Liam Lynch

Liam Lynch achieved recognition through his partnership with Matt Crocco, portraying MTV's beloved sock puppets on The Sifl and Olly Show. Few realized this comedian had once taken guitar lessons from a former Beatle. Born September 5, 1970, in the Midwest, Lynch met Crocco during childhood in Ohio suburbs. The two entertained each other with skits marked by crude, sarcastic, and sharp wit. As teenagers, Lynch performing as Olly and Crocco as Sifl circulated homemade tapes among family and friends, some of which already outlined early Sifl and Olly episodes.

By his early twenties, Lynch had published poetry and prose while gaining experience in Nashville music publishing and studio work. At age 26 he set up shop in England. Chosen in Liverpool as one of forty musicians worldwide for the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, the school founded and funded by Sir Paul McCartney, Lynch joined its first graduating class and stood among five students McCartney personally selected for private guitar instruction. He later recorded in studios alongside Beatles producer George Martin and, after attending several lectures, befriended ex-Roxy Music synth player and noted producer Brian Eno.

In the mid-1990s Lynch and Crocco revived their sock-puppet personas. Lynch mailed tapes to MTV Europe in 1996, where they aired as "idents," short clips between videos. European audiences responded quickly, and within a year the segments expanded into half-hour programs. MTV in America premiered Sifl and Olly in July 1998, yet the series ran only two seasons. Plans for a third season online never materialized. The new millennium nevertheless opened fresh opportunities.

After a fan leaked a U.K. import, Sifl and Olly's hit song "United States of Whatever" reentered request charts on Los Angeles station KROQ and finished as the most requested track before 2002 ended. Lynch had already arranged with S-Curve to issue an album of Sifl and Olly spoofs and further parodies. He released his debut, the CD/DVD Fake Songs, in April 2003. He also signed on with Ben Stiller's production company to write and direct a feature film starring Tenacious D.