruitful relationship.

He continued to give him his music, and his songs Belvedere Cruising and School Cafeteria got played on his show. The latter made the top 10 list on the show. These submissions continued throughout college, and one of the songs called My Bologna eventually convinced a connection within Capitol Records to sign a deal with Al.

During this time, Al continued to submit songs to the Dr. Demento Radio Show, and his songs continued to get played, leading to other record deals along the way. Eventually, the song Eat It helped propel him even further into the spotlight and into the respected artist he is today.

Weird Al Yankovic’s Main Source of Wealth

Weird Al has made the majority of his money from his many hit songs and sales of albums over the years. However, he has recently helped to release a movie based on his own life, Weird: The Al Yankovic Story starring Daniel Radcliffe and himself.

As he helped to write and produce the movie, we’ll see how it fares revenue-wise, as it could help to propel his net worth even further and potentially even overtake the money he’s made from his music alone.

Weird Al Yankovic’s Wife

Weird Al Yankovic is married to his wife Suzanne Yankovic, who is a marketing executive at 20^th Century Fox. They got married in 2001 and together have a daughter by the name of Nina, who was born in 2003.

Weird Al and Daniel Radcliffe

In 2022, a movie called “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story” was released about Weird Al’s life, starring Daniel Radcliffe. Daniel Radcliffe was so into the role that he learned how to play the accordion.

Being that this was a Weird Al movie, the movie is, of course, a parody of his life. The movie has also been nominated for two Emmys.