Brian Wecht

Last updated

Brian Wecht
Ninja Sex Party on the set of Next To You (Brian closeup).jpg
Wecht as his Ninja Brian character in 2012
Born
Brian Alexander Wecht

(1975-04-22) April 22, 1975 (age 49)
Pompton Plains, New Jersey, U.S.
Other namesNinja Brian, Trey Magnifique
Occupation(s) Theoretical physicist, musician, songwriter, record producer, Internet personality
Years active2009–present
SpouseRachel Bitney
Musical career
Genres Comedy rock, synth-pop, electronic
Instrument(s)Keyboards, piano, saxophone, clarinet, programming
Member of Game Grumps , Ninja Sex Party, Starbomb
Scientific career
Fields Theoretical physics
Thesis Topics in string theory and supersymmetry: a-maximization, nongeometric compactifications, and tachyon cosmology  (2004)
Doctoral advisor Kenneth A. Intriligator

Brian Alexander Wecht, [1] also known by his character name Ninja Brian, is an American musician, Internet personality, podcaster, and theoretical physicist. He is best known as a member of comedy musical duo Ninja Sex Party and video game-based comedy music trio Starbomb. He has also been a past member of the affiliated Let's Play webseries Game Grumps , all three alongside Dan Avidan.

Contents

Wecht originally worked as a theoretical physicist, and notably held research positions at Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Institute for Advanced Study, the University of Michigan, and the Queen Mary University of London. [2] [3] Specialized in particle physics, his work included research on string theory, supersymmetry, and quantum field theory. [4] [5] He retired in 2015, choosing to join Game Grumps while focusing on his musical career. [6] He is also the co-creator of The Story Collider, a science-based story telling podcast recorded in front of a live audience. [7]

In Ninja Sex Party, Wecht plays the character of "Ninja Brian", a non-verbal, homicidal masked ninja, in both live shows and music videos. He performed all instruments on early Ninja Sex Party albums, until TWRP started acting as their backing band in 2015. Wecht also co-hosts the podcast Leighton Night with Brian Wecht and portrays Ninja Brian on his live comedy show titled Ninja Brian's All-Star Variety Luau Spectacular. [8] [9] [10] [11] [12]

Career

Education

Wecht attended Williams College and the University of California, San Diego where he obtained his PhD in particle physics in 2004. [2] Wecht held research positions at Harvard University, the Center for Theoretical Physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Institute for Advanced Study, and the University of Michigan, prior to becoming a faculty member at the Queen Mary University of London. [3] While there, Wecht worked on string theory, supersymmetry, and quantum field theory. [4] [5]

Wecht has an extensive record of highly cited contributions. [13] He retired in 2015 to join Game Grumps and dedicate himself to his music career. [6] [ failed verification ]

Ninja Sex Party

Ninja Sex Party performing in 2019 NSPRepublikHawaii.jpg
Ninja Sex Party performing in 2019

Prior to meeting Dan Avidan, Wecht was the musical director of an improv comedy troupe in New York. [14] In 2009, Avidan, who had conceptualized Ninja Sex Party and was in search of a bandmate and/or producer, was introduced to Wecht by Julie Katz, a member of Wecht's comedy troupe (who would later be featured in Ninja Sex Party's music video "The Decision"), to whom Avidan had asked if she knew any musicians. [15]

Specializing in humorous songs, both on stage or in their music videos, the duo started by appearing on various film festivals. [16] [17] [18] They regularly published original songs on their YouTube channel, which progressively helped them in becoming popular, as well as studio albums on a regular basis. Although he only played keyboards on stage, Wecht performed all instruments on early Ninja Sex Party albums, including piano and drum machines, while Avidan was in charge of all vocals, except for occasional backing or spoken vocals by Wecht. Ultimately, the duo was joined by backing band Tupper Ware Remix Party in 2015, after which Wecht focused solely on keyboards for studio recordings.

