Lia Clark

Lia Clark, the stage name of Rhael Lima de Oliveira (born February 15, 1992), is a Brazilian singer and drag queen. Born in Santos, São Paulo, Rhael grew up listening to Brazilian funk. Inspired by Valesca Popozuda and Tati Quebra-Barraco, in 2014, Rhael became the drag queen "Lia Clark", working as DJ known to play funk. Two years later, the artist came to prominence as a singer after the release of "Trava Trava". A hit on Spotify and YouTube, it led to a national tour and to the release of the extended play (EP) Clark Boom in 2016. In the following year, the EP spawned hits like "Chifrudo", "TOME CUrtindo" and "Boquetáxi". The first two marked collaborations with trans singer Mulher Pepita and drag queen Pabllo Vittar respectively, while the latter was involved in a polemic when its YouTube video was restricted because of alleged improper sexual content.

Lia Clark
Lia Clark in 2018
Background information
Birth nameRhael Lima de Oliveira
Born (1992-02-15) February 15, 1992
Santos, Brazil
GenresBrazilian funk, pop[1]
Occupation(s)Singer, drag queen
Years active2016–present

During 2018, Clark's singles "Tipo de Garota", "Q.M.T." and "Bumbum no Ar" anticipated the release of the album, É da Pista. The latter song gained notoriety because of the partnership with Wanessa Camargo and its politically motivated music video.

Biography

1992–2015: Early life and musical influences

Rhael Lima de Oliveira was born on February 15, 1992, in Santos, São Paulo.[1][2] Clark, who identifies as gender fluid,[3] was "effeminate kid" who was bullied and felt bad for this.[3][4][5] Without positive LGBT role models as a child, "I felt I was somehow wrong and I struggled a lot to understand that I was normal too".[4] The singer grew up in Macuco, a suburban neighborhood where Brazilian funk could be frequently listened, becoming a fan of Valesca Popozuda and Tati Quebra-Barraco.[6] In addition to national singers, the artist was highly influenced by Britney Spears and Nicki Minaj.[1]

In 2014, Clark was studying production engineering and working on a company of importation and exportation but was not satisfied with it.[1] In the same year, Clark started to work as a DJ;[7] already under the alias of "Lia Clark", the artist became known as "the drag who plays funk".[6] After leaving the course in the following year,[1] Clark started to think about recording funk songs.[6][8]

2016–2017: "Trava Trava" and Clark Boom

Clark started a career as a singer in 2016[4] by releasing the single "Trava Trava" in February.[9] Before its official release, Clark took the song to play on dance clubs of São Paulo.[1] Produced by Pedrowl with a remix of Azealia Banks' "Chasing Time" and a sample of Anitta's "Show das Poderosas",[9][10] the song became a hit.[3] It reached the second place in Spotify's viral chart[5] and its YouTube video, directed by Gabriel Riccieri, reached 30,000 views on the first day.[9] Because of the song's success, Clark went on a national tour.[1] Despite the success and in spite of criticism on the singer's vocals, Clark declared, "Since the beginning of my career, I always said that I'm not a singer. I'm someone making music for people to have fun".[4] The artist's focus was to create music "for people to have fun and dance in the clubs and at the concerts".[4]

In September 2016, Clark released the single and music video "Clark Boom" (directed by Alexandre Mortágua[11]); with lyrics written by Banda Uó's Mateus Carrilho and a sample of "Rap das Armas", the song announced the release of an extended play (EP).[12] In the same month, the seven-track Clark Boom was released;[13][14] produced by Pedrowl with lyrics by Clark, Pedrowl and Carrilho,[10] among the songs were "Chifrudo" (featuring Mulher Pepita), "TOME CUrtindo" and "Boquetáxi".[15] In December 2016, Clark released the Christmas-themed single "Ceia (Vem Papá Noel)".[16] Later, the Brazilian counterpart of MTV choose Clark among the ten best new artists of the year.[17]

