Popular Music References

Many real bands and popular music are referenced in the Homestar Runner body of work.

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Contents [#Paula_Abdul 1 Paula Abdul] [#AC.2FDC 2 AC/DC] [#Aerosmith 3 Aerosmith] [#Alvin_and_the_Chipmunks 4 Alvin and the Chipmunks] [#Anthrax 5 Anthrax] [#Balaam_and_the_Angel 6 Balaam and the Angel] [#Beastie_Boys 7 Beastie Boys] [#The_Beatles 8 The Beatles] [#Black_Flag 9 Black Flag] [#Black_Sabbath 10 Black Sabbath] [#Frank_Black 11 Frank Black] [#Blue_.C3.96yster_Cult 12 Blue Öyster Cult] [#Boston 13 Boston] [#Cab_Calloway 14 Cab Calloway] [#David_Bowie 15 David Bowie] [#Boyz_N_Da_Hood 16 Boyz N Da Hood] [#Garth_Brooks 17 Garth Brooks] [#The_Brothers_Johnson 18 The Brothers Johnson] [#Bobby_Brown 19 Bobby Brown] [#Glen_Campbell 20 Glen Campbell] [#The_Carpenters 21 The Carpenters] [#Chubby_Checker 22 Chubby Checker] [#Joe_Cocker 23 Joe Cocker] [#Phil_Collins 24 Phil Collins] [#Jonathan_Coulton 25 Jonathan Coulton] [#The_Cure 26 The Cure] [#Daft_Punk 27 Daft Punk] [#Terrence_Trent_D.27Arby 28 Terrence Trent D'Arby] [#De_La_Soul 29 De La Soul] [#Death_Cab_for_Cutie 30 Death Cab for Cutie] [#El_DeBarge 31 El DeBarge] [#John_Denver 32 John Denver] [#Devo 33 Devo] [#Digital_Underground 34 Digital Underground] [#Dinosaur_Jr. 35 Dinosaur Jr.] [#Dire_Straits 36 Dire Straits] [#Dokken 37 Dokken] [#Nick_Drake 38 Nick Drake] [#Bob_Dylan 39 Bob Dylan] [#The_Edsels 40 The Edsels] [#Enuff_Z.27nuff 41 Enuff Z'nuff] [#The_Fifth_Dimension 42 The Fifth Dimension] [#50_Cent 43 50 Cent] [#Firehouse 44 Firehouse] [#Five_Man_Electrical_Band 45 Five Man Electrical Band] [#John_Fogerty 46 John Fogerty] [#Foghat 47 Foghat] [#Fu-Schnickens 48 Fu-Schnickens] [#Lita_Ford 49 Lita Ford] [#4_Non_Blondes 50 4 Non Blondes] [#The_Four_Tops 51 The Four Tops] [#Peter_Frampton 52 Peter Frampton] [#Fugazi 53 Fugazi] [#The_Furious_Five 54 The Furious Five] [#Gorillaz 55 Gorillaz] [#Grateful_Dead 56 Grateful Dead] [#The_Vince_Guaraldi_Trio 57 The Vince Guaraldi Trio] [#Guns_N.27_Roses 58 Guns N' Roses] [#Murray_Head 59 Murray Head] [#Heart 60 Heart] [#House_of_Pain 61 House of Pain] [#Ice_T 62 Ice T] [#Iggy_Pop 63 Iggy Pop] [#Natalie_Imbruglia 64 Natalie Imbruglia] [#Immolation 65 Immolation] [#Iron_Butterfly 66 Iron Butterfly] [#Iron_Maiden 67 Iron Maiden] [#The_Isley_Brothers 68 The Isley Brothers] [#Judas_Priest 69 Judas Priest] [#Michael_Jackson 70 Michael Jackson] [#Rick_James 71 Rick James] [#Scott_Joplin 72 Scott Joplin] [#Journey 73 Journey] [#Kid_.27n_Play 74 Kid 'n Play] [#KISS 75 KISS] [#Kraftwerk 76 Kraftwerk] [#Krokus 77 Krokus] [#Cyndi_Lauper 78 Cyndi Lauper] [#Led_Zeppelin 79 Led Zeppelin] [#Gordon_Lightfoot 80 Gordon Lightfoot] [#LL_Cool_J 81 LL Cool J] [#Loverboy 82 Loverboy] [#Yngwie_Malmsteen 83 Yngwie Malmsteen] [#Marilyn_Manson 84 Marilyn Manson] [#Bob_Marley 85 Bob Marley] [#Marsalis 86 Marsalis] [#MC_Hammer 87 MC Hammer] [#Metallica 88 Metallica] [#M.I.A. 89 M.I.A.] [#Miami_Sound_Machine 90 Miami Sound Machine] [#Bette_Midler 91 Bette Midler] [#The_Misfits 92 The Misfits] [#Thelonious_Monk 93 Thelonious Monk] [#Mos_Def 94 Mos Def] [#M.C3.B6tley_Cr.C3.BCe 95 Mötley Crüe] [#Mot.C3.B6rhead 96 Motörhead] [#Mr._Mister 97 Mr. Mister] [#Mudhoney 98 Mudhoney] [#Mudvayne 99 Mudvayne] [#Willie_Nelson 100 Willie Nelson] [#The_Neville_Brothers 101 The Neville Brothers] [#Newcleus 102 Newcleus] [#New_Order 103 New Order] [#Night_Ranger 104 Night Ranger] [#Nirvana 105 Nirvana] [#Sin.C3.A9ad_O.27Connor 106 Sinéad O'Connor] [#OutKast 107 OutKast] [#Ozzy_Osbourne 108 Ozzy Osbourne] [#Pavement 109 Pavement] [#Tom_Petty 110 Tom Petty] [#Piebald 111 Piebald] [#Pink_Floyd 112 Pink Floyd] [#Poison 113 Poison] [#The_Police 114 The Police] [#The_Postal_Service 115 The Postal Service] [#Elvis_Presley 116 Elvis Presley] [#Prince 117 Prince] [#The_Promise_Ring 118 The Promise Ring] [#Public_Enemy 119 Public Enemy] [#Queen 120 Queen] [#Queen_Latifah 121 Queen Latifah] [#Quiet_Riot 122 Quiet Riot] [#Radiohead 123 Radiohead] [#Ramones 124 Ramones] [#Ratt 125 Ratt] [#Red_Hot_Chili_Peppers 126 Red Hot Chili Peppers] [#R.E.M. 127 R.E.M.] [#Lionel_Richie 128 Lionel Richie] [#Kenny_Rogers 129 Kenny Rogers] [#The_Rolling_Stones 130 The Rolling Stones] [#Run-D.M.C. 131 Run-D.M.C.] [#Sade 132 Sade] [#Joe_Satriani 133 Joe Satriani] [#Scorpions 134 Scorpions] [#Bob_Seger 135 Bob Seger] [#Sepultura 136 Sepultura] [#Sex_Pistols 137 Sex Pistols] [#Simon_and_Garfunkel 138 Simon and Garfunkel] [#Slaughter 139 Slaughter] [#Slayer 140 Slayer] [#The_Smiths 141 The Smiths] [#Sonic_Youth 142 Sonic Youth] [#Bruce_Springsteen 143 Bruce Springsteen] [#The_Strokes 144 The Strokes] [#Stryper 145 Stryper] [#Sugarhill_Gang 146 Sugarhill Gang] [#The_Supremes 147 The Supremes] [#Talking_Heads 148 Talking Heads] [#James_Taylor 149 James Taylor] [#TLC 150 TLC] [#The_Treacherous_Three 151 The Treacherous Three] [#A_Tribe_Called_Quest 152 A Tribe Called Quest] [#Tupac 153 Tupac] [#Turbonegro 154 Turbonegro] [#Ike_Turner 155 Ike Turner] [#U2 156 U2] [#Van_Halen 157 Van Halen] [#Stevie_Ray_Vaughan 158 Stevie Ray Vaughan] [#Vinnie_Vincent_Invasion 159 Vinnie Vincent Invasion] [#Weezer 160 Weezer] [#Wesley_Willis 161 Wesley Willis] [#Barry_White 162 Barry White] [#Whitesnake 163 Whitesnake] [#The_Who 164 The Who] [#Winger 165 Winger] [#Wu-Tang_Clan 166 Wu-Tang Clan] [#.22Weird_Al.22_Yankovic 167 "Weird Al" Yankovic] [#Frank_Zappa 168 Frank Zappa] [#ZZ_Top 169 ZZ Top] [#See_Also 170 See Also]

