Weird Al Yankovic finally brings some parodies to the Tiny Desk

Finally, "The Saga Begins" has graced the NPR office.

By Drew Gillis  |  August 20, 2026 | 11:07am
Screenshot: NPR Mucis/YouTube
Music News "Weird Al" Yankovic
Weird Al Yankovic finally brings some parodies to the Tiny Desk

“Weird Al” Yankovic was actually on the forefront of NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts. The series began in 2008, and he had an episode by 2010. Back then, the series had a bit more indie cred, and Yankovic opted not to do the parodies on which he made his name, but some original songs. But now, in a post-Taylor Swift, post-Dua Lipa, post-Charlie Puth Tiny Desk world, Al has returned willing to offer some old parodies for our troubled times. 

The new set, which NPR shared this morning, features two parodies that longtime Al-coholics are certainly well acquainted with. There’s “eBay,” a parody of the Backstreet Boys’ “I Want It That Way,” and “The Saga Begins,” Yankovic’s retelling of The Phantom Menace as set to Don McLean’s “American Pie.” The latter, Al suspects, is the first time he’s performed it not in a Jedi robe but in his civilian attire—but such is the magic of a Tiny Desk set. Yankovic also performs his “Emmy-losing closing-credits blues-rock jam” “Now You Know” from his totally factual biopic Weird: The Al Yankovic Story and his Weezer pastiche “Skipper Dan.” It seems it may take another 16 years before we get the chance to hear “Amish Paradise” or “White And Nerdy” from NPR’s studios, but at least we have this latest set to tide us over in the meantime. 

 
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