[2] In December 2017, before the term bardcore was widely known, a medieval version of "Toxicity" by System of a Down was published on YouTube by Algal the Bard.
[3] The Guardian dates the origin of bardcore as a distinct trend to 20 April 2020, during the COVID-19 lockdown, when German YouTuber Cornelius Link released "Astronomia (Medieval Style)".
[2] Hildegard von Blingin' has also covered Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance", Radiohead's "Creep", Dolly Parton's "Jolene", Lana Del Rey's "Summertime Sadness" and Gotye's "Somebody That I Used to Know", changing the rhythm and lyrics to fit the genre.
[7] The trend was joined by other YouTubers, including Latvian band Auļi, Graywyck, Constantine Bard and Samus Ordicus.
[2] Elmira Tanatarova in i-D suggests bardcore "carries with it the weight of years of memes made about the medieval era, and the bleak darkness of that time period that appeals to Gen Z's existential humour.