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Paula Abdul

• Email different town — As Modestly Hot Homsar, Homsar's line during Strong Bad's fantasy is, "I'm forever your girl," a quote from the 1989 song and album titled "Forever Your Girl" by Paula Abdul.
• Doomy Tales Of The Macabre — Coach Z dresses up as MC Skat Kat, who appeared with Abdul in her "Opposites Attract" video. In an Easter egg, Coach Z makes references to Abdul's song "Opposites Attract", "Straight Up" and "Rush Rush" as well as the fact that she started out as a Lakers Girl.

AC/DC

See main article: AC/DC

Aerosmith

• Flash is Dead! — While trying to make a Deep Impact reference, Homestar yells out, "I don't want to miss a thing!", which was one of Aerosmith's songs in Armageddon.

Alvin and the Chipmunks

• Email strong badathlon (DVD commentary) — Coach Z recalls about collecting glasses with Alvin and the Chipmunks on them from Hardee's.

Anthrax

• Email the chair — When Bubs offers Strong Bad an old Winger album, Strong Bad remarks that it is "less Anthraxy".
• Trudgemank — Peacey P references Anthrax and Public Enemy (mentioned as P.E.) mixing rap and heavy metal in 1991 or 1993.

Balaam and the Angel

• Marshmallow's Last Stand (DVD commentary) – During the scene with Homestar kicking Strong Bad and hitting him with a "BUH-LAM!", Homestar says to Mike, "Buh-lam, Mike! Buh-lam and the Angels!"

Beastie Boys

See main article: Beastie Boys

The Beatles

See main article: The Beatles

Black Flag

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A stellar performance

• In Search of the Yello Dello — Strong Mad sports a Black Flag tattoo in a deleted scene.

Black Sabbath

• Homestar Ruiner — When Strong Bad first tries to run the Race to the End of the Race and pick up the hurdle, he remarks that it must be made of some heavy metals, including "black sabbath".
• Moving Very Slowly resembles the doom metal style of Black Sabbath, even tough Taranchula is supposed to be a death metal band.

