The Crazy ALTER EGOS of the Music World

/ alfomedia Cowritten by: Brin DeRouen
Intro Animator: @icarogabriel17 on Twitter
Intro Music Composer: Chase Ceglie
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/ alfomedia
/ renshawhs
/ renshawhs
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Let's talk about alternate personas, secret identities, side projects and more! Alter egos create the perfect medium for musicians to express themselves in totally unique ways -- especially compared to how they might act in their main career. In this video, we'll be discussing the wide range of this world. Sometimes, the artists barely commit and it's kind of embarrassing, and other times they can change the music landscape altogether. Enjoy!
video essay / favorite / secret / identity / music / musician / rapper worst / best

[@yugiohyoutuification]

MF DOOM was a genius with his alter egos not just for making them but now if you look under related or similar artists it is just more of him as the alter egos

[@archithbinoj24-89]

He's definitely the first one I thought of when I saw the thumbnail

[@supersrodriguiez940]

Don't forget Kool Keith

[@jenske2881]

He probably has like a shut tin of alter egos that haven't been found but he also dindt make crazy changes

[@antoniopadula9401]

He also dissed himself through one of his alter egos, what a legend

[@enaikei]

Tyler becoming IGOR for like a year was insane

[@Maxgoober]

Tyler had like 50 alter egos 😭

[@theneonchimpchannel9095]

I'm surprised that David Bowie was only really mentioned in passing. He could be a video like this on his own. Davie Jones (not to be confused with Davy Jones), The Man Who Sold The World, Ziggy Stardust, Alladin Sane, Halloween Jack, The Thin White Duke, The Berliner, The Pop Megastar, the singer from Tin Machine...then we get onto "Outside" where he plays about 7 characters just on that 1 album including Nathan Adler, Baby Grace Blue, Ramona A. Stone, Algeria Touchshriek, Paddy and Leon Blank...then he reinvented himself again as The Tao Jones Index, Rock God, Thursday's Child, The Heathen, Button Eyes...and I'm sure there's a few I've missed.

[@aykanyavas6398]

Does Major Tom count?

[@elisl2028]

Ye

[@robf1557]

Button Eyes is his Blackstar persona right?

[@SoundSurf0]

​@@robf1557 I think it's usually called "The Blind Prophet"

[@XANAX-Pilled]

Yeah I just lost a good 50% of my respect for this dude. But...but Greenday! 😂 Top tier!

[@aykanyavas6398]

David Bowie should be the first name that comes to mind when alter egos in music are mentioned. Mentioning him and only one of his several personas for less than 30 seconds is selling him short.

[@jordgubbe2895]

tell your truth. kind of disappointed that someone would make an extensive video about the art of alter egos in music and just barely mentioning Bowie on the side when every single one of his characters deserve a video this length of their own!

[@diesehnswurdigkeit9019]

The alter ego Roman Zolansky by Nicki Minaj is so effing genius. The vocal inflexions, the constumes, the twisted story behind the character, the lyrics, all gathers to creat an unforgettable and recognizable persona

[@Salsawithchips]

I did not realize how many iconic songs Nicki has made using these alter egos. It truly makes the world of creativity endless.

[@johngerygooz3251]

I usually don't like Nicki Minaj, but her verse on "Monster" is goated. She uses alter egos there, too.

[@Feteronii]

electra heart was an alter ego with 4 different archetypes inside her which was insane! and every marina + the diamonds album is a different era/persona (less so for her MARINA albums which are just her lol)

[@Jeffbuckleygrace]

Taylor Swift saying ‘the old Taylor can’t come to the phone right now’ has to be one of the most nothing nothingnesses of ‘alter egos’ because it isn’t even an alter ego but she expected people to view her with an edge from then on

[@youtubeisboring9709]

As the lead single of her album, it set the tone for a majority of her songs and was at that point the most self reflective she had been on any of her albums. That line is her shedding her "skin" and becoming the villain of the narrative that kim and kanye had spun. There are multiple references to different celebs that she's softly dissimg. They are like soft diss tracks, but I like them. I think it would have been way too unsettling for her fans if she came out cussing and wearing way too skimpy outfits

[@Jeffbuckleygrace]

@@youtubeisboring9709 It was nice that she tried to do that but it still wasn’t good.