Starbomb

Wecht's bandmate Dan Avidan had been the co-host of the Let's Play webseries Game Grumps since 2013. The same year, Wecht, Avidan, and Avidan's Game Grumps co-host Arin Hanson formed Starbomb. [19] This new comedy band followed the humorous style of Ninja Sex Party, but focused on video game parodies. The project was officially revealed on December 3, 2013. [20] [21] It was quickly followed by a self-titled album on December 17. [22] [23] [24] A second album, Player Select , was released on December 16, 2014.

Starbomb's third album, The TryForce , was released on April 19, 2019. [25] [26] [27]

Game Grumps

Wecht officially joined the Game Grumps team alongside Avidan and Hanson on November 5, 2015, becoming their new social media manager; he had occasionally appeared in their videos, mainly alongside Avidan to promote Ninja Sex Party. [6] The team officially introduced him via a humorous sketch featured at the beginning of their BurgerTime video, "revealing" him to be the secret mastermind behind Game Grumps all along. [28]

He is occasionally featured in some of their videos, mostly in Grumpcade and Steam Train, but also in several non-gameplay videos. [28] [29] [30] He was the co-writer, composer and puppeteer on their promotional short I Burgie Burgie, and its sequel All Hail Burgie. [31] [32]

Others

Wecht appeared in an episode of Hot Pepper Game Review episode on September 16, 2013, "reviewing" the video game Dark under his Ninja Brian persona after eating a "very spicy" chili pepper; the episode is a joke, as Ninja Brian simply stares at the camera in silence for the entire episode, not blinking a single time in almost four minutes. [33] Although his mouth is not visible, Wecht confirmed that he did actually eat the pepper while filming. [34]

He also appeared in the fourth episode of the second season of Child Genius in 2014, having set questions about string theory for the participants, and reacting to their different answers.

He voiced the character of Quizzmaster Quinn in the video game Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator , a 2017 visual novel video game made by members of Game Grumps. He also appeared in two episodes of Good Game , a webseries starring Avidan and Hanson.

Alongside fellow Game Grumps member Barry Kramer and Rooster Teeth writer Miles Luna, Wecht co-wrote the episode "Grey vs. Gray" of Red vs. Blue . [35] [36]

In 2020, Wecht began co-hosting the podcast Leighton Night with Brian Wecht alongside writer and game developer Leighton Gray.

Alongside Jim Roach, Wecht creates music for kids in a band called "Go Banana Go!" which has released three albums, Hi-ya! (2020), Dark Side of the Banana (2022), and Hot Fudge Saturday (2024).

Wecht released his first jazz album under the alias "Trey Magnifique" on November 10, 2023. [37]

Discography

Go Banana Go!

As Trey Magnifique

Ninja Sex Party

Starbomb

Personal life

Wecht is married to Rachel Wecht (née Bitney). The couple have a daughter, Audrey, who was born in 2014; nicknamed "Ninja Audrey", she appeared on several special Grumpcade episodes in 2017 with her father to celebrate Father's Day. [38] [39]

Wecht has a PhD and one of his inspirations for becoming a theoretical physicist was the television series Quantum Leap . [40] He is strongly pro-vaccine, and is critical of the use of pseudoscience over scientifically-proven treatments for serious illnesses and diseases. [41]

Bibliography

Forewords

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ninja Sex Party</span> American musical comedy duo

Ninja Sex Party is an American musical comedy duo consisting of singer Dan Avidan and keyboardist Brian Wecht. They formed in 2009 in New York City and are currently based in Los Angeles. They are also known as two thirds of the more rap-based musical trio Starbomb, together with frequent collaborator Arin Hanson.

<i>NSFW</i> (album) 2011 studio album by Ninja Sex Party

NSFW is the debut studio album by the American musical comedy duo Ninja Sex Party, released on September 29, 2011. It is a collection of all the songs that the duo released as music videos from October 22, 2009 to August 17, 2011, alongside new tracks. The song "Dinosaur Laser Fight" was the only single released from the album, and has a music video partially animated by Arin Hanson, also known as Egoraptor. Every song on the album has a music video except for "Introduction", "Accept My Shaft", and "Outroduction". The album was released on CD in 2015, and charted modestly well in the US.