Frank Black

• Jibblies 2 — A tarot card is labeled The Cult of Ray, Frank Black's 1996 album, and includes the peculiar looking head from the album cover.

Blue Öyster Cult

• Baddest of the Bands — The umlaut over the "O" in the band DÖI, as well as "Oyster" being one of the possible foods that the King of Town can suggest to be the second word in the band's title, are a reference to the rock band Blue Öyster Cult, one of the first bands to use a heavy metal umlaut on the "O" in their name.

Boston

• Email more armies (DVD commentary) — Matt claims to have gotten confused about the covers of Boston and Space Invaders as a kid.

Cab Calloway

• The House That Gave Sucky Treats — Strong Bad implies that he's not Cab Calloway. Marzipan later comments that she likes Cab Calloway.

David Bowie

See main article: David Bowie

Boyz N Da Hood

• Email garage sale — Strong Bad wonders what sort of "da things" are mentioned and guesses both "da boyz" and "da hood".

Garth Brooks

• Email secret identity — Strong Bad closes the email by saying that "secret identities aren't just for superheroes and Garth Brooks anymore."

The Brothers Johnson

• Email comic — In the Easter egg, the band's album Winners is visible.

Bobby Brown

• Email portrait — The term "TendaRONi" refers to Bobby Brown's song, "Roni"; specifically, the lyric involving the phrase "tender Roni".

Glen Campbell

• Decemberween Short Shorts — In the scene with the characters depicted as Decemberween ornaments, Homestar thinks Strong Bad is a Rhinestone Cowboy.

The Carpenters

• Dangeresque 3: The Criminal Projective — When Dadgeresque passes away, Dangeresque responds by stringing together the names of a bunch of sappy love songs, including "We've Only Just Begun".

Chubby Checker

• Email bottom 10 (DVD commentary) — Mike refers to Homestar's buttdance by saying, "Let's twist again, like we did last summer," and saying that "it's a sequel to the song." This song refers to Checker's song, "Let's Twist Again", which was a sort of "sequel" to his previous song, "The Twist".

Joe Cocker

• TMBG Concert - 25 Sep 2004 & TMBG Concert - 5 Mar 2010 — Puppet Homestar Runner sings a version (with altered lyrics) of "With A Little Help from My Friends" that borrows from Cocker's performance of the song.

Phil Collins

• Stinkomanual — Description of the Bendini Sisters lifts a line from the song "In The Air Tonight".

Jonathan Coulton

• Make a Scene with Telltale: Strong Bad Edition — Strong Bad mentions Jonathan Coulton being at the PAX convention.

The Cure

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Boys Don't Cry

• Fan Costume Commentary — In the final picture, Strong Bad claims the person dressed as Strong Sad to be a "dumpy Robert Smith". Smith is actually the lead singer and front man of The Cure.
• Email radio — Strong Sad has a poster for the band's album Boys Don't Cry on his wall.
• Email independent — The Boys Don't Cry poster makes another appearance.

Daft Punk

• The Cheat Theme Song — The scene with the line "The Cheat is in the house" is reminiscent of the Daft Punk music video "One More Time."
  • The line itself may be a reference to their other song "Teachers", in which several well-known DJs are listed as being "in the house".
• Email techno — "The System is Down" follows almost the exact same pattern (beat, beeping noises, loud screaming sound) as Daft Punk's song "Rollin' and Scratchin'", excluding the "obligatory sci-fi quote".

Terrence Trent D'Arby

• 3 Times Halloween Funjob — Coach Z mistakes Strong Bad's costume as being Terrence Trent D'Arby.

De La Soul

See main article: De La Soul

Death Cab for Cutie

• Main Page 21 — When "Games" is rolled over, the drum riff heard appeared about four years earlier in the beginning of Death Cab For Cutie's song "Photobooth". The version that appears here, however, is slower than the band's version and lacks the reverb that the other version has.
• Email alternate universe — The same drum riff is again heard during the Vector Strong Bad scene.
• she likes cloth sounds like Death Cab for Cutie.

El DeBarge

• 3 Times Halloween Funjob — Homestar mistakes Strong Bad's costume as being El DeBarge.

John Denver

• Email haircut (DVD commentary) — There is a discussion if John Denver's real last name is Düsseldorf. It is actually Deutschendorf.

Devo

File:Strong Sad as Devo Member.png

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"Go forward! Move ahead. Try to detect it! It's not too late."

• Halloween Potion-ma-jig — Strong Sad dresses as a member of Devo, wearing the famous "energy dome" hat from the Freedom of Choice album cover and music videos. He also quotes their hit Whip It. Because Strong Sad is wearing a pair of square glasses with his costume, he is most likely dressed as co-founder and singer Mark Mothersbaugh, who often wore a similar pair at concerts.

Digital Underground

• The House That Gave Sucky Treats — Coach Z dresses as Humpty Hump, the band's leader.

Dinosaur Jr.

• Mr. Poofers Must Die — Marzipan dresses up as J. Mascis. Everyone sings The Wagon.

Dire Straits

• Doomy Tales Of The Macabre — Strong Mad dresses as Sal from the video for "Money For Nothing". As well, at the end, he quotes the song by saying, "MOVE-A, MOVE-A!"

