Tom Cardy

Tom Cardy
Born (1994-06-12) 12 June 1994 (age 30)
Sydney, Australia
Occupations
  • Comedian
  • musician
  • songwriter
  • actor
Years active2013–present
Comedy career
Genres
Websitecampsite.bio/tomycardy

Tom Cardy (born 12 June 1994) is an Australian comedian, musician, songwriter, and actor. He became known in Australia for his "Song Sequels" segments on the radio station Triple J in 2020, and achieved more international recognition when he began posting comedy songs and videos on TikTok and YouTube. He has composed music for the comedy series The Feed and The Moth Effect, as well as the animated web series Helluva Boss. His debut EP, Artificial Intelligence (2021), peaked at No. 40 on the ARIA Albums Chart. He was shortlisted for the AACTA Award for Favourite Digital Content Creator and the Craft Award for Writing at the Streamy Awards.

Early life

Cardy was born in Sydney on 12 June 1994.[1] He has two older sisters: Alex, a cinematographer,[2] and Stephanie, a doctor.[3][4] He and his sisters took piano and drum lessons during childhood at the behest of their parents, and he was the only one who chose to continue when their parents asked them if they wanted to stop.[5] He studied music and psychology at the University of Sydney,[6] then studied at technical and further education to sharpen his music production skills.[6]

Career

While at university, Cardy wrote and performed for several arts revues in addition to his own sold-out comedy festival shows.[7] Around this time, he played drums for Sydney band the Lulu Raes.[8] He also began regularly appearing on the Australian Dungeons & Dragons podcast Dragon Friends, where he participated as a player and provided musical accompaniment. In September 2020, he was featured on fellow musical comedian Bridie Connell's single "Armageddon (It On)".[9] That year, he also began working with the radio station Triple J on its popular "Song Sequels" segments, in which he produces parodies of famous songs.[8]

Cardy released his debut single, "Mixed Messages", on 30 July 2021.[10][11] He released his debut EP, Artificial Intelligence, the following week.[12] On 12 August, he was a guest on Triple J's drive time program Hobba & Hing, where he discussed how the EP came to be made.[4] Artificial Intelligence debuted at No. 40 on the ARIA Albums Chart.[13] On 9 September, he released the single "Fruit Salad".[14] On 20 October, he was nominated for the Craft Award for Writing at the 11th Streamy Awards.[15] On 3 November, he was shortlisted for the audience-voted Favourite Digital Content Creator Award at the 11th AACTA Awards,[16] but did not make it through to the list of five finalists.[17] On 21 November, he released the Christmas-themed single "Not Quite Almost Christmas Time".[18]

On 23 January 2022, Cardy had two songs voted into Triple J's Hottest 100 of 2021 when "Mixed Messages" and "H.Y.C.Y.BH" were respectively ranked at No. 17 and No. 11.[19] On 9 February, he was cast alongside musician Montaigne in the SBS musical comedy Time to Buy.[20] Montaigne also featured on his song "Red Flags". On 17 February, he was a guest on Hobba & Hing, where he debuted a song about host Lewis Hobba called "Weird Guy", which was recorded as a prank during Hobba's COVID-induced absence. The song additionally features Montaigne.[21] On 21 February, he was featured in an interview published by Rolling Stone Australia.[8] In the interview, he discussed his sudden popularity on TikTok and explained that his success mostly comes from creating a number of extremely short songs designed to be shared online, some of which get expanded into full-length songs.[22][23] On 6 August, he uploaded the video for a new song titled "Hey, I Don't Work Here" and announced that his debut studio album would be released in the near future.[24] The album, titled Big Dumb Idiot, was released on 9 December 2022.[25]

In 2023, Cardy continued to release singles such as "H.S", "Beautiful Mind" (featuring Brian David Gilbert), and "Perception Check". In 2024, he co-wrote a song for the Orpheus DLC of the video game Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical, which was released on 27 June.[26] He also featured on the Ninja Sex Party song "Dance 'Til You Stop"[27] and alongside Montaigne on the TWRP song "Online".[28] His second studio album, The Dancefloor at the End of the Universe, was released on 18 October 2024.[29][30]

Musical style

Cardy's style of musical comedy often incorporates elements of awkward humour, observational humour, and surreal humour.[31]

Discography

Studio albums

Title Details
Big Dumb Idiot
The Dancefloor at the End of the Universe

Extended plays

Title Details Peak position
ARIA Charts
Artificial Intelligence
40[32]

Singles

As lead artist

Year Title Album
2021 "Mixed Messages" Artificial Intelligence
"Fruit Salad"[14] Non-album single
"Not Quite Almost Christmas Time"[18]
2022 "Red Flags" (featuring Montaigne)[33] Big Dumb Idiot
2023 "H.S"[34] The Dancefloor at the End of the Universe
"Beautiful Mind" (featuring Brian David Gilbert)
"Perception Check"
2024 "Transcendental Cha Cha Cha"
Year Title Artist
2020 "Armageddon (It On)" Bridie Connell (feat. Tom Cardy)
2024 "Dance 'Til You Stop" Ninja Sex Party (feat. Tom Cardy)
2024 "Online" TWRP (feat. Tom Cardy, Montaigne)

As songwriter only

Year Title Artist(s) Writer(s)
2021 "Classic" F–Pos (feat. Goldfang and Moody Beach) F–Pos, Tom Cardy, Melissah Picca, Jamunajai Renaud[35]

