Jack Tracy is a man of many talents. He is the movie maker who created the popular web-series, “History,” now crowdfunding for a third season. He is also a singer whose debut dance song, “Satisfaction,” was just released along with a stylish music video. It is the first from his Older album, set to be released later this month.
Juggling multiple projects, Jack is extremely busy, but on July 19 he took some time to talk about his endeavors in an exclusive interview.
Characters, albums, and web-series
Meagan Meehan (MM): How did you get interested in acting and singing and which talent did you focus on first?
Jack Tracy (JT): I started taking dance classes in 2nd grade and did it for most of my life. I picked up singing in middle school, and I was a musical theater major at Penn State. When I came out of my ten-year hiatus as a lawyer, I started with singing. I did a cabaret show and was able to raise $1,000 for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids. I remember walking off stage — my first time in over a decade — thinking, "Oh, this is what I need to be doing."
MM: You act in a series called "History," so what is "History" about and why do you think it’s so popular?
JT: "History" is an LGBT web series about love, loneliness and the family you choose. I wrote it when I was going through a bad breakup, and with all the craziness that was going on, I thought it would make a good show.
The show has evolved to become a realistic portrayal of the corporate NYC gays, their friendships, and relationships. I think it's popular because it's not afraid to show our community's problems, our darkness. For every moment the audience feels for a character, there's a time when they sharply disagree with that person's choices.
MM: How similar to your real-life self is your character in “History”?
JT: Well, Jamie certainly has a more bumping social life than I do. We're pretty alike. All of what he goes through I went through, but in the second season, he's definitely more oblivious than I am. I wanted the audience to want to shake me, so I had to make Jamie pretty blind to what was going on.
MM: You use crowdfunding to help raise money for your web-series, so what are the benefits of going that route?
JT: It's a necessary evil. After launching season two last fall, I moved on to creating two additional web series that I finance (comedies Millennial Memoir and Big Law) as well as my first movie, the political thriller Snowflake coming out this fall. With my personal finances spread, I wasn't planning on continuing "History," but during season two, my YouTube subscriptions skyrocketed, and I received a flood of emails, messages, and comments from fans who found the series and fell in love.
Every single person who reached out to me asked when they could expect season 3. I set up the crowdfunding so that our fans could help us get what they've been asking for.
We've crossed 40 percent funding of our initial goal in a week, so it's looking good, but we still need all the help we can get. If you like thoughtful, intelligent, LGBT scripted content, toss some coins in our bucket via our Seed and Spark website (Google “Seed and Spark com” for details).
MM: You are also about to release your debut album, Older, so how did you choose that title and what inspired the songs on it?
JT: Older comes from the fact that I'm releasing my debut pop album at 35. It also helps set the perspective of the album. I'm not chasing trends. I’m not singing about club life or haters or any of the other stuff 20-something pop acts are singing about. Sonically, I wanted the album to have a classic sound.
I didn’t want listeners to be able to date it to a specific time period. However, the title track is a 90s Jackson-esque melancholy ballad. It will be the second single and video. I just shot it and am editing right now.
Songs, content, new projects, and events
MM: What was it about the song “Satisfaction” that made it your choice for the first release?
JT: I am first and foremost a lover of high octane, complex choreography. I knew that my first music video had to be a big dance number. It was also right for the summer. It has a spitfire, sassy lyrics with sparkling synths and a whirlwind kind of feel. I wanted this song spinning at tea dances all summer.
MM: How much control did you have over the theme and content of the “Satisfaction” music video and what was filming it like?
JT: Like Ms. Jackson, I'm in control of everything! I choreographed and directed the video. I wanted to give the sense of heat — burning hot anger — but with a fantastical element. So, we are dancing on the surface of a planet where an explosive anomaly rips open the atmosphere whenever the feelings get intense. It was a blast to do and a real steep learning curve in producing as I also did all of the post-production and FX myself. It was a single day shoot, and I've worked with most of the dancers on other projects.
MM: So, Jack, what exciting new projects and events are coming up for you?
JT: Lots! First, I’m going on the promotional trail for Older. I’ve got some local NYC gigs coming up, and I'll be doing a 15-minute set at Jersey City Pride on August 25.
Come see me! Listen, I'm a 35-year-old gay man. I'm not going to be on the radio, and that's not my goal. My goal is to have a touring show where I can get out of NYC and start extending the Necessary Outlet family around the world. I'm crowd-funding for "History" season 3 through August. Please contribute, every $1 helps! And I just finished the first pass on my movie Snowflake, which I filmed last winter. It's a political drama set in a world not unlike our own. The music video for the song, “Older," will come out very soon, and I'm also in the process of writing a children's book, a new movie, two new web-series, a second album and some political-themed shorts. No sleep till success!
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Follow Jack Tracy via @jacktracymusic and @necessoutlet. Watch all of his web series by subscribing to Necessary Outlet on YouTube.
