The only child of Nick Louis Yankovic (a Serb-American) and Mary Elizabeth Vivalda (of Italian and English descent),[1] Alfred Matthew Yankovic was born in Downey, California, but raised in the nearby town of Lynwood. He first started playing the accordion one day before his seventh birthday. When a door to door salesman came around offering accordion and guitar lessons, his father opted for accordion saying that there should be one more accordion playing Yankovic in the world besides polka king Frankie Yankovic (to whom he has no relation). He mastered the instrument by age ten, after which he quit lessons to pursue it on his own. He now uses a youth sized accordion, with which he is able to jump around more vigorously.

After hearing Dr. Demento's radio show (a comedy radio program featuring humorous music), Yankovic sent the Doctor a tape of a song entitled "Belvedere Cruisin'", a song about his family's current vehicle, in 1976. Another song, included on the tape, which never received airtime, was entitled "Dr. D Superstar" and was a parody of "Jesus Christ Superstar"[2]. He was a senior at Lynwood High School at the time, but that tape was the start of his eventual career.