Jack Stauber

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jack Stauber
Also known asJack Stauber's Micropop
Born (1996-04-06) April 6, 1996 (age 25)
OriginMcKean, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s)
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • piano
  • drums
  • guitar
Years active2007–present
LabelsPlopscotch Records
Associated acts
Websitejackstauber.com
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2013–present
Genre
Subscribers2.16 million[5]
Total views274.9 million[5]
YouTube Silver Play Button 2.svg 100,000 subscribers 2018
YouTube Gold Play Button 2.svg 1,000,000 subscribers 2021
Updated: December 22, 2021

Jack Stauber (born April 6, 1996)[2] is an American singer-songwriter, animator, and YouTuber from McKean, Pennsylvania[6][7] who is currently based in Pittsburgh.[2] Known for the perceived strangeness of his lyrics and accompanying music videos, his songs have been used in a variety of internet memes on YouTube. Stauber first published on YouTube in 2013. His website was launched in late 2017; however, it mainly contains links to other content such as his social media and merch stores.[8] Stauber has been a member of the bands Joose[7][9] and Zaki.[10] In 2020, he won the Shorty Award for Best in Weird.[3]

His debut album, Finite Form (2013), was released on March 18, 2013, when he was 16. Drawing inspiration from folk music, his second album, Viator (2015), was released two years later, on September 18, 2015. Stauber's third studio album Pop Food (2017) experimented with pop, lo-fi, and a 1980s and 90s-esque aesthetic. The first two tracks, "Buttercup" and "Oh Klahoma", went viral on TikTok, and boasts a combined 375 million Spotify streams as of July 2021. His latest album, HiLo (2018), contains elements of funk, pop, and rock.

Personal life[]

Stauber grew up in McKean, Pennsylvania. He has one sister, named Kharly.[11][6] He majored in marketing and minored in studio arts[12] at the University of Pittsburgh.[4] In an interview, Stauber revealed his favorite cartoon is Rugrats, and praised the art style, stating "Take some time to watch a minute of the pilot of Rugrats if you haven’t seen that before. The art style is beyond incredible." Stauber is also a fan of Pink Floyd – The Wall, Merrie Melodies, the Pink Panther, M83, Bruce Bickford, The Mighty Boosh, Donovan, and The Residents.[2]

Notable projects and videos[]

"Buttercup" and "Oh Klahoma"[]

Stauber's most famous work, "Buttercup", is the opening song released on his 2017 album Pop Food. The song, along with remixes and covers of it, became a popular internet meme, especially on TikTok,[13] which contributed substantially to its success. The song currently has 316 million Spotify streams as of October 2021. Stauber did not release an official music video for "Buttercup". The song has been described as "bubbly, dramatic pop with Panda Bear-esque vocals."[14] YouTuber lisuga made a popular fan made video using clips from the Japanese short film, "Kick-Heart". It is the most viewed Jack Stauber-related video on YouTube, with 203 million views as of August 2021.

"Oh Klahoma", the second track from Pop Food, also became popular. The song currently has 92 million Spotify streams as of October 2021. The song is most famously used as background music to a TikTok trend called #ghostphotoshoot, where creators dress up as ghosts and take photos of themselves, sometimes wearing sunglasses and other fashion accessories.[15][13] However, the trend has become controversial, with critics saying the bedsheet costumes used look like KKK robes.[16]

Adult Swim[]

Stauber has done multiple projects for Adult Swim. These projects have all done extremely well on YouTube and Adult Swim, getting millions of views.

Wishing Apple and Valentine's Day is Not for the Lonely[]

The first short Stauber created for Adult Swim was called "Wishing Apple," a short released on July 3, 2018 on the Adult Swim YouTube channel.[17][18]

The next was "Valentine's Day is Not for the Lonely," which premiered on Off The Air's season eight episode "Love" on August 28, 2018.[17] However, the short was created and released on Valentine's Day, almost 6 months before the short was released on Adult Swim, on February 14, 2018.[19] The video was also shortened for its Adult Swim premiere.

