"You've got to show those straight guys who's boss"
Normally it happens on purpose. Wannabe popstars spend years learning to sing, to write, to dance; auditioning all the time, just hoping to catch the eye of some producer or other who can catapult them to stardom and make all the hard work pay off. Not so much for Ilinois-based Scotty Vanity – he wrote the lyrics to his first song, I wanna do your hair, while eating lucky charms and watching cartoons before sneaking into his parent’s home recording studio to record. Wanting to share it with his friends for a bit of fun, he cobbled together a YouTube video and posted on his Myspace. A few weeks later it was highlighted on the Myspace front page and since then, the infuriatingly simple yet catchy tune has been viewed more than 4.5 million times, a statistic that has even Scotty a bit shocked. “It was all a bit of a fluke, really… little did I know that in the first few weeks I’d get thousands of hits.“
So, another YouTube phenomenon? Well yes, but not entirely. A bit more impressive than that: As well as a live performance and plans for an album, one of Scotty’s songs has been chosen for the soundtrack of Burning Palms, a downright disturbing and darkly humourous indie film out later this year starring Shannen Doherty and Zoe Saldana. (It also has some hot man-on-man action, so we’ll be front of the queue for that one.)
Despite his online success and indie breakout, Scotty has kept his feet firmly on the ground by pursuing his other love, cosmetology (that’s ‘beauty therapy’ to us Brits) in San Francisco. Big city life obviously agrees with him; while working as a Secret Agent Stylist by day, he sampled the very best of what San Francisco can offer by night, “I met some amazing DJs and went to quite a few radical raves and and bumpin’ clubs. I was able to experience new types of music and an electric underground lifestyle that hasn’t reached the Midwest yet.” So will we see a little of deadmau5 and Bassnectar creeping into any new music? Possibly, as Scotty thinks there’s plenty of room for them alongside his pop-diva and emo-rock influences. “Ke$ha has currently caught my eye with her filthy glam trash persona and her silly, upbeat pop,” he adds thoughtfully before assuring us that a new track will be released shortly through his myspace and iTunes channels.
It’s not easy to blend into a crowd when you’re well over six feet tall, but dying your hair blonde, wearing a tonne of eyeliner and skintight clothes probably doesn’t help, which probably explains why Scotty gets recognised every now and again. Fans, so far, haven’t been too much of a problem,”I get asked to perform at birthday parties a lot” he laughs. “I had this one girl think that I was her boyfriend for like two years, but she was really talking to a fake profile. I had to hop on stickam to set things ‘straight’, poor thing“.
Eyeliner: Spiffy.
Scotty’s music even played a part in his coming out, as his mother found out when she came across his MySpace page which proudly displayed his orientation as gay. Luckily, it wasn’t much of a shock “I would run around the house at the age of three in her high heels and necklaces and spray everything with Windex… and all the flower picking“. So having a boyfriend wouldn’t be a problem, “I’m not seeing anyone right now.” So the song entitled Slut wasn’t autobiographical, then? “I can easily say it pertains to quite a few people” he grins and, charmingly, blushes “I really can’t be bothered with all the relationship drama. I don’t wanna put labels on anything yet…” Still time to get smoochy with another gay musician, a la Jake Shears and Glambert ? “His style is so original and edgy… Sure, I’d kiss him, but I’d raid his wardrobe, too!”
So what next for Scotty? Cosmetologist by day and pop star by night? “The idea of doing a tour sounds fantastic. There is a high possibility of seeing me on stage in the future.” You heard it here first, folks. Scotty’s EP, Eyeliner Is Spiffy, is available from iTunes and you can also stalk him on Facebook, but not Twitter (“I kinda missed the train on that one…” he admits).
More on Burning Palms, including a full review, as soon as it’s released.
About the Author
Scott Elliott
Scott is a 'bitchy, sarcastic, cake-lovin mofo' with a penchant for bad films and a dry sense of humour.
Originally from Yorkshire, he now lives in East London, faffs about on Facebook quite a lot and complains about the distinct lack of cake.
As geeks (yes, we admit it) and as gays (all hail Russell T.) we are big Doctor Who fans, so we are thrilled to report that filming for the new series of the Doctor’s adventures started in Cardiff this week. We already know t...
Wow all I saw was 2 guys fuckin up the ass ok not my thing
Get involved
So So Gay magazine is written by a team of over fifty contributors from all across the UK and beyond. If you want to get involved, please get in touch.
Subscribe with iTunes