Dokken

• Email band names — Strong Bad uses Dokken as an example of a band named after a "really cool last name," as the lead singer's name is Don Dokken.
• Email different town — During Strong Bad's fantasy of how he would change Free Country, USA, he envisions Marzipan's guitar as "Mr. Scary", which George Lynch used during his run with the band.

Nick Drake

• Email concert — Strong Bad says, "And that one guy even had his back to us all night." This refers to one of Drake's onstage habits.

Bob Dylan

See main article: Bob Dylan

The Edsels

• The System is Down — Bubs says that "someone tried to cram-a-lam a Swiss Cake Roll into the disk drive." This is a beyond term parodying the phrase "Rama Lama Ding Dong," which originated in a doo-wop song of the same name by this band in 1958.

Enuff Z'nuff

• Email band names — Strong Bad uses Enuff Z'nuff as a lesser example of a band named after a "really cool last name," as the lead singer's stage name is Chip Z'nuff (though his real name is Gregory Rybarski).

The Fifth Dimension

• Main Page 8 — When "Toons" is rolled over, Strong Bad is seen in a hot-air balloon done in his likeness as he sings the band's song, "Up, Up and Away".

50 Cent

• Email extra plug — The way Strong Bad pronounces 'da club' throughout the email is a reference to 50 Cent's hit single File:Exclamation Mark.png Content warning. Content warning. "In Da Club," where he rounds off the 'u' in the word 'club' the same way.

Firehouse

• Email senior prom — The King of Town's line, "Let the King have some!" refers to the song, "Let the Drummer Have Some".

Five Man Electrical Band

• Strong Bad's Website — The "Long Haired Freaky Cheat" broken image is a reference to the Electrical Band hit Signs.

John Fogerty

• Email too cool — Senor Cardgage distorts the line "Put me in, Coach, I'm ready to play" from Fogerty's hit, Centerfield.

Foghat

• Baddest of the Bands — Strong Bad warns players not to confuse fog-bats with Foghat.

Fu-Schnickens

• Email dragon — The email intro is a direct reference to a line from the song "La Schmoove".
• @StrongBadActual Tweet (26 Jan 2019) — Strong Bad confirms the dragon reference.

Lita Ford

• Email cliffhangers — At the start of the Space Captainface scene, Strong Bad as Space Captainface is talking to Lita Ford on the phone.

4 Non Blondes

• Email bike thief (DVD commentary) — Mike asks Strong Bad if Matt based Marzipan's hairstyle on a member of 4 Non Blondes; Strong Bad responds by singing the "Hey, yay, yay, yay" segment of their song "What's Up?".

The Four Tops

• Email sugarbob — Strong Bad says, "Sugarbob, funky bunch," a reference to The Four Tops' song, "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)".

Peter Frampton

See main article: Peter Frampton

Fugazi

• Email geddup noise (DVD commentary) — The brothers discuss a "This is not a Fugazi T-shirt" shirt while discussing Strong Sad's Geddup Noise shirt.

The Furious Five

• Homestarloween Party — Coach Z comments on the Furious Five, specifically either the original leader, Grandmaster Flash, or Flash's replacement, Grandmaster Melle Mel.

Gorillaz

• Halloween Hijinks — Coach Z dresses up as Del tha Ghost Rapper (portrayed by Del the Funky Homosapien) from Gorillaz, and quotes lines from the band's song Clint Eastwood.

Grateful Dead

• Email theme party (Easter egg) — A t-shirt features a Grateful Dead Dancing Bear.

The Vince Guaraldi Trio

• Email comic — In the Easter egg, the group's album A Boy Named Charlie Brown is visible.

Guns N' Roses

See main article: Guns N' Roses

Murray Head

• Homestar Presents: Presents — Strong Sad sings the Murray Head hit One Night in Bangkok.

Heart

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"...and Marzipan would rock..."

• Email different town — During Strong Bad's fantasy of how he would change the website, he envisions Marzipan as having a blond hairdo similar to Nancy Wilson's.

House of Pain

• A Jorb Well Done — At the beginning, to end the game, Coach Z says, "Pack it up, pack it in." The coach's line is a reference to lyrics from the band's song, "Jump Around".
• Hallrunner — Opting to "jump it" for the home stereo system gets you the quote: "Jump around, jump around, jump up jump up and get down." This is a line heard in "Jump Around".

Ice T

• Email pizzaz — Strong Bad's closing line, "Canned or Dry, We Neva Die. Colors," is a reference to the song "Colors"; specifically, the line, "The gangs of L.A. will never die, just multiply, colors".
• Baddest of the Bands — Bubs wishes for Coach Z to be more like an O.G., which refers to Ice T.'s album, O.G. Original Gangster.
• @StrongBadActual — November 22, 2017 — Strong Bad's Lin-Manuel Miranda costume is mistaken by an unknown party for "Colonial Ice T".

Iggy Pop

• Email technology — Strong Bad's line, "I'm using technology," refers to a lyric from the song, "Search and Destroy", which he sang with The Stooges.

Natalie Imbruglia

• Halloween Potion-ma-jig — One of Strong Sad's magic words includes Natalie's last name, except with the "g" pronounced.