SHOP: A Pop Opera[]

Nearly a year after "Valentine's Day is Not for the Lonely" was created, the surreal musical comedy SHOP: A Pop Opera premiered on Adult Swim in March 2019. The series utilizes mixed media, incorporated clay animation, music, and VHS-like filters.[20] The six-part series aired each episode at midnight from March 4 to March 9. The episodes were also uploaded onto YouTube the next day. A year later, Stauber released the soundtrack for the miniseries on March 8, after someone hacked into his account and fraudulently uploaded the soundtrack in October of the previous year.[21] On November 4, 2020, the full series was uploaded onto the Adult Swim YouTube channel.[22]

The series centers on an unnamed man, nicknamed Jeff by the community, who goes shopping at the grocery store. With each object on his list, he encounters individuals who are engrossed in a personal habit or dilemma, while also vaguely resembling the thing he is shopping for. After being dissatisfied with picking a random pound of cheese, he overcomes his indecisiveness and goes to try a sample of yogurt he was mulling over previously.[citation needed]

Jack Stauber's OPAL[]

The latest Adult Swim project created by Stauber is a short surreal musical psychological horror film, entitled Jack Stauber's OPAL, which premiered on October 31, 2020.[note 1][20][17] The same day, OPAL was also released on the Adult Swim YouTube channel.[23] Stauber also received help from the producers at Williams Street for the creation of OPAL. The series utilizes stop-motion, 3D-animated, and live action segments.[24][25][26]

The short centers on a girl named Opal who lives with her kind and caring family. They tell her to stay away from a creepy house from across the street, but her curiosity gets the best of her and she finds herself trapped in the dark house. She meets the inhabitants, an old man who smokes and watches TV, a conceited man who talks about his looks, and a woman who drinks and blames others for her problems. All of them refer to Opal as "Claire" and chase her into the attic where she locks the door. Opal looks out the window to find that instead of her house, there is a billboard for "Opal's Burgers", implying that she is in fact Claire and that her kind family were the result of her mentally running away from her real life. She once again succumbs to her fantasy life as her real family attempt to break down her door.[citation needed]

Style[]

I get playful with the words but they’re always chosen very carefully. They all make perfect sense. I wouldn’t sing something if it didn’t.

Jack Stauber, interview from NewRetroWave[2]

Meg Fair of Pittsburgh City Paper highlighted Stauber's knack of "pulling unrelated sounds and influences into [his] music, throwing them into a bowl and tossing them into a strange salad that challenges your musical taste buds."[27] Jenna Minnig of PennState CommMedia compared Stauber's music to Ariel Pink's; as both have hypnagogic-pop styles and have similar voices, but believed it was unnecessary and reductionary to compare the two.[4] Knoxville News Sentinel's Chuck Campbell described Stauber's music videos as "nostalgic and childlike, but there’s also something disturbingly adult about them, the kind of thing that might have surfaced on Pee-wee's Playhouse back in the day."[28]

Music[]

Stauber is well known for his hypnagogic pop,[4] avant-pop,[29][2] and synth-pop[3] music. Stauber's unique vocal effects are developed in the shower, and are inspired by Donovan in his song "Hurdy Gurdy Man".[2] Stauber also collects objects to create sounds to use in songs, and has a drawer filled with "various noise-makers" he has collected.[2] Stauber uses the Plopscotch Records label to enlist copyright on his music.

Artists that have expressed admiration for Stauber's music include rock musician Jon Bon Jovi,[30] comedian Andy Milonakis,[31] actor Verne Troyer,[32] indie singer-songwriter Sidney Gish,[33] and model Paris Jackson.[34][35]

Videos[]

Stauber's videos are mainly animations, which are usually made with MS Paint[2] and claymation.[28] He usually does all of the voices for his animations, and he records the dialogue with a small idea of what his characters may look like.[2] His videos are usually separated into three styles: "surreal", characters with odd and striking facial expressions and frequently part of his claymations, "colorful", which are usually featured in his VHS animations and music videos, and "Stauber faces", light-skinned characters with cartoon noses.[17] Stauber is also well known for his frequent use of teeth in his videos and animations.[11] He usually uses detailed resin teeth on his clay characters, although he has used real teeth.[17][36] He has encouraged fans to send him teeth for him to use in his videos.[37][36]

Stauber is well known for his signature "created by Jack Stauber" title card. These are featured at the end of his videos, and have been used since 2017.

To create his animations, Stauber uses Microsoft Paint for the drawings. He then sequences the frames in Adobe Premiere Pro, and then runs the finished video through a VHS tape.[2]

Awards and nominations[]

Year Organization Award Recipient Result Ref.
2020 Shorty Awards Creative & Media: Best in Weird Jack Stauber Won [3]

Discography[]

As Jack Stauber[]

Albums[]

Title Details
Finite Form[38]
  • Released: March 18, 2013
  • Label: Plopscotch Records
  • Format: Digital download, streaming
Viator[9]
  • Released: September 18, 2015
  • Label: Plopscotch Records
  • Format: Digital download, streaming, CD
Pop Food[38][14]
  • Released: March 25, 2017
  • Label: Plopscotch Records
  • Format: Digital download, streaming, CD, vinyl
HiLo[27][7][39]
  • Released: April 14, 2018
  • Label: Plopscotch Records
  • Format: Digital download, streaming, CD, vinyl

