On This Day in 2008, Weezer Released the Music Video for “Pork And Beans” and Made Youtubers Mainstream

Weezer’s been around for a hot minute, but their 2000s era was one of their very best. That was the era of the Green Album, Make Believe, the Red Album, and more. The early 2000s were also the era that saw the birth of the streaming video platform known as YouTube. YouTube was a very different place before the 2010s rolled around. Memes were classic, influencers weren’t really a thing yet, and the humor ranged from dumb to super dumb. I mean that in the best way possible. Weezer, fortunately, recognized how vital YouTube was in the grand scheme of internet culture, and they decided to celebrate it with a music video for their song “Pork And Beans”.

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“Pork And Beans” by Weezer Immortalized the Golden Era of YouTube

“Pork And Beans” by Weezer was released on the band’s self-titled 2008 record, also known as the Red Album. It was a pretty substantial hit for the alt-rock outfit, debuting at no. 19 on the Billboard Modern Rock Chart before peaking at no. 1 on the chart for 11 weeks.

The song itself is a power pop delight. However, it’s more known for its accompanying music video nowadays. That makes perfect sense, considering the music video is a little slice of pop culture history.

In the music video, which was released on this day in 2008, Weezer employed the talents of a wide range of YouTube celebrities and early internet memes. Directed by Mathew Cullen, the music video features cameos from everyone from the Numa Numa kid to Tay Zonday (“Chocolate Rain”) to the incomparable Liam Jyle “Kelly” Sullivan (“Shoes”). 

The video featured references to YouTube stunts as well, such as the Diet Coke and Mentos eruption stunt. There are even more references throughout the music video that include Charlie the Unicorn, the Dancing Baby, the Dancing Banana, G.I. Joe public service announcements, and so much more. The music video itself is like a history lesson.

The video for “Pork And Beans” was a huge hit almost immediately. It even won a Grammy for Best Music Video. And it’s the kind of thing that you just have to see for yourself to really appreciate, especially if you were on YouTube in 2008 or earlier.

Photo via YouTube

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