Immolation

• The Taranchula band logo notably resembles the logo for Immolation.

Iron Butterfly

• Teen Girl Squad Issue 8 — The "16 hour drum solo" refers to epic hard rock drum solos in songs such as In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida.

Iron Maiden

• Email 3 wishes — Strong Bad says that if he had horns, he would go on tour with a heavy metal band as their mascot and do battle with the lead singer, a reference to how the Iron Maiden mascot always fought with the band on stage.
• Baddest of the Bands — Strong Bad says his stage prop is "maybe cooler than a giant robotic demon". This refers to the band's usage of elaborate stage props in their concerts, including giant puppets of demons and monsters.
• Several toons use a font called "Metal as in Heavy" which is very similar to that of Iron Maiden.

The Isley Brothers

• Senor Mortgage — The jingle plays the same chord progression as in "Twist and Shout".

Judas Priest

• Trogday 08 — The metal song at the end sounds like "Breaking the Law".
• Baddest of the Bands — When you move the cursor over "save/load", Strong Bad will sometimes say "Savin' the load! Savin' the load!", also a reference to "Breaking the Law."

Michael Jackson

See main article: Michael Jackson

Rick James

• Email gimmicks — Strong Bad's intro song is a reference to James' song, "Super Freak".

Scott Joplin

• Kick the Can — The music heard for the entire toon is Joplin's song, "The Entertainer".

Journey

• Baddest of the Bands — The line Strong Bad sings for "Quit" is based on the band's song, "Don't Stop Believin'". Also, the Limozeen video game is a reference to the Atari 2600 game, Journey Escape, which also features the band.
• more armies (DVD commentary) — Matt mentions Journey Escape.

Kid 'n Play

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"Check it out, yo!"

• Pumpkin Carve-nival — Coach Z dresses as Kid from Kid 'n' Play.

KISS

• Main Page 9 — The band's logo appears when rolling over "Characters".
• Email local news — Strong Bad's intro tune sounds like the band's song, "Cold Gin", but with the word "Email" replacing the title.
• Email coloring — The coloring page that Strong Bad tries to color, which depicts Larry "screamin' like a demon", shows Larry's tongue hanging out. Band member Gene Simmons is well-known for his extraordinarily long tongue and is also referred to as "The Demon".

Kraftwerk

• Email old comics — The single cover for West Is Lip's single "She Partied Without Dancing" bears some resemblance to their 1978 album The Man-Machine (German title: Die Mensch-Maschine).

Krokus

• Email band names — At the end, Strong Bad announces that on the next email, his guests stars would include the entire band.
• Fan Costumes 2017 — D n' D Greg claims the Krokus banner on his front porch drew What's Her Face near.

Cyndi Lauper

• Dangeresque 3: The Criminal Projective — When Dadgeresque passes away, Dangeresque responds by stringing together the names of a bunch of sappy love songs, yet bizarrely concludes the response with "She Bop".

Led Zeppelin

See main article: Led Zeppelin

Gordon Lightfoot

• Email army — When Strong Bad refuses to join Homestar's army, the latter threatens the former with, "We'll see if those trees you're always hugging save you when Gordon Lightfoot's creeping round your back stair," referencing the song "Sundown".

LL Cool J

• Email hremail 3184 — Homestar repeating the phrase "Don't call it a comeback", is a reference to the first line of "Mama Said Knock You Out".

Loverboy

• Because, It's Midnite — The percussion intro is very similar to that of Loverboy's song "Working for the Weekend".
• Strong Sad's Lament — The header of Strong Sad's post on September 9, 2005 is "Working For the Weak-End?" which is a reference to the same song.

Yngwie Malmsteen

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"We're on a collision course with Malmsteen's Comet!"

• Email cliffhangers — Strong Bad as Space Captainface and The Cheat as The Strap are threatened by Malmsteen's Comet.

Marilyn Manson

• TrogdorCon '97 (DVD commentary) — The Brothers Chaps compare Strong Sad's makeup to that worn by the band, who has been known to wear makeup similar to that worn by Strong Sad in this toon.

Bob Marley

• Happy Hallow-day — Marzipan says, "We be jammin'!" This is a lyric sung by Marley in his song, "Jammin'".
• Strong Badia the Free — Strong Bad tells an email sender to think about where he should hang his Bob Marley poster once he moves back into his parents' basement.

Marsalis

• Email theme song — The closing theme song for Strong Bad's email show is "by a Marsalis or two".

MC Hammer

• sbemail haircut — Strong Bad references "Hammer Pants", a nickname for the parachute pants worn by MC Hammer.
• Later That Night... — Coach Z performs part of the MC Hammer hit U Can't Touch This.

Metallica

See main article: Metallica

M.I.A.

• Happy Hallow-day — On the Toons menu, the description of this toon is "Ween night is M.I.A. Galang galang." "Galang" is the most famous single by M.I.A.

Miami Sound Machine

• 3 Times Halloween Funjob — Bubs mistakes Strong Bad's costume as being Miami Sound Machine.

Bette Midler

• Dangeresque 3: The Criminal Projective — When Dadgeresque passes away, Dangeresque responds by stringing together the names of a bunch of sappy love songs, including "Wind Beneath My Wings".

