Shia LaBeouf (song)

"Shia LaBeouf" is a comedic song by Rob Cantor about actor Shia LaBeouf. The song, which was released in 2012, depicts LaBeouf as an "actual cannibal" who kills other people for sport.[1]

In a 2012 interview with The Washington Post, Cantor explained that he had penned the song in 2011, inspired by his friend Andrew Laurich, who randomly started whispering "Shia LaBeouf!" dramatically. The concept of the cannibal-in-the-woods came from that dramatic whisper. Cantor recorded a demo and posted it to SoundCloud where it quickly gained popularity.[2] Cantor explained that he wasn't a LaBeouf "superfan" and that his main reason for creating the song was that "It was more that his name, when whispered really intensely, just made me giggle."[3]

In October 2014, Cantor released a music video for the song, entitled "Shia LaBeouf Live", featuring a cameo from LaBeouf himself.[1] In a 2014 interview with MTV, Cantor explained that he emailed LaBeouf's management on the off-chance that he might cameo in the video and he was pleasantly surprised when they agreed.[2] Filming took place at the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center, and featured new string and choral arrangements by composer Greg Nicolett. The recording features musicians from the Los Angeles area such as the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles, West Los Angeles Children's Choir and the Argus Quartet, as well as Tally Hall alum Zubin Sedghi on bass guitar.

The video was inspired by then-recent incidents in which LaBeouf had behaved strangely in public.[4]