While there may be a lot of things wrong with the world we live in today, the new season of South Park just started last night, so thats at least one recent event that we can mark in the “win” column. Known for their bitingly clever satire and absurdist sense of humor, the show has frequently riffed on popular music and artists, from gay fish Kanye West, to the “mysterious” true identity of Lorde, to crunchy “Hippie Jam Fest 2005” headliners Phish.
Last night, the show kicked off its 21st (?!) season, and while the kids are still somehow in elementary school decades later, their humor hasn’t lost step with the art of topical humor. In the episode, the main “joke” is that, in order to increase jobs, tasks for which we’ve gotten used to relying on electronics are replaced by actual human laborers. Perpeturally-spoiled and bratty character Eric Cartman learns of this “advancement” when his precious voice-activated “Alexa” device disappears and his mom informs him that she has replaced it with a “Jim Bob.”
Watch Kendrick Lamar Perform Fiery Medley Of “HUMBLE.” & “DNA.” At The Video Music Awards
“Jim Bob,” it turns out, is a fat redneck wielding a bunch of cell phones and other devices to “replicate” the functions of “Alexa.” As part of demonstrating the abilities of the “Jim Bob,” responds to a command to “Play Kendrick Lamar” with a hilarious twangy southern country reinterpretation of his recent smash hit, “HUMBLE.”
You can watch the hillbilly “HUMBLE.” below, via Hulu:
For comparison, in case you have been living under a rock since April, here’s the original version of Kendrick Lamar’s “HUMBLE.” for comparison:
New episodes of South Park air Wednesday nights on Comedy Central.
Kendrick Lamar completed a full-blown national arena tour this summer behind his critically and commercially successful LP, DAMN., and recently won 6 awards at the MTV Video Music Awards, where he performed a medley of two DAMN. tracks complete with flaming ninjas and more pyrotechnic brilliance. The rapper has no tour dates or projects currently announced, but with his recent success, it’s hard to imagine that being the case for too long.
[h/t – Pitchfork]