rupaul
His TV talk-show, The RuPaul Show, airs three times per day, six days per week on VH1. RuPaul's guests have included Mary Tyler Moore, kd lang, Diana Ross, Whoopi Goldberg, Cher, La Toya Jackson, Patti LaBelle, Isabella Rossellini, Ivana Trump...the list goes on into talk show infinity. Introduced on VH1 as "The Girl With Something Extra" it's a dream come true for RuPaul to have his idols across from him on the couch. With a sense of destiny in his voice, Ru says, "I was meant to be on television! I speak television fluently!"
His sophomore album, appropriately called Foxy Lady, was released on Rhino Records to rave reviews in November of 1996. Billboard said it " offers a glimpse into a soulful stylist who needs to be heard far more frequently in the future". The singles, "Snapshot" and "A Little Bit of Love" sashayed up the dance charts and spawned two of the most glamorous music videos to date, including RuPaul and his girl group in outer space! Glamour and paparazzi aside, RuPaul takes his music career very seriously, which is evidenced by the mature and well-crafted performances on Foxy Lady. Again, RuPaul reached out to the top names in the business, including Nick Martinelli, Eric Kupper, and Richard "Humpty" Vission & Pete Lorimer, to name a few, to surround his vocals with the hottest grooves.
RuPaul continues to travel the world as "The First Face of M*A*C", a cosmetics company to the stars. In 1997, RuPaul opened M*A*C stores in Germany, Ireland, Scotland, and Milan, as well as Miami, Florida. RuPaul spreads the word about Viva Glam, a lipstick of which 100% of the retail cost goes to the M*A*C AIDS Fund, an organization that RuPaul co-chairs with his sister-in-spokesmodeldom, kd lang. The fund has raised over $10 million dollars for AIDS charities to date.
While traveling the world, RuPaul has made more than a few stops in Hollywood. RuPaul has had featured roles in Spike Lee's Crooklyn, The Brady Bunch Movie, Wigstock: The Movie, Wayne Wang's Blue In The Face, Too Wong Foo! Thanks For Everything Julie Newmar, and the recently released features Fled and A Very Brady Sequel.
RuPaul is always glimmering on the small screen, as well. RuPaul paved the way to his VH1 show beginning on English television, having had his own hour-long Christmas special, RuPaul's Christmas Ball. RuPaul has taped featured guest roles on various primetime sitcoms such as Sister, Sister, In The House, The Crew, and Nash Bridges, as well as having a lead dramatic role in the Emmy-nominated and much acclaimed USA Network movie, A Mother's Prayer and a guest appearance on ABC's most acclaimed daytime soap, All My Children.
RuPaul first made himself known to the world in 1993 when his internationally released debut album, Supermodel Of The World garnered three #1 Billboard maxi-single chart hits.
Through music videos, personal appearances, and countless television interviews, RuPaul's recording career skyrocketed, taking him from one hit to the other, to guest spot performing on innumerable talk shows, to stints as a featured artist on movie soundtrack albums (The Addams Family Values), as well as Elton John's, Duets album. The duo recorded "Don't Go Breakin' My Heart," which was an instant smash hit throughout Europe and the United States. They then performed the song all over the world, and on international television when in 1994 they co-hosted the infamous "Brit Awards."
In November 1994, he expanded his act into an hour-long show which he preview in Las Vegas for a pair of week-long stints at the Sahara Hotel. RuPaul was the first star to be invited back to the hotel for a second run even before he had completed his first stint.
RuPaul's autobiography, Lettin' it All Hang Out is now in paperback, after the hardcover was released by Hyperion Books to much fanfare in the summer of 1995, getting rave reviews in Publisher's Weekly and People. RuPaul toured the country seeing the children to whom the book was dedicated. "Maybe the kids will see that if I can do it, they can do it. I wrote this book for the RuRu in everyone." The book is in its third printing and a movie version of the book is in the works.
" A colorful transvestite and icon of African-American gay culture whose outrageous sense of humor never seems to let up, Ru Paul could arguably be described as "The Little Richard of '90s Dance Music .
