Shartistry in Motion
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Shartistry in Motion is the second studio album by American drag queen Willam Belli, released on June 2, 2015. The album was self-released by Belli but experienced a much wider release than his previous album, The Wreckoning (2012), and was made available to buy on iTunes[1] and Amazon,[2] and to stream on Spotify. Much alike Belli's debut album, Shartistry in Motion features a mixture of original songs and parodies. The album quickly became Belli's most successful album, debuting at number 1 on the Billboard Comedy Albums chart.[3]
Background and development
Two of the main collaborators on Shartistry in Motion, Courtney Act and Alaska Thunderfuck 5000 are both members of the drag group American Apparel Ad Girls with Belli. Detox Icunt and Vicky Vox, main collaborators on Belli's debut album The Wreckoning and ex-members of the band DWV with Willam, did not return for his sophomore album as the group disbanded in 2014.[4] However, Rhea Litré, a drag queen in Willam's other disbanded group Tranzkuntinental and who featured on "Let's Have a KaiKai" on Belli's 2012 album, returned to feature on "U.C.C.".
Shartistry in Motion features three original songs, "Coin on the Dresser", "How Much Can't", and "Thick Thighs" with fellow RuPaul's Drag Race season 4 alumni Latrice Royale. The rest of the songs featured on the album are parodies of popular songs; "Ride for AIDS" is a parody of "Blank Space" by Taylor Swift, "American Apparel Ad Girls" is a parody of "Farrah Fawcett Hair" by Capital Cities, "U.C.C." is a parody of "Love on Top" by Beyoncé, and "Only Anally" is a version of "Unconditionally" by Katy Perry. "Es Una Pasiva" is a solo version of the DWV hit "Boy Is a Bottom", sung in Spanish.
Promotion
Much of Shartistry in Motion's promotion came from Belli's YouTube channel, Twitter account, website, and the single's music videos, with some being posted up to a year before the album's release.[5] Belli also toured in numerous places across the United States, South America, Europe, and the United Kingdom, some with the American Apparel Ad Girls and some solo.[6]
Singles
- "Only Anally" was the first single to be released from the album on 16 June 2014. It is a parody of Katy Perry's 2013 single "Unconditionally", with the lyrics changed to reflect how Belli only does things anally. It was produced by Uncle Slamm who also produced "Love You Like a Big Schlong" from Willam's debut album. The music video for the song was also released on 16 June, and featured excerpts from the last episode of the online cartoon Jiz, entitled "Jiz is Dead".[7][8]
- "American Apparel Ad Girls", featuring Courtney Act and Alaska Thunderfuck 5000 was released as the album's second single on 24 September 2014. The song parodies Capital Cities' 2014 single "Farrah Fawcett Hair", and was produced by Markaholic. It's release coincided with the trio's American Apparel merchandise release and advertising campaign, both of which are mentioned in the song. The music video was directed by Shawn Adeli and produced by Anthony Torrez. The track quickly became one of Belli's most successful songs, reaching number 10 on the Billboard Comedy chart and garnering over 2,000,000 views on YouTube. Willam, Courtney and Alaska later toured the song around the United Kingdom with the #AAAGirls Tour.
- "Es Una Pasiva" was released on 8 January 2015. It is a solo version of Willam's former band, DWV's hit "Boy Is a Bottom", a parody of Alicia Keys' 2012 single "Girl on Fire", this time sung in Spanish. The track was produced by Markaholic, who also produced the original version of the song. "Es Una Pasiva" also features a sample of a version of "La Bamba" by Ritchie Valens. The music video was released on 13 January 2015 on YouTube and was produced by Anthony Torrez and Beth Wheatley.
- "Ride for AIDS", featuring Alaska Thunderfuck 5000 was released as the album's third single on 26 May 2015. It was released to encourage listeners to donate money and participate in the annual AIDS/LifeCycle fundraiser. The song is a parody of Taylor Swift's 2014 single "Blank Space". The music video was released on 29 May 2015 and was directed by Ryan Parma.
- "Thick Thighs", featuring Latrice Royale was released on 2 June 2015 with the music video premiering the same day. It's the only original song released as a single from the album. It's lyrics focus on how thicker thighs are more attractive and pleasurable to men. It was produced by The Prodigal for American Commission and the music video was directed by Kain O'Keeffe.
- "U.C.C.", featuring Rhea Litré was released as the album's sixth single on 22 September 2015 with its accompanying music video. It features Rhea Litré who had previously worked with Belli in the drag group Tranzkuntinental and on his song "Let's Have a KaiKai" from his debut album.[9] The song is a parody of "Love on Top" and also features a small snippet of a parody of "Jealous", both by Beyoncé. It's lyrics revolve around Willam and Rhea's love and need for uncircumcised penis, with U.C.C. standing for "uncut cock". The song's music video was directed by Kain O'Keeffe.
Track listing
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Coin on the Dresser" | The Prodigal for American Commission[10] | 3:28 | |
2. | "Ride for AIDS" (featuring Alaska Thunderfuck 5000) |
| Markaholic | 3:47 |
3. | "Thick Thighs" (featuring Latrice Royale) |
| The Prodigal for American Commission[11] | 3:20 |
4. | "American Apparel Ad Girls" (featuring Courtney Act & Alaska Thunderfuck 5000) |
| Markaholic[12] | 3:48 |
5. | "U.C.C." (featuring Rhea Litré) |
| Markaholic[13] | 4:00 |
6. | "How Much Can't" |
| The Prodigal for American Commission | 3:27 |
7. | "Es Una Pasiva" |
| Markaholic[14] | 3:25 |
8. | "Only Anally" | Evil Jeff[7] | Uncle Slamm[7] | 3:47 |
Total length: | 27:42 |
Charts
Chart (2015) | Peak position |
---|---|
US Billboard Comedy Albums[15] | 1 |
References
- ^ "Shartistry in Motion". iTunes Store (GB). Retrieved December 1, 2015.
- ^ "Shartistry in Motion". Amazon (GB). Retrieved December 1, 2015.
- ^ "Comedy Albums 2015-06-20". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
- ^ "US drag supergroup DWV split up". Gay Star News.
- ^ "Watch: Willam Does It 'Only Anally' in New Animated Music Video (NSFW)". Dragaholic on Queerty.
- ^ "Willam Belli - Appearance dates". willambelli.com.
- ^ a b c "Only Anally". YouTube.
- ^ "Jiz Is Dead". YouTube.
- ^ "Let's Have a KaiKai - Single". iTunes (GB). Retrieved December 1, 2015.
- ^ "Drag Star Willam Talks Onstage Enemas, Pop Parodies, New Album & More". Billboard.
- ^ "THICK THIGHS feat. Latrice Royale". YouTube.
- ^ "American Apparel Ad Girls with Courtney Act, Alaska 5000 and Willam #AAAGirls". YouTube.
- ^ "U.C.C by Rhea Litre & Willam". YouTube.
- ^ "Es Una Pasiva (Boy Is a Bottom Español)". YouTube.
- ^ "Comedy Albums 2015-06-20". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved November 29, 2015.