Who Is Fancy

Jake Hagood (born March 29, 1991), better known as Who Is Fancy, is an American singer. He co-signed with Scooter Braun and Scott Borchetta on Big Machine Label Group and Dr. Luke on Prescription Songs.[1][2] His single "Goodbye" was released in early 2015, peaking at number 29 on the Billboard Mainstream Top 40 chart.[3] Fancy was presented at the iHeartMedia Music Summit, although his identity was kept secret.[3]

Who Is Fancy
Birth nameJake Hagood
Born (1991-03-29) March 29, 1991
OriginBentonville, Arkansas
GenresPop[1]
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
Years active2015–present
Labels
Websitewhoisfancymusic.com

Early life

Jake Hagood was born March 29, 1991, in Bentonville, Arkansas. He taught himself to play piano at age eleven. He grew up listening to Christian and Country music.[4] After finishing high school in Arkansas, Hagood moved to Nashville, Tennessee to attend Trevecca Nazarene University.[5] The name, "Fancy," was a nickname given to him by coworkers at Forever 21 during this time.[6]

While attending university, Hagood wrote original music and performed around the Nashville area.[7] He left the University after being discovered by producers Scooter Braun, Scott Borchetta, and Dr. Luke.[5] Hagood is openly gay.[4]

Career

Beginning in January 2015, Hagood, his management team, and his record label, built a viral campaign around the singer and his debut single "Goodbye". The single was released without revealing the person behind the "Fancy" pseudonym. A series of pseudo-music videos and a lyric-only clip were viewed more than 4 million times on YouTube, and with early radio support from stations like New York's Z100, the song reached number 29 on the Billboard Mainstream Top 40 chart,[6] number 48 on the Billboard Digital Songs chart,[8] and number 98 on the Billboard Hot 100.[9] Three music videos for the single were released, featuring three different actors lip-syncing to the song. Each video dealt with themes like gender identity and body positivity.[10] A fourth music video featuring the performer himself in the same setting was filmed but never released.[11]

In an interview with USA Today, Hagood said that one of motivations behind the campaign was for people to "know [his] art before they knew [him]".[12] However, the concept met with a mixed response from some of Hagood's friends, including pop singer Meghan Trainor, who says she was vocally against it from the start. "I felt like you're hiding this guy," she told The Canadian Press. "What I loved about (Who is Fancy) was his appearance. He's this bubbly, happy person … he has the confidence, he has everything, and they just — I don't like what they did."[11]

Hagood finally revealed his identity on April 7, 2015, in an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

To promote his second single "Boys like You", Who Is Fancy performed with collaborators Meghan Trainor and Ariana Grande on Dancing with the Stars on January 23, 2016.

After "Boys Like You" failed to perform on the charts, Hagood parted ways with manager Braun and Republic. In an interview with The Canadian Press, he said that he hoped to relaunch his career in summer 2016.[11]

In 2016, Hagood was featured on Clean//Photograph, a Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran mashup by Nashville singer-songwriter Louisa Wendorff. The mashup received good reviews, and was featured on articles on Billboard, Seventeen etc.

Hagood reflected on his experience with a major label, and how they softened his gay persona: "It was everyone wanting to see me win, and they were like, 'Well, maybe you can't win if you're this (type of person),'" he says. "But maybe I could, you know what I mean?"[11]

Concert tours

Who Is Fancy has opened for both Meghan Trainor's MTrain Tour[13] and Ariana Grande's The Honeymoon Tour.[14]

Discography

Singles
List of singles, with selected chart positions and certifications
Title Year Peak chart positions Certifications Album
US
[15]		 US
Pop
[16]		 NLD
[17]		 NZ
[18]		 POL
[19]
"Goodbye"[20] 2015 9829——— Non-album singles
"Boys Like You"
(featuring Meghan Trainor and Ariana Grande)		 —[upper-alpha 1]—892647
"—" denotes items which were not released in that country or failed to chart.

Music videos

Notes
  1. "Boys Like You" did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 18 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.
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References
  1. Feeney, Nolan (13 February 2015). "Who Is Who Is Fancy?". Time Magazine. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  2. "Class of 2015 – Republic Records". Republic Records. February 13, 2015. Retrieved February 13, 2015.
  3. "Exclusive: Scooter Braun Talks Bieber and Rick Rubin, Carly Rae Jepsen's Topping 'Call Me Maybe' & More". Billboard. Retrieved 2015-11-14.
  4. "Who Is Fancy? Not Your Average Gay Pop Star | Advocate.com". www.advocate.com. 2015-10-01. Retrieved 2015-11-05.
  5. "Former Trevecca student Fancy finds pop music success". TrevEchoes Online. Retrieved 2015-11-14.
  6. "Who Is Fancy Talks Shedding The Mystery: 'I Never Thought I'd Be Coming Out Again'". Billboard.
  7. "Former Trevecca student Fancy finds pop music success". TrevEchoes Online. Retrieved 2015-11-05.
  8. "Who is Fancy".
  9. "Who is Fancy".
  10. "Out pop star Who Is Fancy discusses identity and representation in new music videos". GLAAD. Retrieved 2015-11-05.
  11. Friend, David (June 24, 2016). "Musical Pride: How a generation of LGBTQ voices are reshaping music videos". Retrieved July 14, 2016.
  12. "Who is Fancy? 'Goodbye' to guessing". USA TODAY. 12 April 2015.
  13. "Meghan Trainor: The MTrain Tour". Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  14. "Ariana Grande: The Honeymoon Tour". Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  15. "Who Is Fancy – Chart History". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved January 24, 2016.
  16. "March 21, 2015 - Mainstream Pop Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-05-13.
  17. "Discografie Who Is Fancy". dutchcharts.nl (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 8, 2015.
  18. "NZ Top 40 Singles Chart". February 1, 2016.
  19. "Polish charts - 06.02. - 12.02.2016". OLiS. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  20. "Who Is Fancy - Goodbye". iTunes. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  21. "New Zealand single certifications". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
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