<i>Strawberries and Cream</i> (album) 2013 studio album by Ninja Sex Party

Strawberries and Cream is the second studio album by the American musical comedy duo Ninja Sex Party. The album was released on April 15, 2013. Three tracks from the album, "FYI I Wanna F Your A", "Next to You", and "Unicorn Wizard", were released as singles prior to the album's release. The album was a modest success worldwide.

<i>Starbomb</i> (album) 2013 studio album by Starbomb

Starbomb is the eponymous debut studio album by American comedy supergroup Starbomb, composed of Dan Avidan and Brian Wecht of American comedy rock duo Ninja Sex Party and Flash animator and Internet personality Arin Hanson. Starbomb brings together the mostly sexually provocative musical stylings of Ninja Sex Party and the video game-based humor of Hanson. The album was released on December 17, 2013. Starbomb later collaborated on a second album, Player Select, released on December 16, 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arin Hanson</span> American YouTuber, actor, and animator (born 1987)

Arin Joseph Hanson, also known by the pseudonym Egoraptor, is an American YouTuber, actor, rapper, and animator. He is well known for his Flash cartoons, as well as being the co-founder and co-star of the popular YouTube Let's Play series Game Grumps.

<i>Game Grumps</i> Lets Play web series hosted by Arin Hanson and Dan Avidan

Game Grumps is an American Let's Play web series hosted by Arin Hanson (2012–present) and Dan Avidan (2013–present). Created in 2012 by co-hosts Hanson and Jon Jafari, the series centers around its hosts playing video games. After Jafari left the show in 2013 to focus on his own YouTube webseries, JonTron, he was succeeded by Avidan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dan Avidan</span> American musician and YouTuber (born 1979)

Leigh Daniel Avidan, also known by his stage name Danny Sexbang, is an American musician, internet personality, comedian, and actor. He is one half of the musical comedy duo Ninja Sex Party with Brian Wecht, as well as the co-host of the Let's Play webseries Game Grumps with Arin Hanson. He is also part of the more rap-based comedy music trio Starbomb with Hanson and Wecht, and the vocalist for the rock duo Shadow Academy, known for its inspiration from classic novels, alongside Jim Roach. As of October 2023, Avidan also performs vocals for the electronic music duo Skyhill, originally formed in 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dinosaur Laser Fight</span> 2011 song by Ninja Sex Party

"Dinosaur Laser Fight" is the debut single by American comedy rock duo Ninja Sex Party, released on August 17, 2011. The song is included as a track on the band's debut studio album NSFW.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dragon Slayer (song)</span> 2014 single by Ninja Sex Party

"Dragon Slayer" is a song written and performed by American comedy rock band Ninja Sex Party. The song was originally recorded for the band's third studio album Attitude City. The track was released as the band's sixth single on February 19, 2014, becoming the second single to be released in promotion of Attitude City.

<i>Player Select</i> 2014 studio album by Starbomb

Player Select is the second studio album by American comedy supergroup Starbomb, composed of Dan Avidan and Brian Wecht of American comedy duo Ninja Sex Party and Flash animator and Internet personality Arin Hanson. The album was released December 16, 2014 on iTunes, Amazon Music, Spotify and CDBaby. Following in the direction of the previous album, Player Select is mostly a video game parody album featuring the often-provocative adult comedy of Ninja Sex Party and incorporating the video-game humor of Hanson.

<i>Attitude City</i> 2015 studio album by Ninja Sex Party

Attitude City is the third studio album by the American musical comedy duo Ninja Sex Party. The album was released on July 17, 2015. Six tracks from the album, "Party of Three", "Dragon Slayer", "Attitude City", "Why I Cry", "Peppermint Creams", and "Road Trip" were all released as singles on their YouTube channel prior to its release. It was a commercial success, especially in the comedy music sector.