[@gravityemblem8931]

Taylor Swift's whole personality is an alter ego. There's no real person underneath. Only a mask.

[@2-Way_Intersection]

wait, in my head new/old taylor was just her transitioning from country to pop

[@youtubeisboring9709]

@@2-Way_Intersection lmao no, she already moved to pop with her album 1989 which is ger first full pop album, red had a few pop songs but 1989 really was just pop. With lead singles like Shake it off, Blank space, Out of the woods and Style there was no way anyone would mistake ot for country.

[@-Sheva-]

David Bowie is THE ARTIST of alter egos. He did so much with them and he used them all to such great effect in his art. There will never be an artist that can do it as effectively as he did.

[@yourboibigbrain7353]

MF DOOM was better with alter egos ong

[@felixthemammoth]

@@yourboibigbrain7353 not true. David Bowie was literally deemed the Cameleon.

[@aykanyavas6398]

@@yourboibigbrain7353 Ziggy Stardust and The Thin White Duke alone are more iconic than MF DOOM as a whole. No artist had as many iconic personas as Bowie.

[@-Sheva-]

@@yourboibigbrain7353 I’m not the most knowledgeable in regards to MF Doom, I only know a little bit, and I do know Bowie, and I find it hard to believe that anyone could even come close to his masterful use of his characters. Bowie was a performer, and definitely had more of a performance art style than MF Doom, so I think that Bowie undoubtedly made better use of his personas through his performance style. Bowie built characters, and he used those characters to built who he was as an artist, always changing, and always coming up with a new, intriguing way to express his ideas. Know one has, nor will anyone ever do what Bowie was able to do, there is a reason he is one of the most iconic and interesting artists of not only the 20th century, but in art period. It’s also worth noting that people know who Bowie’s personas are, but not many people know MF Doom’s.

[@XANAX-Pilled]

@@yourboibigbrain7353 Cuz. You obviously don't listen to Bowie. DOOM is the master in Hip Hop, no doubt. But...yeah. Dig you some Bowie: David Jones, David Bowie, Ziggy Stardust, Thin White Duke, Aladin Sane, Leon Blank, Algeria Touchshriek, Ramona A Stone, Nathan Adler...need i go on?

[@hazewith2es]

Great video! I also would have loved to see Tyler and MF DOOM’s alter egos

[@jenske2881]

Not much difference other then for tyke the story of an album

[@overnord1972]

Can’t forget The Beatles’s alter ego: Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band!

[@shikharsehgal3612]

forgot igor? probably my favourite alter ego

[@RRobbie1]

If you’re talking alter egos you would have to mention Tyler the creator. I mean the evolution from wolf Haley to Igor is crazy

[@josephwest124]

Prince was a rare case who not only performed as "other people" but *wrote* as other people. We all know that Prince wrote "Manic Monday" (and even offered a full backing track that he performed) for the Bangles but he wrote it under the alias of "Christopher" and he used the name "Alexander Nevermind" as the songwriting credit for Sheena Easton's "Sugar Walls" and "Joey Coco" for Sheena's "101" from "The Lover in Me" album.

[@fnjesusfreak]

Think he used Joey Coco for Kenny Rogers too. And Jamie★Starr as a producer.

[@lionrockr]

​@@fnjesusfreakhe also used the name Toro Toro while with the NPG for a short time.

[@giancassa9340]

Crazy how unfortunately you didn’t talk that much about Bowie’s alter ego’s I find them all fascinating…

[@InkAndPoet]

I like Nicki Minaj has her own chapter.

