Comic performer Andy Samberg burst upon the scene in 2005 as a new face on NBC’s venerable “Saturday Night Live” (1975-). After a handful of sketch appearances, it was his striking turn in the hugely popular rap spoof “Lazy Sunday” that put him on the map. Samberg and fellow cast member Chris Parnell rapped menacingly about catching an afternoon matinee of "The Chronicles of Narnia" and stopping by a hip New York bakery for a snack first. The hilarious sendup debuted on the show in December but truly broke out as a downloadable clip on the internet in the weeks that followed. With his trademark goofy grin and shaggy hair, Samberg became an overnight sensation.
Raised in Berkeley, California, Samberg enrolled in NYU’s film program. While developing a talent for comedy and film, Samberg took a job as an entry-level production assistant on the Michael J. Fox sitcom “Spin City”(ABC). Samberg joined forces with two like-minded lifelong friends to create “The Lonely Island,” a group of writer-performer-filmmakers who created short films for a website they dubbed “the untelevised television network,” and the website Channel 101.com. Their shorts quickly caught on with a parody of Fox’s “The O.C.” called “The ‘Bu” and a full-length pilot called “Awesometown.”
Joining "SNL" in the fall of 2005, at the same time as newcomers Bill Hader, Jason Sudeikis and Kristin Wiig, Samberg was part of a widely celebrated batch of new talent. His former cohorts, Jorna Taccone and Akiva Schaffer were hired as writers at the same time. Samberg appeared in a number of pre-filmed segments, including a hugely popular commercial parody for a fictional Mexican restaurant called “Taco Town” and a video ballad celebrating the life of "Young Chuck Norris."