In January 2017, Clark released the music video for "Chifrudo",[18] and it became one of the hits of that year Carnival.[1] The success of the clip, directed by Riccieri,[19] led to a partnership with Avon that created the Carnival parade "Baile de Boneca".[18] In May, Clark was featured in the music video of Ludmilla's "Cheguei" as a friend of the singer in the Mean Girls-inspired video.[20] Some days later, Clark released a lyric video of a remixed version of "TOME CUrtindo";[13] sampling Nicki Minaj and Beyoncé's "Feeling Myself",[10] the new version featured Pabllo Vittar and was produced by DJ Brabo.[13] The video, that got 180,00 views in the day of its release,[13] featured 3D scans of the singers along with the lyrics on programming language and, according to director Rodrigo de Oliveira, mixed the aesthetics of The Matrix, Ghost in the Shell and Westworld.[21]

In the following July, the singer released "Boquetáxi" on YouTube; featuring a sample of Angélica's "Vou de Táxi", it became a trending topic on Twitter the day of its release.[22] In the video, directed by Riccieri,[23] Clark uses costumes inspired by Christina Aguilera's "Dirrty".[24] On the following day, however, the video was classified as "restricted" after users' complaints of its sexual nature.[5][25] Clark deemed it a homophobic action as there is no such restriction for other funk artists with equally sexually explicit lyrics.[5] Later, the video was definitely removed from YouTube; as a new, "2.0" version[26] without the reference to Angélica's song was released in October, media speculated it was a copyrights issue.[27]

2017–present: É da Pista

In September 2017, Clark announced to be working on a debut album and that it was already on pre-production.[28] In December of that year, Clark was featured along with Tati Quebra-Barraco in the music video for "Berro", a song by Heavy Baile.[8] In January 2018, Clark released the music video for "Tipo de Garota",[2] which was also the first single for the upcoming album.[29] The video, directed by Rodrigo de Carvalho,[30] featured fans invited to attend the recording in a São Paulo bar[31] and a reference to the restriction of the artist's previous videos.[32] In April, Clark released a new single, "Q.M.T.",[29] which was produced by Heavy Baile and whose music video, released in May, was directed by Os Primos.[33] The piece was inspired by Britney Spears' 2000s videos, especially the one for "Womanizer",[34] and also by Quentin Tarantino's film Kill Bill.[33]

In September, Clark released "Bumbum no Ar", a song featuring pop singer Wanessa Camargo,[7] and whose music video was a political statement against Jair Bolsonaro's presidential campaign.[4] The video features the two singers as hit women who try to kill a presidential candidate with a background of actions against the LGBTQ community, racial minorities and women.[4] Although it was the director Felipe Sassi's idea, Clark embraced it "since I am one of the people who is being silenced in this political process".[4] Moreover, the singer affirmed it was the role of every artist, "especially the ones whose audience is the LGBTQ community and those who come from a working-class background", to use their image to spread "kindness, love and respect".[4]

In November 2018, Clark released the ten-track album É da Pista.[30] To promote the album, "Tu Aguenta", featuring DJ Thai, was released as a single and another music video directed by Riccieri was produced for the song.[35][36]

Discography

Albums and extended plays
Title Album details
Clark Boom[10]
  • Extended play
  • Released: September 29, 2016
  • Label: Independent
  • Format: EP, digital download
Lia Clark no Estúdio Showlivre (Ao Vivo)[37]
  • Live album
  • Released: February 22, 2017
  • Label: Independent
  • Format: Digital download
É da Pista[30]
  • Studio album
  • Released: November 22, 2018
  • Label: Independent
  • Format: CD, digital download