[@amaterasu_fm5396]

Two artists that impressed me a lot with their alter egos are The Weeknds after hours and dawn fm, and Tyler's Igor

[@toyszz5250]

always been a sucker for alter egos. such a fun way to be creative. the stuff people come up for their alter egos is amazing. a weirdly specific one i always liked is dan tha automator alter ego for is oh so horny album "lovage: music to make love to your lady by". a shit ton of other artists show up, also under different names, the entire thing is a weird camp fever dream that i just love.

[@derraumdeuter3671]

David Bowie always took his alter egos seriously....... sometimes too seriously *cough* ahhm (thin white Duke)

[@XANAX-Pilled]

He got it from Nicki Minaj. That's why Bowie isn't brought up.😂

[@tyronecriss23]

You gave me a whole new appreciation for Onika Maraj.

[@arlofleenor1838]

hey man i always really really enjoy your content. you have a very eloquent and entertaining way of exploring ideas. keep up the awesome work!

[@JC-jz3ry]

Prince actually had two other alter egos - Camille and Spooky Electric

[@TheBrainvision]

Joey Coco, Jamie Starr, Alexander Nevermind and Christopher as well :) Damn, we lost a good one....

[@presto1234]

always excited for new videos :)

[@nzhiphop1]

Great video! I do wish you mentioned Kool Keith, Del the Funky Homosapien and MF DOOM though. I know they're more underground then everyone discussed here but you're definitely aware of them and they get incredibly deep into their alter egos.

[@felixthemammoth]

all nice but you forgot the Cameleon himself, David Bowie.

[@carseatheadrestlover911]

will toledo as trait on madlo is a pretty cool alter ego. Also all of the alter egos of Tyler the Creator

[@CommonTime64]

love the intro!

[@VanlifeTroglio]

loving the videos!

[@Tyoxy]

Another great video from you! Another great use of an alter ego was IGOR from Tyler

[@phasang9634]

Magnifico cool video. I did not know some of these names. It great learning new things

[@Morvont]

Bro your content is too good

[@sofokliskalantzis]

The weeknd - Abel tasfey is a great one.The two are at this point a different person as we saw through after hours and dawn fm.He is telling his story through the character.

[@Juelz_GnW]

Love your content❤️

[@BeckyLStoutWriter]

Forgive me for being how I am sometimes, but I never thought of all those bands Prince was behind or even Damon Albarn creating Gorillaz as being their alter egos. I just thought of them as projects they were involved in on the side of their main careers. I don't know, though. Maybe the best alter egos are the ones where you don't even realize that's what they are. Oh, and by the way, I love this intro you've got now! 👍

[@delusionalx2605]

One of my favorite alter ego’s is Dan Campbell’s (The Wonder Years) Aaron West character. Such fantastic music and such a believable and organic feeing character

[@possiblyadog]

Jo Calderone is the best thing to come out of Music Awards and only Gaga had the balls to pull it off heh

[@barry4649]

Kanye’s alter ego is Josef Goebbels 😂

[@hazewith2es]

He’s just gearing up to release Yitler

[@tylerhackner9731]

Love your vids

[@gamedude3005]

Where is the hello in the opener?!?!? I need it! Fr the opener always gets me excited for some great music analysis or discussion

[@iop2121]

Car Seat Headrest also being 1 Trait Danger is another example

[@neekopat]

Great video, but it's a crime that you didn't mention MF DOOM and his alter egos in Viktor Vaughn and King Geedorah. Even DOOM himself is a character, and went by the name Zev Love X prior to becoming the villain

[@kellycoleman7242]

My Chemical Romance as The Black Parade & The Fabulous Killjoys.

[@timeenbyvictorious]

a great example of an alter ego is Madlib's Quasimoto.

[@XANAX-Pilled]

Shhhhh. First rule of Quasimoto is we don't talk about Quasimoto...or Mr. Fantastic.

