We all love internet memes. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t devote so much of our waking lives to cataloging lolcats or figuring out whether we’re currently saying “wau” or “waht.” But when one-note Web jokes escape from being trapped behind a laptop screen and into the pop cultural bloodstream, I start cringing. Case in point: atrocious crooner Tay Zonday, another sad case of an “Internet celebrity” who’s at best accepted that polite derision from America might be his only chance at stardom. Which was fine when he was being mocked/celebrated by cultural boils like Opie and Anthony and Jimmy Kimmel, far away from anywhere I’d be forced to pay attention. But now he’s decided to start intersecting with my day job, kicking off his music career by perfoming his first show in Minneapolis with internet faves Girl Talk and Dan Deacon:
So people keep contacting me offering to manage tours in California, Florida, New York, France . . . . and it’s like WHOA. I haven’t performed live for two years . . . when I did it was at crappy open mics. My music has basically not left my own apartment and people are wanting to manage shows in Europe.
It kinda makes you want to cry, don’t it? I suppose going from chilling with morning zoo crews to hanging out with Brooklyn Vegan readers means you’ve just traded one set of assholes for another, but there’s something gross about this ugly car wreck between outright novelty dross and “fun!!” music that’s nonetheless still supposed to be about music and not poking fun at the delusional. As for Zonday’s special guests, while I did (and do) enjoy Girl Talk’s Night Ripper, I’ve always suspected dude was one mash-up away from a guest spot on Dr. Demento. Meanwhile my deep and abiding love for Dan Deacon is part of the public record, so I’d just like to assume that he didn’t have anything to do with the booking on this particular show.
Tay Zonday To Make Concert Debut In Minneapolis With Girl Talk And Dan Deacon [Daily Swarm]
Wow… i mean. wow. +1 to the looks of horror on the faces of the audience on the Jimmy Kimmel show.
The mallard is the most recognizable of the ducks.
someone please do a mashup of Creedence Clearwater Revival and Tay Zonday.
needless to say, it will be called “Who’ll Stop The Chocolate Rain?”
Dan Deacon is more embarrassing than Tay Zonday.
Sweaty throngs of Terry Richardson photoshoot castoffs gathered in a sweating pulsing mass around Zonday notwithstanding, it ain’t hit critical mass til’ you see him throwing back Red Stripes and Rockstar drinks at a Fader afterparty documented by Cobrasnake.
Dan Deacon wins at everything.
I think they want to make this poor guy into the new Wesley Willis.
cultural boils? the pests will ‘ave you
@Nicolars: not possible, William Hung is already the new Wesley Willis, isn’t he?
@janine:
HA! Now that’s hillarious.
G. Gillis tells St*reogum that booking Zonday was more Deacon’s idea.
“I honestly don’t know anything about this guy. I’m still kind of lost on the insanity over that song. My booking agent asked me if I would like to have him on the bill … I wasn’t sure of the whole thing, but I was told that Dan Deacon, who is also playing the show, was into it, so I figured why the hell not.”