Extended plays[]

Title Details
Reviator[40][note 2]
  • Released: September 18, 2017
  • Label: Plopscotch Records
  • Format: digital download, streaming

Singles[]

Title Year Album
"Help You" 2012 Non-album singles
"Axis of Dam"
"Lines"
"Summer Sickness"
"Left"
"Times"
"Juana Maria" 2013
"Christ Potion" 2015 Viator
"Grins Hells" Non-album singles
"Tenderly" 2017
"Oh Klahoma" Pop Food
"Dead Weight"[note 3] 2018 HiLo
"Gettin' My Mom On"[note 3]

Jack Stauber's Micropop[]

Stauber also publishes under the name "Jack Stauber's Micropop", releasing extended versions of short songs found on his YouTube channel.[28] These songs are less popular than his songs and albums released under his main name, Jack Stauber. These extended versions are often released early for Stauber's Patreon supporters.[41] Under the Micropop name, Stauber has released six EPs and one compilation album, along with two soundtracks for his works with Adult Swim.[17]

Albums[]

Title Details
Micropop
  • Released: June 29, 2019
  • Label: Plopscotch Records
  • Format: digital download, streaming
Shop: A Pop Opera
  • Released: March 12, 2020
  • Label: Plopscotch Records
  • Format: digital download, streaming
Jack Stauber's OPAL (Original Soundtrack)
  • Released: November 6, 2020[note 4]
  • Label: Plopscotch Records
  • Format: digital download, streaming

EPs[]

Title Details
Inchman / Two Time
  • Released: June 4, 2018
  • Label: Plopscotch Records
  • Format: digital download, streaming
Cheeseburger Family / Fighter
  • Released: August 6, 2018
  • Label: Plopscotch Records
  • Format: digital download, streaming
The Ballad of Hamantha / Today Today / Al Dente
  • Released: November 5, 2018
  • Label: Plopscotch Records
  • Format: digital download, streaming
Baby Hotline / Tea Errors
  • Released: March 21, 2019
  • Label: Plopscotch Records
  • Format: digital download, streaming
Deploy / Those Eggs Aren't Dippy / Out the Ox
  • Released: November 4, 2019
  • Label: Plopscotch Records
  • Format: digital download, streaming
Dinner Is Not Over / There's Something Happening / Keyman / Cupid
  • Released: February 7, 2020
  • Label: Plopscotch Records
  • Format: digital download, streaming

Notes[]

  1. ^ Although Adult Swim lists the short as being released on October 30th, it was released at midnight, so it is essentially October 31st.
  2. ^ Reviator is only viewable on Stauber's YouTube channel. It consists of three remade tracks from Viator, for its two-year anniversary.
  3. ^ a b Released only on YouTube.
  4. ^ also released under Adult Swim Smalls

References[]

