Unlike Justin Bieber and Rebecca Black, who have reached YouTube stardom through negative comments, comedian Jon Lajoie has become a comic sensation after the increasing popularity of his music videos, “Everyday Normal Guy,” and “Alone in the Universe,” along with many others.
After performing all around the United States, and internationally in Iceland and Canada, Lajoie will be making his first stop in Madison to perform at the Barrymore Theatre on Thursday.
For this tour, Lajoie will be performing his most popular songs and also has a fair amount of new material.
“At least 50 to 60 percent of the show are songs and jokes people have not heard…I just came out with a bunch of new material to keep it interesting for them and myself,” Lajoie said in a recent interview with The Badger Herald.
Audiences can expect Lajoie to perform the music from his successful video “Everyday Normal Guy.” Lajoie found inspiration for this popular song after enjoying hardcore hip-hop music in high school. Lajoie, who considers himself a “pretty normal dude” found he could never relate to the music.
“I superimposed my life onto the hardcore hip-hop sound,” Lajoie said.
Not only does Lajoie use his life experiences as material, but he finds ideas everywhere, particularly when he finds people taking themselves seriously. One of his music videos “Michael Jackson is Dead” pokes fun at the people who began to worship Michael Jackson after his death.
“The day Michael Jackson died, I was watching the reports and the media had done a 180 turn…They basically tore him to pieces for 20 years and then all of the sudden once he passed away, they loved him again, and I thought that was ridiculous,” Lajoie said.
Like any other performer, Lajoie has his comedic influences as well, ranging from “The Kids in the Hall,” “Monty Python,” and “Saturday Night Live.”
“It’s more sketch comedy that influenced me and later on stand up became something I really enjoy, but the early sketch stuff always had a huge influence on me,” Lajoie said.
Along with performing his music videos on tour, Lajoie currently has a role on the FX network television show, “The League.” The show was created by Jeff and Jackie Schaffer, also producers of “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” Lajoie has been enjoying his time on the show, calling it two seasons of “insanity.”
“It’s a fun process to work on the show because it’s semi-scripted…we kind of know what we are doing but most of the dialogue is improvised…They’ll [Jeff and Jackie Schaffer] allow me to throw something into a scene that nobody saw coming,” Lajoie said.
From online music videos to a role in a television series, Lajoie admits he is still blown away from the success and the sudden rapid-pace jump of his career.
“With the internet, everything is just a number below a screen. You don’t actually see the 40 million people watching the music videos…It only exists in this digital world, and every once in awhile it will become a reality,” Lajoie said.
In regards to his upcoming show, Lajoie believes the audience should expect a good time.
“I will kill a live chicken on stage…But if they don’t want to see that and have a really fun night of comedy that takes them out of their normal 9 to 5 lives,” Lajoie said. “I go into areas that people don’t necessarily go into during their day-to-day activities.”
Overall, Lajoie is adamant that is should be a “good time.”
Jon Lajoie will perform at the Barrymore Theatre on Thursday, April 21 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit barrymorelive.com.
