Peter Alexis Shukoff (born August 15, 1979), best known as his stage name Nice Peter or Bluesocks, is an American musician and Internet personality. A self-described "Comic/Guitar Hero", he is best known for the comedy on his
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
channel, NicePeter,
[Nicepeter's Channel](_blank)
YouTube (2006-07-11). Retrieved on 2012-10-26. and especially for the comedic series ''
Epic Rap Battles of History
''Epic Rap Battles of History'' (ERB) is a YouTube web series and music project created by Peter "Nice Peter" Shukoff and Lloyd "EpicLLOYD" Ahlquist. The series pits historical and pop culture figures against one another in a rap battle format. ...
'' which he co-created with
Lloyd Ahlquist
Lloyd Leonard Ahlquist (born January 18, 1977), better known by his online alias EpicLLOYD, is an American internet personality best known for the YouTube video series ''Epic Rap Battles of History'', along with Peter Shukoff ("Nice Peter"). Ahlq ...
("EpicLLOYD") . As of June 8, 2016, NicePeter has over 2.6 million YouTube subscribers. The day after hitting one million subscribers, the video game channel G4 crowned Nice Peter the King of Dot Comedy on ''
Attack of the Show
''Attack of the Show!'' (''AOTS'') is an American live television program and that aired on G4 (American TV network), G4. AOTS features segments on pop culture, video games, and movies. After an initial run from 2005 to 2013 (which originally a ...
''. His two channels, Nice Peter and Epic Rap Battles (ERB), have a total of over 17 million subscribers and 4 billion views as of February 2019. He also has a third channel that he uses for vlogs and "Monday Shows", a show that he uploads on either Mondays or Tuesdays consisting of different segments including "Viewer Mail", "Twitter Question Time", and "Ask a Giraffe". They have been featured on the Huffington Post,
Billboard.com
''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the music ...
, ''
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
'' and the January 2012 issue of ''
Wired
''Wired'' (stylized as ''WIRED'') is a monthly American magazine, published in print and online editions, that focuses on how emerging technologies affect culture, the economy, and politics. Owned by Condé Nast, it is headquartered in San Fra ...
''.
Life and career
Shukoff was born in Rochester, New York to a Russian father and an American mother. He has 2 sisters.
As a child, Shukoff would often Irish dance for his class. Shukoff graduated from the
School of the Arts in 1997 and attended
Fredonia State University
The State University of New York at Fredonia (SUNY Fredonia) is a public university in Fredonia, New York, United States. It is the westernmost member of the State University of New York. Founded in 1826, it is the sixty-sixth-oldest institute of ...
, where he majored in education and history. He originally planned on becoming a history teacher, but the plan did not work out.
He later became a birthday party magician. Shukoff learned to play guitar before he had finished school, but spent a time pursuing a comedic career. Once settled in Chicago, he began playing live in bars and comedy clubs in the area, where he met
Lloyd Ahlquist
Lloyd Leonard Ahlquist (born January 18, 1977), better known by his online alias EpicLLOYD, is an American internet personality best known for the YouTube video series ''Epic Rap Battles of History'', along with Peter Shukoff ("Nice Peter"). Ahlq ...
, his future partner.
Shukoff has explained that although he was initially more active on social media, his social media usage decreased as he felt it was artificial. He explains that his baldness helped him realize this.
Career
![Nice Peter left DigiTour 2011](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ae/Nice_Peter_left_DigiTour_2011.jpg)
''
Epic Rap Battles of History
''Epic Rap Battles of History'' (ERB) is a YouTube web series and music project created by Peter "Nice Peter" Shukoff and Lloyd "EpicLLOYD" Ahlquist. The series pits historical and pop culture figures against one another in a rap battle format. ...
'' is a comedic music video series created by Peter Shukoff and Lloyd Ahlquist. Ahlquist and Shukoff met at a house party in Chicago organized by an improv group that Ahlquist was a part of. The series features historical and popular fictional and real-life figures battling each other through the medium of
rap
Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...
. Battles have included "
Darth Vader
Darth Vader is a fictional character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise. The character is the central antagonist of the original trilogy and, as Anakin Skywalker, is one of the main protagonists in the prequel trilogy. ''Star Wars'' creator George ...
vs.
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
", "
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...
vs.