Singles and music videos
Title Year Album Music video Video director
Singles (as lead artist)
"Trava Trava"[9] 2016 Clark Boom Yes Gabriel Riccieri
"Clark Boom"[11][12] Yes Alexandre Mortágua
"Ceia (Vem Papá Noel)"[16] Non-album single No N/A
"Chifrudo"[18][19]
(featuring Mulher Pepita)		 2017 Clark Boom Yes Gabriel Riccieri
"TOME CUrtindo (Brabo Remix)"[13][21]
(featuring Pabllo Vittar)		 Yes Rodrigo de Oliveira
"Boquetáxi"[22][23] Yes Gabriel Riccieri
"Tipo de Garota"[29][30] 2018 É da Pista Yes Rodrigo de Carvalho
"Q.M.T."[29][33] Yes Os Primos (João Monteiro and Fernando Moraes)
"Bumbum no Ar"[4][7]
(featuring Wanessa Camargo)		 Yes Felipe Sassi
"Tu Aguenta"[35][36]
(featuring DJ Thai)		 Yes Gabriel Riccieri
Singles (as featured artist)
"Berro"[8][38]
(Heavy Baile featuring Lia Clark and Tati Quebra-Barraco)		 2017 Carne de Pescoço Yes Ana Paula Paulino, Cauã Csik and Cherry Rocha
"Lento"[39][40]
(Kika Boom featuring Lia Clark)		 2018 Non-album single Yes Nathália Mendes
"Boneca Safadinha"[41][42]
(Kaya Conky featuring Lia Clark)		 Sabe Que Vai, Pt. 2 No N/A
Non-single album tracks (as featured artist)
"Ele é o Tal"[43]
(Pabllo Vittar featuring Laura Taylor, Rodrigo Gorky and Lia Clark)		 2017 Vai Passar Mal No N/A