<i>Under the Covers</i> (Ninja Sex Party album) 2016 Ninja Sex Party album

Under the Covers is the fourth studio album by American comedy duo Ninja Sex Party, and their first cover album. The concept for the album and title were revealed on July 28, 2015, and the album released on March 4, 2016. Unlike their previous albums, Under the Covers is composed only of covers of songs from the 1970s and 1980s and strays from the duo's traditional comedic style.

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Starbomb is an American musical comedy group composed of Dan Avidan and Brian Wecht of musical comedy duo Ninja Sex Party together with Flash animator and Internet personality Arin Hanson and "space rock masters" TWRP, a Canadian music group known for collaborations with NSP. The songs of Starbomb consist of video game parodies; Avidan provides sung vocals, Hanson provides rapping vocals, and Wecht performs instruments. All three are also known as a part of YouTube Let's Play web series Game Grumps.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">6969</span> Song by Ninja Sex Party

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unicorn Wizard</span> 2012 single by Ninja Sex Party

"Unicorn Wizard" is a song written and performed by American comedy rock band Ninja Sex Party. The song was released as the band's fourth single on October 25, 2012, and was included as a track on the band's second studio album Strawberries and Cream.

<i>Under the Covers, Vol. II</i> 2017 studio album by Ninja Sex Party

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<i>Cool Patrol</i> 2018 studio album by Ninja Sex Party

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Danny Don't You Know</span> 2018 single by Ninja Sex Party

"Danny Don't You Know" is a song by American musical comedy duo Ninja Sex Party. It was released as a single along with a music video on June 25, 2018, and was later featured on their sixth studio album Cool Patrol, released on August 17, 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cool Patrol (song)</span> 2016 single by Ninja Sex Party

"Cool Patrol" is a song by American musical comedy duo Ninja Sex Party. It was released as a single along with a music video on October 18, 2016, and is the first single from their sixth studio album, released on August 17, 2018.