The Misfits

• Doomy Tales of the Macabre — Strong Sad dresses as Doyle, the guitarist of the band.

Thelonious Monk

• Email pizza joint — Strong Sad claims that "every time [he] tried to add Strong Bad to [his] Pizz list, he'd call [him] Thelonious Dump."

Mos Def

• Email love poems — Homestar's "This mo'nin'" jam sounds identical to the chorus of Mos Def's song "Got".

Mötley Crüe

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Brüe

• Halloween Fairstival — Homestar's jars of witches' brüe reference the spelling of the band's word "Crüe" instead of "Crew". It also features a heavy metal umlaut done in the band's style.
• Email monster truck (DVD commentary) — Matt says that his brother, Donnie, dressed as Vince Neil, the singer of this band, in 1987.

Motörhead

• Email band names — At the end, Strong Bad announces that on the next email, his guest stars would include the band's leader, Lemmy Kilmister.
• Email death metal (DVD commentary) — Strong Bad and Mike make reference to Lemmy, including discussing whether or not he hot-glued corn flakes to his face.

Mr. Mister

• Homestar Runner Goes for the Gold — Homestar references the hit Broken Wings.

Mudhoney

• Email comic — The single "You Stupid Asshole" appears in the "comic" Easter egg.
• Sick Day — The page title references the song "Here Comes The Sickness".

Mudvayne

• Email death metal — Strong Bad suggests to hot-glue cornflakes to one's face as a way to be in a death metal band. This refers to this band's guitarist who once glued corn chips to his face for a music video.

Willie Nelson

• Halloween Fairstival — Marzipan dresses as Willie Nelson.

The Neville Brothers

• Email theme song — Strong Bad claims that were his email show's "life-affirming pop-ballad type theme song" would probably be "sung by some variety of Neville."

Newcleus

• Happy Hallow-day — The skull with the rainbow-colored afro exclaims the title of the band's song, "Jam On It".
• Email love poems — Homestar's "This mo'nin'" jam is sung in imitation of "Jam On It".

New Order

• Fan Costumes 2015 — Strong Sad sings a part of Age of Consent

Night Ranger

• Baddest of the Bands — Strong Bad calls Strong Sad "Sister Christian", which is the title of one of this band's most famous songs.
• Homestar Runner Goes for the Gold — Homestar quotes a lyric from "Sister Christian".

Nirvana

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Corporate Rock Still Sucks

• Homestarloween Party — Homestar Runner dresses as Kurt Cobain. His T-shirt is a parody of a shirt worn by Cobain on the cover of Rolling Stone, which reads, "Corporate Magazines Still Suck."
• Email geddup noise — Strong Sad's "Corporate The Geddup Noise Still Sucks" T-shirt is another parody of the same slogan.
• Baddest of the Bands — When the speaker has been brought down on the DÖI stage, Strong Bad remarks that it is probably Cobain-proofed.

Sinéad O'Connor

• Email from work (DVD commentary) — Homestar claims that Sinéad O'Connor is 2008's it-girl.

OutKast

See main article: Outkast

Ozzy Osbourne

• Baddest of the Bands — Strong Bad asking Marzipan if she plans to bite off Pazquel's head, The King of Town's on-stage devouring of bats, and Marzipan's allegation of Limozeen performing bat-head-biting all refer to a notorious episode in the career of Osbourne.

Pavement

• sloshy's performance of Because It's Midnite uses a style resemblant of Pavement.
• Fan Costumes 2017 What's Her Face claims she likes Pavement.

Tom Petty

• Old Characters Page — Marzipan's description includes "She loves horses and her boyfriend, too" which is a line from Tom Petty's song, Free Fallin'.
• Haunted Photo Booth — The King of Town dresses up as the Alice cake from the music video from Tom Petty's song, Don't Come Around Here No More.

Piebald

• Strong Bad is a Bad Guy — The term "vantastic" is a possible reference to this band, who describe their tour van using the same word.

Pink Floyd

• Baddest of the Bands — Strong Bad says his stage prop is "almost better than a flying pig". This refers to a prop used in some performances by this band and the cover art of Animals.
• The Homestar Runner Enters the Spooky Woods — Strong Mad's costume references an iconic image of Pink Floyd The Wall.

Poison

• Baddest of the Bands — In the Teen Girl Squad comic, Gary refers to Cheerleader as "un-unskinny bop", a reference to Poison's song "Unskinny Bop".

The Police

• Email specially marked — The step counter has the phrase "Every step U take" displayed on it. This phrase is a line sung in The Police's song, "Every Breath You Take".

The Postal Service

• Email geddup noise (DVD commentary) — The Brothers Chaps compare The Cheat's Geddup Noise indietronic remix to something that The Postal Service would do.

Elvis Presley

• Email vacation — Strong Bad's intro song is a reference to Elvis' song, "Heartbreak Hotel".

Prince

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"E... A... D... G...."

• Email space program — Strong Bad's email intro is a parody of Prince's song, "When Doves Cry".
• Jibblies 2 — Marzipan dresses as Prince circa his 1984 album and film Purple Rain. Homestar references his 1985 hit "Raspberry Beret".
  • The House That Gave Sucky Tricks (Easter egg) — Homestar and Marzipan refer back to this costume.