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
2017 On the Fringe Reuben TV series
2021 The Feed Presents: Cancelled! Various Characters TV special
2022 Time to Buy Virtual Real Estate Agent SBS musical comedy[20][36]
2023 Helluva Boss Composer, Vocalist Web series[37]

Awards and nominations

AACTA Awards

Main article: AACTA Awards
Year Nominee / work Award Result Ref.
2021 Himself Favourite Digital Content Creator Shortlisted [16][17]

Streamy Awards

Main article: Streamy Awards
Year Nominee / work Award Result Ref.
2021 Himself Craft Award for Writing Nominated [38]

References

  1. ^ "Happy birthday to our friend and drummer, Tom Cardy – 22!". The Lulu Raes. 12 June 2016. Archived from the original on 25 January 2022. Retrieved 25 January 2022 – via Facebook.
  2. ^ Alex Cardy, cinematographer
  3. ^ Dr. Stephanie Cardy on LinkedIn
  4. ^ a b Bracken, Claire (12 August 2021). "Song Sequels' Tom Cardy drops an album". Triple J. Archived from the original on 13 August 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  5. ^ "Milky Interviews Tom Cardy". YouTube. 2 March 2022.
  6. ^ a b Bonyhady, Nick (23 March 2022). "The secret to TikTok stardom? Don't be yourself". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
  7. ^ "Tom Cardy". Improv Theatre Sydney. Archived from the original on 24 November 2020. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  8. ^ a b c Jenke, Tyler (21 February 2022). "'I thought that after a month or two, my run would be over' – Tom Cardy on his viral rise to fame". Rolling Stone Australia. Archived from the original on 21 February 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  9. ^ "Armageddon (It On) [feat. Tom Cardy] – Single by Bridie Connell on Apple Music". Apple Music. 2 September 2020. Archived from the original on 13 August 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  10. ^ Briscoe, Joe (5 January 2022). "Tom Cardy: Mixed Messages". David Reviews. Archived from the original on 25 January 2022. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  11. ^ "Mixed Messages – Single by Tom Cardy on Apple Music". Apple Music. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  12. ^ "Artificial Intelligence by Tom Cardy on Apple Music". Apple Music. Archived from the original on 13 August 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  13. ^ "Billie Eilish holds ARIA Charts #1 album for second week with Happier Than Ever". Australian Recording Industry Association. 13 August 2021. Archived from the original on 13 August 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  14. ^ a b "Fruit Salad – Single by Tom Cardy on Apple Music". Apple Music. Archived from the original on 2 December 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  15. ^ Complex, Valerie (20 October 2021). "Streamy Awards nominations announced; names include MrBeast, Lil Nas X, Ryan Reynolds". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 20 October 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  16. ^ a b Lochrie, Conor (3 November 2021). "Christian Hull has been nominated for an AACTA Award". The Brag. Archived from the original on 3 November 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  17. ^ a b Cartwright, Lexie (5 December 2021). "AACTAs 2021 nominations for audience choice categories announced". News.com.au. Archived from the original on 5 December 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  18. ^ a b "Not Quite Almost Christmas Time – Single by Tom Cardy on Apple Music". Apple Music. Archived from the original on 2 December 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  19. ^ Gwee, Karen (22 January 2022). "triple j Hottest 100 of 2021: here are all the songs in the countdown". NME Australia. Archived from the original on 22 January 2022. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  20. ^ a b Doria, Matt (9 February 2022). "Montaigne to star in musical comedy Time to Buy". NME Australia. Archived from the original on 23 February 2022. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  21. ^ "Tom Cardy pranks radio host with surprise song". Triple J. 22 February 2022. Archived from the original on 24 February 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2022 – via YouTube.
  22. ^ "Business Man". YouTube. 22 March 2021.
  23. ^ "Business Man". YouTube. 7 August 2022.
  24. ^ "Hey, I don't work here - (Official Music Video)". YouTube. 6 August 2022.
  25. ^ https://twitter.com/Tomycardy/status/1596324452576333824 [bare URL]
  26. ^ "Stray Gods: Orpheus adds six new songs, coming June 27 to all platforms". GodisaGeek.com. 21 June 2024. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
  27. ^ "Dance 'Til You Stop (Feat. Tom Cardy) - NSP". YouTube. 8 March 2024.
  28. ^ "Online (TWRP & Montaigne) - Music Video". YouTube. 18 April 2024.
  29. ^ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCW7AGm8JSBEEew61dJIgl_A/community?lb=UgkxRcpLJu9VG10lCaAj2Uh6aHhELoG3SfX-
  30. ^ https://www.instagram.com/p/DAhAvNKTi7S/
  31. ^ Newstead, Al (22 January 2022). "How Tom Cardy, TikTok musical comedy star, cracked the Hottest 100". Triple J. Archived from the original on 22 January 2022. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  32. ^ "ARIA Top 50 Albums for week of 16 August 2021". Australian Recording Industry Association. 16 August 2021. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  33. ^ "Red Flags". Apple Music. 2 December 2022. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  34. ^ H.S - Single by Tom Cardy, 15 September 2023, retrieved 16 September 2023
  35. ^ Looking for a Classic (cassette booklet). F-Pos. Australia: Space 44. 2021.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  36. ^ McManus, Bridget (5 March 2022). "Homebuyer blues: The musical comedy taking aim at the property market". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 12 August 2022. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  37. ^ "Mammon's Magnificent Musical Mid-Season Special IMDB page". IMDB. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  38. ^ Spangler, Todd (10 October 2021). "YouTube Streamy Awards 2021 nominations announced, MrBeast leads with seven nods". Variety. Archived from the original on 20 October 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2021.