References

  1. ↑ "Record #1020184". INSPIRE-HEP .
  2. 1 2 "Brian Wecht – Institute for Advanced Study". IAS. December 9, 2019.
  3. 1 2 "Brian Wecht – NECSS". NECSS. Archived from the original on November 25, 2018. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
  4. 1 2 "TALK NERDY". Stitcher.
  5. 1 2 "Brian Wecht – Perimeter Institute". Perimeter Institute.
  6. 1 2 3 "Ninja Sex Party Tales of Strawberries and Cream". Living Myth Media. Archived from the original on March 16, 2014.
  7. ↑ "Pratfalls of Parenting". Pratfalls of Parenting. December 9, 2019.
  8. ↑ "Ninja Brian's All-Star Variety Luau Spectacular – Tickets – The Ballroom at Warehouse". Ticketfly. Archived from the original on July 27, 2018. Retrieved July 29, 2018.
  9. ↑ "Ninja Brian's All-Star Variety Luau Spectacular". Hard Rock Hotel. Archived from the original on July 27, 2018. Retrieved July 29, 2018.
  10. ↑ Wecht, Brian [@bwecht] (May 4, 2018). "Ninja Brian's All-Star Variety Luau Spectacular will be having its first-ever LA show at @theroxy on May 16th! Music! Comedy! Other weird stuff! With @SuperMegaShow @JPincorporated Sugar Rum Tantrum & more!" (Tweet). Retrieved July 29, 2018– via Twitter.
  11. ↑ "Ninja Brian's All Star Variety Luau Spectacular Show". HouseofIndependents. January 24, 2018. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
  12. ↑ "Leighton Night With Brian Wecht". Apple. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
  13. ↑ https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&q=Brian+Wecht&btnG=&as_sdt=1%2C33&as_sdtp= Google scholar
  14. ↑ Augustborn, Nicolas (January 9, 2013). "Ninja Sex Party Interview" – via YouTube.
  15. ↑ "Ninja Sex Party Interview". Double Down the Line. 2010. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
  16. ↑ "SXSW Lineup: Friday, March 11". Sched.org. March 11, 2011. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  17. ↑ "Music Videos". Dragon Con. September 2011. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  18. ↑ Garcia, Conrad (April 19, 2011). "Live Review: 3rd Annual L.A. Comedy Shorts Festival". Disarray Magazine. DisarrayMagazine.com. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  19. ↑ Napierski, Steve (December 19, 2013). "Luigi's Ballad". Dueling Analogs . Retrieved March 15, 2014.
  20. ↑ "Egoraptor and NSP are STARBOMB!". Arin Hanson. Show You. Retrieved December 18, 2013.
  21. ↑ Herd, James. "Egoraptor and Ninja Sex Party announce their newest project: STARBOMB". Pixcelation Entertainment. WordPress . Retrieved December 18, 2013.
  22. ↑ "Starbomb Is Coming NEXT WEEK!". Ninja Sex Party. YouTube, Google. Retrieved December 18, 2013.
  23. ↑ "STARBOMB Debut Album Pre-Order – GET HYPED!!". Game Grumps. YouTube, Google. Retrieved December 18, 2013.
  24. ↑ "Starbomb drops TOMORROW!". Ninja Sex Party. YouTube, Google. Retrieved December 18, 2013.
  25. ↑ "2019 Game Grumps Updates + More!". YouTube .
  26. ↑ "REGRETROID - Starbomb 3D Animated Music Video (By Antony Manley)". YouTube .
  27. ↑ Egoraptor, REGRETROID – Starbomb 3D Animated Music Video (by Antony Manley) , retrieved February 4, 2019
  28. 1 2 GameGrumps (November 5, 2015). "Burger Time – Grumpcade" . Retrieved November 26, 2017– via YouTube.
  29. ↑ GameGrumps (November 17, 2015). "Elevator Action – Grumpcade" . Retrieved November 26, 2017– via YouTube.
  30. ↑ GrumpOut (April 26, 2016). "The Ad Monster – GrumpOut" . Retrieved November 26, 2017– via YouTube.
  31. ↑ GameGrumps (August 14, 2015). "I Burgie Burgie – NEW SHIRT!!" . Retrieved November 26, 2017– via YouTube.
  32. ↑ GameGrumps (October 3, 2015). "All Hail Burgie – Spooky Halloween Shirt!" . Retrieved November 26, 2017– via YouTube.
  33. ↑ Hot Pepper Gaming (September 16, 2013). "Dark – Hot Pepper Game Review feat. Ninja Brian" . Retrieved November 26, 2017– via YouTube.
  34. ↑ Wecht, Brian [@bwecht] (June 26, 2015). "Yes, I ate the pepper. Yes, this is a single take with no cuts. No, it wasn't easy" (Tweet). Retrieved November 26, 2017– via Twitter.
  35. ↑ Wecht, Brian [@bwecht] (August 15, 2016). "I wrote an episode of Red vs Blue with @razzadoop & @TheMilesLuna! Check it out" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  36. ↑ "Grey vs. Gray Credits". IMDb . Retrieved January 5, 2023.
  37. ↑ Michael Major (September 8, 2023). "Ninja Sex Party's Brian Wecht Debuts Trey Magnifique Project With 'Satin Velvet' Single". Broadway World.
  38. ↑ GameGrumps (April 22, 2014). "The Goonies II: The Last Goon – PART 7 – Game Grumps" . Retrieved November 26, 2017– via YouTube.
  39. ↑ GameGrumps (June 18, 2017). "Robot Party with Ninja Audrey – Grumpcade" . Retrieved November 26, 2017– via YouTube.
  40. ↑ GameGrumps (November 10, 2015). "Zelda Tri Force Heroes: Ultimate Lifeform – PART 1 – Grumpcade" . Retrieved November 26, 2017– via YouTube.
  41. ↑ "Hey guys, it's Brian. I'm on a plane. Ask me stuff! • r/gamegrumps". reddit. January 15, 2016. Retrieved November 26, 2017.
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