Eat It
Encyclopedia
"Eat It" is a hit single by parody artist "Weird Al" Yankovic
. It is a parody
of the song "Beat It
" by pop star
Michael Jackson
. The single reached #1 in Australia, and it was his highest-charting U.S. single on the Billboard Hot 100
at #12 until "White & Nerdy
" peaked at #9 in October 2006. "Eat It" earned Yankovic a 1984 Grammy Award
in the Best Comedy Recording category.
According to Yankovic, when he presented his lyrics to Jackson for permission for the parody, he didn't know what kind of reaction he'd get. Jackson allegedly thought it was amusing, and agreed to allow the parody.
On October 19, 1989, the RIAA
certified "Eat It" as a gold
single.
"Eat It" also outranked "Beat It" in overall highest position on the Australian Aria Charts, with its highest rank being number 1, while "Beat It"'s highest is 3rd.
The promo single only contains "Eat It".
"Weird Al" Yankovic
Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic is an American singer-songwriter, music producer, accordionist, actor, comedian, writer, satirist, and parodist. Yankovic is known for his humorous songs that make light of popular culture and that often parody specific songs by contemporary musical acts...
. It is a parody
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
of the song "Beat It
Beat It
"Beat It" is a song written and performed by American recording artist Michael Jackson, and produced by Quincy Jones . It is the third single from the singer's sixth solo album, Thriller . Eddie Van Halen was hired to add the song's distinctive overdriven guitar solo, but was prevented by his...
" by pop star
Pop Star
"Pop Star" is a 2005 single from Japanese singer Ken Hirai. The single went on to top the 2005 Oricon Charts and is known for its remarkable music video, featuring Ken in seven different personas, including a raccoon and his own manager. The Video also helped Ken break into the US and Canadian...
Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
. The single reached #1 in Australia, and it was his highest-charting U.S. single on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
at #12 until "White & Nerdy
White & Nerdy
"White & Nerdy" is the second single from "Weird Al" Yankovic's album Straight Outta Lynwood, which was released on September 26, 2006. It parodies the song "Ridin'" by Chamillionaire and Krayzie Bone...
" peaked at #9 in October 2006. "Eat It" earned Yankovic a 1984 Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
in the Best Comedy Recording category.
According to Yankovic, when he presented his lyrics to Jackson for permission for the parody, he didn't know what kind of reaction he'd get. Jackson allegedly thought it was amusing, and agreed to allow the parody.
On October 19, 1989, the RIAA
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
certified "Eat It" as a gold
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
single.
"Eat It" also outranked "Beat It" in overall highest position on the Australian Aria Charts, with its highest rank being number 1, while "Beat It"'s highest is 3rd.
1984 release
The following tracks are on the single:- "Eat It" – 3:19
- "That Boy Could Dance" – 3:32
The promo single only contains "Eat It".
Chart positions
Chart (1984) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian ARIA Singles Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
1 |
UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
36 |
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
12 |
See also
- List of singles by "Weird Al" Yankovic
- List of songs by "Weird Al" Yankovic
- "FatFat (song)"Fat" is a song by "Weird Al" Yankovic. It is a parody of "Bad" by Michael Jackson. It is the second parody Yankovic did of a Jackson song, the first being "Eat It", a parody of Jackson's "Beat It"...
", another Michael Jackson parody by "Weird Al" Yankovic"Weird Al" YankovicAlfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic is an American singer-songwriter, music producer, accordionist, actor, comedian, writer, satirist, and parodist. Yankovic is known for his humorous songs that make light of popular culture and that often parody specific songs by contemporary musical acts...
(released in 1988).