Weird Al lashes out against copyright scofflaws
Unrepentant MP3 pirates beware: Weird Al Yankovic, the original melody rip-off artist, has released a song about copyright infringers. Among the more amusing lyrics of "Don't Download This Song," are the following: "Cuz you start out stealing songs, then you're robbing liquor stores, and selling crack, and running over school kids with your cars."

The irony of Weird Al poking fun at overly strict copyright enforcement is not lost on Slashdotters, who are all over the song: ""Weird Al is distributed under a faux independent label, Volcano Records, which is owned by Sony BMG, who brought us intrusive DRM and is a proud part of the RIAA intellectual 'property' lawsuit cartel. Now I have to get a new goddamned movement for my irony meter!"
Posted by Oliver Ryan 11:10 AM 2 Comments comment | Add a Comment

I take exception to your characterization of Weird Al as as the original "melody rip-off artist". He has always received the permission of the artists he parodies (except for Coolio, in which case he believed he had permission).
Posted By Todd, New York, NY : 3:35 PM  

Even if Wierd Al had permission from the artists he parodied, he did not need it. The parody is protected free speech.
Posted By Brett, Tulsa, OK : 3:21 AM  

To send a letter to the editor about The Browser, click hereTop of page

Got a news tip? Send it to The Browser


Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.

Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.