"Weird Al" Yankovic, the godfather of the pop parody, almost begged off his dish on Lady Gaga's "Born this Way" on his about-to-drop CD "Alpocalypse."
Seems Gaga, or at least her camp, nixed Yankovic's plans to satirize her, and Yankovic, being a stickler for intellectual property rights, decided not to fight the issue.
To his longtime fans - "Alpocalypse" is his 14th album in a career that dates back to 1983 - the idea of an artist rejecting a "Weird Al" treatment is simply unheard of. He's satirized the best, from Michael Jackson to Beck, Sheryl Crow and Coolio.
Turns out, though, that Lady Gaga never even heard the song. And when she got wind of the controversy, she graciously and humbly OK'd the song, which is the first single and video off the album.
"Alpocalypse" is set to hit record stores June 21, 10 days after Yankovich plays the Fox Tucson Theatre Saturday. Tickets for the 8 p.m. show are $44 to $106 at www.foxtucsontheatre.com
As far as we can tell, this will be Yankovic's first Tucson show since 2004.
Cathalena E. Burch