Chuck Norris
Carlos Ray "Chuck" Norris (born March 10, 1940) is an American martial artist and actor. He is a black belt in Tang Soo Do, Brazilian jiu jitsu and judo. After serving in the United States Air Force, Norris won many martial arts championshi ...
", and "
Miley Cyrus
Miley Ray Cyrus ( ; born Destiny Hope Cyrus on November 23, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her distinctive raspy voice, her music spans across varied styles and genres, including pop, country, rock, hip hop ...
vs.
Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronati ...
". Some episodes use characters that are fictional, whether it be television or movie characters, as seen in "
Rick Grimes
Rick Grimes is a fictional character and the main protagonist in the post-apocalyptic comic book series '' The Walking Dead'' and the first nine seasons of the television series of the same name, in which he is portrayed by Andrew Lincoln. Creat ...
vs.
Walter White Walter White most often refers to:
* Walter White (''Breaking Bad''), character in the television series ''Breaking Bad''
* Walter Francis White (1893–1955), American leader of the NAACP
Walter White may also refer to:
Fictional characters
...
". Others use comic book characters, as seen in "
Goku
Son Goku is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the ''Dragon Ball'' manga series created by Akira Toriyama. He is based on Sun Wukong (known as Son Goku in Japan and Monkey King in the West), a main character of the classic Ch ...
vs.
Superman
Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...
". Episodes typically consist of Nice Peter and EpicLLOYD rapping against each other in character, but sometimes feature guest stars in addition to or replacing Shukoff and Ahlquist. Occasionally, the pair appear in non-speaking background roles, as in the episodes "
Cleopatra
Cleopatra VII Philopator ( grc-gre, Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ}, "Cleopatra the father-beloved"; 69 BC10 August 30 BC) was Queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler.She was also a ...
vs.
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...
", "
Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
vs.
Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
", "Miley Cyrus vs. Joan of Arc", and "Michael Jordan vs. Muhammad Ali". Shukoff and Ahlquist also contributed a rap battle to the film ''
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water'' and performed it with
Matt Berry
Matthew Charles Berry (born 2 May 1974) is an English actor, comedian, musician, and writer. He is best known for his roles in comedy series such as '' The IT Crowd'', ''Garth Marenghi's Darkplace'', ''The Mighty Boosh'', ''Snuff Box'', ''What ...
. Shukoff also made a cameo appearance as a surfer dude in the film. He also did additional voices for film
''The Mitchells vs. The Machines''.
Personal life
Shukoff announced that he had married in 2018.
He has 2 children, a daughter born in 2018 and a son born in 2020. They live in
Culver City, California
Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. Founded in 1917 as a "whites only" sundown town, it is now an ethnically diverse city with what was called the "third-most d ...
.
Awards and nominations
Discography
B-Sides for Kate
# All I Got (the Christmas Song)
# I'm Just a Man
# High With Pauly
# My Favorite Bar
# Chuck Norris
# Spanglish (unreleased full band recording)
# Sarah Palin
Live in Preston
# Intro
# Smoke That Weed
# Daniel the Boyfriend
# Knickers
# The Redwings
# 50 Cent is a Pussy
# F$%k London
# Spanglish
# Cover Bands
# Tru Gangster
# Chavs
# If You Really Love Me
# White Trash Woman
# My Right Hand
# The Bush Song
# Mystery of the Clitoris
# I Quit, You Fat Mother F$%cker
Songs about people
# I Fell Asleep on her Boobs
# Bald Guy
# Cell Phones
# Put Your Coat On
# Cover Bands
# Jennifer
# Porn Star
# Friends
# Hard To Stay
# Radical Muslim Penpal
# Sugar Momma
# The Masterpiece Part II (bonus)
# Superman Socks
Songs For Moms
# The Bush Song
# Spanglish
# Tru Gangster
# I Quit, You Fat Mother F$%cker
# My Right Hand
# If You Really Love Me
# Old and Fat Together
# Popsi
# Make Up Sex
# Smoke That Weed
Suburban Highschool
# White Trash Woman
# Suburban Highschool
# F**k Guitar Center
# Snufulupugus
# 50 Cent is a Pussy
# You Shouldn't Have Pissed Me Off
# STD Test
# It's Time to be Gay
# The Masterpiece
# Mystery of the C**t
# Dude, I'm So High
Filmography
References
External links
Nice Peteron
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
Nice Peteron
Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
Nice Peteron
Facebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...
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