References
  1. Lima, Luís; Finco, Nina; Garcia, Sérgio (February 8, 2018). "As drag queens cantoras que são as novas divas do Carnaval" [The drag queen singers who are the new divas of carnival]. Época (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  2. Júnior, Gilberto (January 24, 2018). "Drag queen do momento, Lia Clark diz que Britney Spears é referência de beleza" [The drag queen of the moment, Lia Clark says Britney Spears is a role model for beauty]. O Globo (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  3. Brown, Sarah (March 26, 2018). "Brazil's Music Scene Goes Gender Fluid". Ozy. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  4. Dess, Conrado (October 1, 2018). "Drag Musician Lia Clark Talks 'Bumbum No Ar,' Anitta & Brazil's 'Difficult' Political Situation". Billboard. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  5. Assunção, Muri (March 2, 2018). "Inside Brazil's Drag Revolution: How New Queens Are Changing A Homophobic Culture". Billboard. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  6. Cavalcanti, Amanda (May 31, 2018). "Como mulheres trans e drag queens abrem os caminhos na música pop brasileira" [How trans women and drag queens make their own path in Brazilian pop music]. Vice (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  7. Camilo, Thiaggo (September 14, 2018). "Lia Clark lança novo single com participação de Wanessa Camargo" [Lia Clark releases a new single featuring Wanessa Camargo]. Cartão de Visita (in Portuguese). R7.com. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  8. Júnior, Gilberto (December 10, 2017). "Parceria do Heavy Baile com Tati Quebra Barraco e Lia Clark promete ser o hit do verão 2018" [Partnership of Heavy Baile with Tati Quebra Barraco and Lia Clark promises to be the 2018 summer hit]. O Globo (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  9. Gladiador, Felipe (February 22, 2016). "Conheça Lia Clark, drag queen funkeira que superou Metralhadora e Baile de favela nas paradas" [Meet Lia Clark, drag queen and funk singer who surpassed Metralhadora and Baile de favela on the charts]. R7.com (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  10. Tintel, Guilherme (September 29, 2016). "Lia Clark lança seu EP de estreia, "Clark Boom", com sample de Beyoncé e parceria da Mulher Pepita" [Lia Clark releases debut EP, "Clark Boom", with Beyoncé sample and partnership with Mulher Pepita]. It Pop! (in Portuguese). MTV. Archived from the original on February 15, 2017. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  11. Dornelas, Luana (December 22, 2017). "Um papo com o diretor de "Todos Nós 5 Milhões"" [A talk with the director of "Todos Nós 5 Milhões"]. RedBull (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  12. Monaco, Bruno (September 22, 2016). "Estamos apaixonados por Clark Boom, o novo single (e clipe) da drag queen Lia Clark!" [We are in love with Clark Boom, new single (and clipe) by drag queen Lia Clark]. Que Delícia Né, Gente? (in Portuguese). MTV. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  13. Estado de Minas (May 16, 2017). "Drag queens Pabllo Vittar e Lia Clark lançam parceria" [Drag queens Pabllo Vittar and Lia Clark release a co-venture]. Diário de Pernambuco (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  14. Rodrigues, Rubens (September 29, 2017). "Drag queen Lia Clark comanda baile funk em Fortaleza" [Drag queen Lia Clark to do a funk party in Fortaleza]. O Povo (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  15. Rodrigues, Rubens (April 20, 2017). "Banda Uó, Lia Clark e Kaya Conky são atrações de novo festival em Fortaleza" [Banda Uó, Lia Clark and Kaya Conky are the attractions of new festival in Fortaleza]. O Povo (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  16. "Ceia (Vem Papá Noel) - Single" (in Portuguese). iTunes. Apple. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  17. MTV staff (December 16, 2016). "Retrospectiva MTV: 10 revelações da música nacional" [MTV Retrospective: 10 new artists of national music] (in Portuguese). MTV. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  18. Angelo, Lu (June 21, 2017). "Pabllo Vittar e o movimento das drag queens que estão com tudo" [Pabllo Vittar and the movement of drag queens that is a success]. Marie Claire (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  19. "Lia Clark lança clipe com Mulher Pepita" [Lia Clark releases music video featuring Mulher Pepita]. RedBull (in Portuguese). January 26, 2017. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  20. Gladiador, Felipe (May 4, 2017). "Ludmilla chama Lia Clark e famosos da internet para Cheguei, clipe inspirado em Meninas Malvadas" [Ludmilla brings Lia Clark and Internet stars for Cheguei, music video inspired by Mean Girls]. R7.com (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  21. Dornelas, Luana (May 16, 2017). "Lia Clark lança lyric video com Pabllo Vittar" [Lia Clark release lyric video with Pabllo Vittar]. RedBull (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  22. PureBreak staff (July 25, 2017). "Lia Clark lança seu novo clipe "Boquetaxi" e domina os Trending Topics do Twitter" [Lia Clark releases new music video "Boquetaxi" and leads the Trending Topics of Twitter] (in Portuguese). Terra Networks. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  23. Tintel, Guilherme (July 25, 2017). "Lia Clark tá usando e abusando dos táxis no seu novo clipe, "Boquetáxi"" [Lia Clark is using and abusing taxis in new music video, "Boquetáxi"]. It Pop! (in Portuguese). MTV. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  24. Querino, Rangel (July 26, 2017). "Lia Clark lança videoclipe para a faixa "Boquetáxi"; assista" [Lia Clark releases music video for the track "Boquetáxi"; watch it]. Observatório G (in Portuguese). Universo Online. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  25. PureBreak staff (July 25, 2017). "Lia Clark desabafa após clipe de "Boquetáxi" ser denunciado e ficar restrito para maiores de 18 anos" [Lia Clark lets off steam after "Boquetáxi" music video is denounced and becomes restricted to people over 18 years] (in Portuguese). Terra Networks. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  26. Ortega, Rodrigo (January 15, 2018). "Efeito Pabllo Vittar: Após estouro da cantora, veja 10 artistas drags, trans e travestis que são apostas para 2018" [Pabllo Vittaf effect: After singer's great success, see 10 drag, trans and travesti artists that are]. G1 (in Portuguese). Globo.com. Retrieved January 24, 2019.
  27. Levy, Alexandre (October 11, 2017). "Lia Clark lança uma nova versão do clipe 'Boquetáxi', sem o verso de Angélica" [Lia Clark release a new version of 'Boquetáxi' clip, without Angélica's line]. Midiorama. O Povo (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  28. Costa, Vinícius (September 29, 2017). ""Estou vivendo esse momento", diz Lia Clark após um ano de 'Clark Boom'" ["I'm living this moment", says Lia Clark one year after 'Clark Boom']. Fica Quietinho (in Portuguese). MTV. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  29. Querino, Rangel (April 23, 2018). "Lia Clark confirma parceria em música com MC Loma e as Gêmeas Lacração" [Lia Clark confirms partnership in a song with MC Loma e as Gêmeas Lacração]. Observatório G (in Portuguese). Universo Online. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  30. Oliveira, Leonan (November 22, 2018). "Lia Clark mostra por que é a drag queen Rainha do Funk em 'É da Pista'" [Lia Clark shows why is the funk queen drag queen in 'É da Pista']. Showlivre (in Portuguese). R7.com. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  31. Querino, Rangel (January 23, 2018). "Lia Clark lança clipe para sua aposta do verão "Tipo de Garota"; assista" [Lia Clark releases music video for the summer bet "Tipo de Garota"; watch it]. Observatório G (in Portuguese). Universo Online. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  32. Tintel, Guilherme (January 23, 2018). "Tem indireta, carnaval e muita gente rebolando em "Tipo de Garota", clipe novo da Lia Clark" [There is a hint, carnival and a lot of people shaking their asses on "Tipo de Garota", new Lia Clark's music video]. It Pop! (in Portuguese). MTV. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  33. Rodrigues, Rubens (May 29, 2018). "Funkeira drag, Lia Clark lança clipe com referências a Britney Spears e Tarantino" [Drag funk singer, Lia Clark release clipe with references to Britney Spears and Tarantino]. O Povo (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  34. Marie Claire staff (May 30, 2018). "Inspirada em Britney Spears, Lia Clark abusa da sensualidade no clipe da música "Q.M.T."" [Inspired by Britney Spears, Lia Clark exploits sensuality in the video of the song "Q.M.T."]. Marie Claire (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  35. Querino, Rangel (November 28, 2018). "Lia Clark lança primeiro clipe do novo álbum "É da Pista"; Assista "Tu Aguenta"" [Lia Clark release the first video from new album "É da Pista"; Watch "Tu Aguenta"]. Observatório G (in Portuguese). Universo Online. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  36. Levy, Alexandre (November 27, 2018). "'Tu Aguenta': Lia Clark lança clipe inspirado na computação dos anos 2000" ['Tu Aguenta': Lia Clark releases a music video inspired by the 2000s computation]. Midiorama. O Povo (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  37. "Lia Clark no Estúdio Showlivre (Ao Vivo)" (in Portuguese). iTunes. Apple. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  38. Vendramini, André (December 1, 2017). "Heavy Baile, Lia Clark e Tati Quebra Barraco lacram na laje no clipe de 'Berro'" [Heavy Baile, Lia Clark and Tati Quebra Barraco nail it in a slab in the music video for 'Berro']. Fica Quietinho (in Portuguese). MTV. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  39. "Lento - Single" (in Portuguese). iTunes. Apple. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  40. "Kika Boom & Lia Clark - Lento (Clipe Oficial)" (in Portuguese). YouTube. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  41. "Boneca Safadinha (feat. Lia Clark)- Single" (in Portuguese). iTunes. Apple. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  42. Minervino, Tiago (September 5, 2018). "Kaya Conky anuncia parceria com Lia Clark: 'Boneca Safadinha'". Observatório G (in Portuguese). Universo Online. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  43. Izel, Adriana (January 24, 2017). "Drag queen Pabllo Vittar lança primeiro disco da carreira, 'Vai passar mal'" [Drag queen Pabllo Vittar releases career's first album, 'Vai passar mal']. Correio Braziliense (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 25, 2019.
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