The Promise Ring

• Email no loafing — The poster on Strong Sad's wall in the "appointment" Easter egg is of this emo band.

Public Enemy

• Homestarloween Party — Coach Z dresses as Flavor Flav, the comic relief member of this group.
• Trudgemank — Peacey P. mentions them (as P.E.) and Anthrax mixing rap and heavy metal in 1991 or 1993.

Queen

• Email space program — The Space Captainface song is a spoof on the theme song for Flash Gordon, as performed by this band.

Queen Latifah

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"Hey, whatcha doing there, sista?"

• Happy Hallow-day — Coach Z dresses as Queen Latifah.

Quiet Riot

• Email the bet — Strong Bad tells Homestar to change his name to Kevin DuBrow if he fails to be cool, which does not happen.

Radiohead

• Email redesign — One of the dryer settings is "High and Dry", a reference to the band's song of the same title.

Ramones

See main article: Ramones

Ratt

• Thy Dungeonman II — While standing in the room with Percy the rat, the player can type "Listen to Ratt". The game responds with "Ye hums some late-era Ratt to thyself. 'Waycool Jr.' is not as good a tune as thou rememberest."

Red Hot Chili Peppers

• Decemberween Short Shorts (DVD commentary) — During the scene with Strong Bad writing a letter to tube socks, the Brothers Chaps compare this scene to how Red Hot Chili Peppers used tube socks.

R.E.M.

• In Search of the Yello Dello (DVD version) — As seen in the fourth deleted scene, it was originally intended for Strong Sad to sound like Michael Stipe.
• Flash is Dead! — Homestar lists his full name on his profile as "Michael (Stipe) Runner"

Lionel Richie

• Email 3 wishes — The intro is reference to a lyric to Richie's song, "Say You, Say Me".
• Homestar Runner's Character Video — "Lionel Richie" is one of the randomly-picked insults that Strong Bad calls Homestar during the latter's character video.

Kenny Rogers

• Email pom pom — Strong Bad's intro is a reference to Rogers' song, "The Gambler".

The Rolling Stones

• Baddest of the Bands — If you click on the fuse box at the DÖI Stage, Strong Bad remarks how his "frustration was sure to blow a 50 amp fuse." This is a reference to the Rolling Stones song "You Can't Always Get What You Want", where there is a line with a similar meaning.
• Limozeen vs. Sloshy — The album cover resembles the cover for Jump Back, a Rolling Stones greatest hits album.

Run-D.M.C.

See main article: Run-DMC

Sade

• Email slumber party — Homestar sings, "Party. Slumber party. Listen to some Sade, at the slumber party."

Joe Satriani

• Email space program — The term "Satriani 5" is a spoof on Joe Satriani, who created the album Surfing with the Aliens.
• Email cliffhangers (DVD commentary) — During the Space Captainface scene, Matt wonders if when the new Fantastic Four movie comes out, Joe Satriani will become more popular.

Scorpions

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We are the SCORPIONS!!

• Strong Sad's Lament — Strong Sad asks his readers to "rock [him] like an e-Hurricane", referencing their song "Rock You Like A Hurricane".
• Email your friends — During the scene with Strong Bad torturing Homsar with scorpions, the scorpions come from a box that reads, "We are the SCORPIONS!!", which is the concert-opening cry of lead singer Klaus Meine.
• Taranchula member Schenkel McDoo may be a reference to Scorpions guitarist Rudolf Schenker.

Bob Seger

• Email strong badathlon — During the ending closimonies, Homestar sings a (misquoted) line from Seger's song "Old Time Rock 'n' Roll."

Sepultura

• Taranchula appear to be partially based on the death metal band Sepultura.

Sex Pistols

• Email sb email 22 — Strong Bad's suggested email closing "Nevermind the Bullocks" refers to a lyric from the band's controversial album, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols, which, like this email, was banned in the U.K.

Simon and Garfunkel

• Email do over — As Strong Bad bashes Homestar on the head with the Tandy's keyboard, he yells, "PARSLEY! SAGE! RoseMARY! And THYME!" These are lyrics to the song "Scarborough Fair", an English ballad made famous by this band.
• Email love poems (DVD commentary) — Mike and Matt both think that Homestar looks like Art Garfunkel, the second half of Simon and Garfunkel.

Slaughter

• Email death metal — One of the bands featured on the Half-Hour Death Metal Dungeon Hour is "Schlaugh-ter".
• Homestar Runner Goes for the Gold — Homestar references Slaughter's hit, Fly to the Angels.

Slayer

• Fan Costumes 2017 — D n' D Greg claims the Slayer poster in his hallway won What's Her Face's heart.

The Smiths

• Somber Vacation — In the Easter egg, Strong Sad can be heard singing Bigmouth Strikes Again.

Sonic Youth

See main article: Sonic Youth

Bruce Springsteen

• Halloween Fairstival — Bubs dresses up as Clarence Clemons, saxophonist for the E-Street Band.
• Email love poems — Kimberly quotes Blinded by the Light, a song originally done by Bruce Springsteen.
• Email dictionary — Marzipan offers to play a cover of Bruce Springsteen's song, Glory Days.

The Strokes

• Record Store Day — A dreaming Strong Sad warns the band's lead singer Julian Casablancas to look out.