[@timeenbyvictorious]

@@XANAX-Pilled aight whatever u say

[@XANAX-Pilled]

@@timeenbyvictorious THOSE ARE THE RULES. So. Do you have a theory as to who Mr Fantastik is? I really don't!

[@notbrian6805]

What's the difference between an alter ego and an era, what if it's not an alter ego but them just feeling like going outside their usual music once in a while like Tyler's Igor and Lil Yachtys let's start here

[@howdydohowareyouimtheserge891]

Well Eminem told us that Slim Shady is a demonic persona and entity. So what does that tell us about the other celebs and having an “alter ego” in general? Hint word: ego

[@2-Way_Intersection]

2:58 honestly, no idea why she didnt just go with Wariah

[@Bogfrog1]

One of my favorites is when tte Meridian Brothers “collabed” with El Grupo Renacimiento to make a salsa album even though both groups were the same band to begin with

[@Ads_Snaps]

Not mentioning MF Doom or Madlib is a hate crime...

[@XANAX-Pilled]

Or Kool Keith. Or David Bowie ffs.

[@thelastpepsi9369]

DOOM is the main one I think of. Love how with Bistro,it’s just a shoutout track of his and Madlibs alter egos which doesn’t even cover all of them

[@Ricky-wz3su]

Idk how you talk about alter egos without mentioning sgt peppers or igor

[@AngelEyesVanCleef]

Kool Keith comes to mind when thinking of alter egos.

[@wheelsofmercury]

One example I can think of with alter-egos that has been blowing up in the underground black metal scene on Bandcamp over the past 5 years is with Damían Anton Ojeda. This guy has many different projects, but the most successful ones by far have been his emo-tinged blackgaze/depressive black metal project Sadness and a project caled Trhä where he records under the name Thët Älef and does vocals in a constructed made-up language that he created. He even dons corpsepaint as Thët Älef, too!

[@NekoJesus]

I have an album idea now based off of your last line

[@jimmyvanilla5285]

Has their been any news on the Prince Camille album?

[@valentine1993]

how could you forget kranky kranky and luh geeky

[@Foureyezthegamersucksatgames]

I'm surprised mf doom and Tyler wasn't mentioned, Tyler Especially. Dude has a alter ego for every album

[@FabioGnecco]

Where's my man Kool Keith ????? Really, Kool list !

[@newshafh]

blurryface - tyler joseph

[@tjrmakhetha]

THANK GOD FOR CONSISTENT ALPHO

[@ankurbanerjee6968]

Logic and Bobby would be a good shout here

[@studioplopmemes2985]

i really relate to snoop dogg and snoop lion as i also enjoy the fumes of some herbs

[@RabbiB0Y]

Having a whole ass section talking in some sort of educated manor about nicki minja is the funniest shit imaginable

[@XANAX-Pilled]

Yup. Whole chapter about Minaj and three words on bowie. 😂😋🤔

[@kujo4388]

Insane how you still downplay her

[@BozeDoesGodsWork]

Well Nicki Minaj is a complex and talented woman and her alter egos are quite famous in the overall pop culture realm. Especially Roman and Barbie. I get you not liking Rap music but why must you put her down and not respect her hard work and marketing skills?

[@BonGrips]

MF DOOM, Mac Millers delusional Thomas, madlib’s quasimoto, flying lotus’ captain Murphy, or anything Kool Keith. So many good ones not mentioned.

[@tedyiovchev3]

let's not forget about Mac Miller and Larry Fisherman and Larry Lovestein and Delusional Thomas

[@PPYTAO]

Did I somehow just fall in love with Nicki Minaj Lore 🤔 I'm so confused.

[@nicholasrosella2952]

Does anyone know of a good video about Andy Kaufman? I swear I saw one around a year ago but can't really find anything now

[@supercoolfriendskelly2884]

The dukes of stratosphere

[@on_crack4466]

Really felt like you should have mentioned Kiss, their whole entire thing has been about their alter egos. More people know them as Starchild and Demon than Gene Simmons And Paul Stanley.

