MC Lars

• Genre: Novelty Rap/Hip-Hop

About

Weird Al Yankovic had better watch out. There's a new sheriff of parody and gut-busting geek-wit in town, and his name is MC Lars. Well, actually, his name is Andrew Nielsen and he was born in Berkeley, California. His home state plays an important role in Lars' music, which might be best described as serious hip-hop that doesn't take itself (or anything else) seriously. So far the targets of Lars' smugly silly satire have included LA emo ("Signing Emo"), suburban rap queens ("every Biggie needs a Kim," sayeth Lars), and Bay Area hip-hop and its poseur devotees. Equally influential, however, is punk, in which Lars has an extensive background. He played in the punk(-cum-progressive metal) band Amphoteric in high school before returning to hip-hop in college, and he often performs his hip-hop solo act with a full punk band backing him. In general, Lars's music is based on a kind of DIY drollness that simultaneously borrows from, parodies, and celebrates various bits and pieces of pop culture.

- Rachel Devitt