Stryper

• Homestar Ruiner — When Strong Bad investigates the stands by the track, he remarks that they are emptier than a Stryper concert.

Sugarhill Gang

• Homsar's character video — Homsar mentions Wonder Mike, the lead singer for the Sugarhill Gang. His comment "Hi, Wonder Mike!" is a reference to the line in the Sugarhill Gang song Rapper's Delight that goes "I am Wonder Mike and I'd like to say hello."

The Supremes

• Hallrunner — If you choose "Fight it" when you come across love, the game replies that "you can't fight it and you can't hurry it. You just have to wait." This is a reference to the Supremes' song, "You Can't Hurry Love".

Talking Heads

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"This is not my beautiful house! This is not my beautiful wife!"

• 3 Times Halloween Funjob — Strong Sad dresses as the band's leader David Byrne. He also quotes their song "Once In A Lifetime" with the lines "This is not my beautiful house!" and "This is not my beautiful wife!"

James Taylor

• Email for kids — On Homsar's show, Whaddaya Know, Haddi-man?, the guitarist, known as the Stave It Off Guy, bears a striking resemblance to this folk singer, who would often appear on Sesame Street to sing educational songs.
• Crystal Fortress — The Stave It Off Guy returns.

TLC

• Pumpkin Carve-nival — Marzipan dresses as Left-Eye Lopes.

The Treacherous Three

• 3 Times Halloween Funjob — Coach Z dresses as band member Kool Moe Dee.

A Tribe Called Quest

See main article: A Tribe Called Quest

Tupac

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Thorg Life

• Halloween Fairstival — Coach Z dresses as Tupac.

Turbonegro

• Email death metal — Strong Bad's suggestion to Dane to be fat refers to lead singer Hank Von Helvete, who is famous for his plump physique.

Ike Turner

• Email autobiography — An Easter egg describes the tapes as being reviewed by Ike Turner, who, bizarrely enough, reviews it twice as "hootie hoo".

U2

• Thy Dungeonman 3 — When you've beaten the game, the line "The sanctum begins to rattle and hum" is a reference to the U2 album Rattle and Hum.

Van Halen

See main article: Van Halen

Stevie Ray Vaughan

• Most in the Graveyard — Marzipan dresses as Stevie Ray Vaughan.
  • Homestar calls Marzipan "My little pride and joy," a reference to Stevie Ray Vaughan's 1983 hit, Pride and Joy.

Vinnie Vincent Invasion

• Email death metal — One of the bands featured on the Half-Hour Death Metal Dungeon Hour is "the Winnie Wincent Inwasion".

Weezer

• Email concert — The discussion about Christmas lights used by sloshy refers to Weezer's similar usage in their music video of "El Scorcho".
• Decomposing Pumpkins — The intro notes are reminiscent of "Undone (The Sweater Song)".
• sloshy's bassist resembles the drummer for Weezer.

Wesley Willis

• Baddest of the Bands — When you are finished talking to Bubs, he may utter the phrase "Rock over London, Rock on Chicago". This phrase was often used at the end of Willis' songs.

Barry White

• Email love poems — Tenerence Love sings his "Sweaty Overweight Jam" in imitation of soul singers like Barry White.
• Baddest of the Bands — Strong Bad refers to Homestar as "Very White".

Whitesnake

• Email mile — Strong Bad's line before jumping the ramp over Bubs' 19 buses, "Here I go again on my own," is a reference to the first line of the chorus of "Here I Go Again", an '80s standard by Whitesnake.

The Who

See main article: The Who

Winger

• Email death metal — One of the bands featured on the Half-Hour Death Metal Dungeon Hour is "Vinger".
• Email the chair — Bubs has a Winger album.

Wu-Tang Clan

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"Cool, a W. What's that supposed to stand for? Witches' brew?"

• The House That Gave Sucky Treats — If you give Coach Z the Cherry Clan as his Halloween treat, he will compare them to the Wu-Tang Clan and he asks you if he can come in and listen to the group's debut album, The 36 Chambers.
• Pumpkin Carve-nival — The letter W in Coach Z's pumpkin entry is the symbol for the Wu-Tang Clan.
• Marzipan's Answering Machine Version 12.2 — Homestar's mention of a "Goatface Killa" is a reference to Ghostface Killah, a member of Wu-Tang Clan.

"Weird Al" Yankovic

• Email long pants — Strong Bad writing on the Lappy with the light pen may be a reference to part of the lyrics to Weird Al's song, "It's All About the Pentiums".
• Teen Girl Squad Issue 13 — The line "Ding dong. Ding dong, yo" is a line from the video for "Fat".

Frank Zappa

• Email suntan — In the instructions, the man's facial hair is similar to that of Frank Zappa.
• Email modeling — "Stinkfoot" refers to a song title by Zappa.

ZZ Top

• Sketchbook 2005 — In the November 10th entry, the King of Town is drawn as one of the band members.
• Email the bet (DVD commentary) — Strong Bad makes reference to Billy Gibbons, the leader of this band.
• Email winter pool — The King of Town is seen watching an episode of Caleb Rentpayer where Tucksworth says, "You can't grow a ZZ Top beard!"

See Also

• They Might Be Giants
• DaVinci's Notebook
• Y-O-U
• Heavy Metal
• Hip Hop
• Professional Athlete References
• Video Game References