[@lapinte8136]

Would've loved to see you talk about MF DOOM with his wide variety of alter egos

[@barry4649]

What about Shawn Carters alter ego Jay Z? 😂

[@bexniccals3686]

Hey Alfo Could You Please Make A Solo Video For Gorillaz?

[@keatonrollene5314]

Pleaseeee listen to DEKO and his alter ego yameii online. This kinda proves what you say at the end of the video where "ai" is front and center. his album Nu Radio is so hard

[@klenk12]

Surprised to see tyler left off this list.

[@justapencil391]

How could you forget Yeezus by ye one of the best altar egos

[@naoarranjeinenhumnomemelhor]

there was a disturbing lack of kool keith in this video

[@diegoamadornogueda4242]

Loved the video but, no MF DOOM?????

[@ronnierockit4468]

I want that Chris Gaines shirt. Oh my god I want that Chris Gaines shirt.

[@camilrath5990]

Love the vid... BUT NO MF DOOM BRUH? HE MADE ALTER EGOS TO COMPETE WITH HIMSELF

[@cotey7744]

Weiner didn’t mention Abel Tesfaye 💀

[@Kotsu-ChanRoss]

mfw no mention of the Fabulous Killjoys or the Black Parade

[@allanholm3343]

I think Slipknot should definitly deserved to get a shout

[@thebikehippie6562]

Apu: Elton John! Elton John: That's my name. Well, not really.

[@yes-hw5fs]

i know you didn’t go through this entire video without mentioning DOOM or madlib

[@descendingforth]

You can't make a video on alter egos and not mention the thin white duke.

[@georgeplucky631]

how can you mention green day, the network, but not the foxboro hottubs?

[@yusufpolatzorba9072]

No mention of Madlib? Dude has a quintet made up of just him and himself.

[@ByDobson]

Kool Keith had so many different alter ego's

[@charliedulce]

no Wolf Haley?😔

[@logantownes05]

See Beyoncé’s alter ego shows off in her old performance’s like the 2006 BET Awards, where she just gets wild

[@eeang3]

pink guy and joji

[@chantoya17]

I'm surprised Tyler, the Creator wasn't even mentioned.

[@zzzjamie-dimaulozzz]

you actually really don’t have to do this, but can you talk about lil yachtys new album? it was obviously the most left turn thing in his career, but it’s also weird to think of the future of his career

[@th3kiki108]

How do you make this video and not mention MF DOOM...

[@ericmaluko4251]

how could you forget Young Thug's alter ego, 'Sex'

[@BowieRulez]

Uuuh….the fact you only mentioned David Bowie once in this video is so wrong. The name David Bowie is itself an alter ego. Then he was Ziggy, then the Thin White Duke, then he had his Berlin Period where he got straight. Then he was floundering a bit, then he was broke and decided he needed to make money and put out the Lets Dance album, and became the soot suited, bleached haired pop star which was a huge departure from what came before. Then on his next album he was Screaming Lord Byron and a geek in the same video. Then he grew his hair long (again) and put out some stuff he wasn’t too proud of so he could be shot of his label commitments. Then the 90s came along. He changed again. Created a rock band that some fans didn’t seem to like (why I dunno. Tin Machine was brilliant). He did the whole NIN nails thing after that. I know I’m missing some things. But it just kept going and changing and seriously, there’s a reason Bowie was called the chameleon of rock. One tiny mention. SMH.

[@nathanielthomas1894]

No Tyler?

[@timkramar9729]

Prince was about copyright.

[@tss3393]

No Daft Punk?

[@ryandimaggio2773]

You're telling me Chris Barnes is actually Garth Brooks? Talk about range

[@gabiocampos]

Bowie is the king of alter egos