  1. ^ Fair, Meg (February 14, 2018). "Critics' Pick: Spish's Love Dungeon". Pittsburgh City Paper. Retrieved February 14, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Zistler, Andrew (July 20, 2018). "An Interview With Jack Stauber". NewRetroWave. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  3. ^ a b c d "jackstauber - Weird - The Shorty Awards". Shorty Awards. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  4. ^ a b c d Minnig, Jenna (April 18, 2018). "Jack Stauber - HiLo Album Review". commmedia.psu.edu. Retrieved May 10, 2021.
  5. ^ a b "About JackStauber". YouTube.
  6. ^ a b "FRIDAY Magazine Jack Stauber". FRIDAY Magazine. Retrieved May 5, 2021 – via Imgur.
  7. ^ a b c Sabella, Roman (April 11, 2018). "Jack Stauber to Release Third Solo Album HiLo at Basement Transmissions". Erie Reader. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  8. ^ Stauber, Jack. "jackstauber.com". jackstauber.com. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  9. ^ a b Warren, Nick (January 1, 2020). "Ten Local Picks from the 2010s". Erie Reader. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  10. ^ Connor, Sarah (March 13, 2018). "Zaki defies genre in debut of self-titled album". The Pitt News. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  11. ^ a b "Jack's sister just posted this on Instagram". Instagram. October 3, 2019. Retrieved May 4, 2021 – via Reddit.
  12. ^ Glitz, Henry (April 13, 2017). "Jack Stauber". Pitt News. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
  13. ^ a b Serra, Maria (November 5, 2020). "10 artists you've heard on TikTok who you actually need to listen to". Alternative Press. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  14. ^ a b Fair, Meg (April 12, 2017). "New Releases - Jack Stauber's Pop Food". Pittsburgh City Paper. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  15. ^ Ainsworth, Harry (September 24, 2020). "Seriously, why is everyone dressing up as ghosts on TikTok right now?". The Tab. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  16. ^ Haasch, Palmer (September 26, 2020). "TikTokers are being called out for a 'ghost photoshoot' trend that critics say reminds them of KKK robes". Insider. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  17. ^ a b c d e f Grutter, Felipe (March 3, 2021). "Conheça o bizarro mundo de Jack Stauber, rei do Micropop e animador do Adult Swim". Rolling Stone (in Portuguese). Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  18. ^ Stauber, Jack (July 3, 2018). "Wishing Apple | adult swim smalls". YouTube. Jack Stauber. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  19. ^ Stauber, Jack (February 14, 2018). "Valentine's Day is Not for the Lonely". YouTube. Jack Stauber. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  20. ^ a b Keeley, Matt (March 11, 2019). "'Shop: A Pop Opera' Is Tops, Full of Bops, and You Should Watch Chop-Chop". Kittysneezes. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  21. ^ Stauber, Jack (October 17, 2019). "Regarding a Fraudulent Release". Patreon. Retrieved March 21, 2021.
  22. ^ Stauber, Jack (November 4, 2020). "SHOP: A Pop Opera | adult swim smalls". YouTube. Adult Swim. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  23. ^ Stauber, Jack (October 31, 2020). "Jack Stauber's OPAL | adult swim smalls". YouTube. Adult Swim. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  24. ^ Milligan, Mercedes (October 28, 2020). "Adult Swim Scares Up Halloween Marathon". Animation Magazine. Retrieved November 5, 2020.
  25. ^ Field, Matthew (November 14, 2020). "'Opal' is a unique, surreal animation". Go! & Express. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  26. ^ Weir, Oliver (February 27, 2021). "OPAL ★★★★☆ | Film | Felix Online". felixonline.co.uk. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  27. ^ a b Fair, Meg (April 25, 2018). "Jack Stauber releases absurdist pop-record HiLo". Pittsburgh City Paper. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  28. ^ a b c Campbell, Chuck (December 13, 2019). "The Weeknd grows, despite odd timing". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
  29. ^ Fair, Meg (February 14, 2018). "Critics' Pick: Spish's Love Dungeon". Pittsburgh City Paper. Retrieved February 14, 2018.
  30. ^ Bon Jovi, Jon [@jonbonjovi] (May 11, 2018). "Thank you @JackStauber for giving great honest advice on lyrics to young songwriters" (Tweet). Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Twitter.
  31. ^ Milonakis, Andy [@andymilonakis] (March 27, 2018). "This bangs" (Tweet). Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Twitter.
  32. ^ Stauber, Jack [@JackStauber] (April 6, 2018). "I love you, @VerneTroyer" (Tweet). Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Twitter.
  33. ^ Connolly, Mikayla (November 19, 2020). "Sidney Gish Impresses Horn @ Home With Unique Sound". The Kenyon Collegian. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  34. ^ Nur Pervan, Melek (November 19, 2020). "Michael Jackson Daughter Paris Explains The Meaning Of Almost Every Single Tattoo On Her Body". Metalhead Zone. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  35. ^ Gursoy, Eren Merdan (August 18, 2020). "Paris Jackson Shows Off Her New Tattoo And Says She Did It Herself". Metalhead Zone. Retrieved June 1, 2021.
  36. ^ a b Stauber, Jack [@JackStauber] (December 4, 2018). "send me your teeth" (Tweet). Retrieved May 19, 2021 – via Twitter.
  37. ^ Stauber, Jack [@JackStauber] (January 28, 2019). "thank you" (Tweet). Retrieved May 19, 2021 – via Twitter.
  38. ^ a b Warren, Nick (March 29, 2017). "Jack Stauber // Pop Food". Erie Reader. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  39. ^ Warren, Nick (April 25, 2018). "Jack Stauber // HiLo". Erie Reader. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  40. ^ Stauber, Jack (September 18, 2017). "Jack Stauber - Reviator EP". YouTube. Jack Stauber. Retrieved May 4, 2021.
  41. ^ Stauber, Jack. "Jack Stauber is creating Music and VHS Cartoons". Patreon. Retrieved January 14, 2021.

External links[]

Retrieved from ""