| "Stay Up! (Viagra)" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by88-Keys featuringKanye West | ||||
| from the albumThe Death of Adam | ||||
| Released | September 9, 2008 | |||
| Recorded | 2007 | |||
| Genre | Hip hop | |||
| Length | 2:50 | |||
| Label | Decon | |||
| Songwriters | ||||
| Producers |
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| Kanye West singles chronology | ||||
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"Stay Up! (Viagra)" is the first single released from producer-rapper88-Keys' debut albumThe Death of Adam and features the album's co-executive producerKanye West. The song samples "All Night Loving" byBritishR&B three-piece bandImagination. The single was releaseddigitally on August 25, 2008. According to both artists, the song, which follows the overall storyline of theconcept album, is about a man named Adam, who after a bad string of relationships, decides to takeViagra (Sildenafil Citrate) in an attempt "stay up" longer.[1] A snippet of the track was first previewed onKanye West's 2007Can't Tell Me Nothing mixtape and featured an additionalspoken word verse delivered byMalik Yusef.[2]
The music video premiered across multipleMTV channels all day on Monday, March 16, 2009.[3]
Shot inHigh Definition on the streets ofLos Angeles, the video features88-Keys (Clifford) andKanye West (Rufus) dressed in fullprosthetic makeup made to appear in their late sixties, out on a night on the town. Utilizing the talents of makeup artistTony Gardner of Alterian Effects (Michael Jackson's Thriller,Hairspray,Shallow Hal,Seed of Chucky,Daft Punk) the video creates an intimate and comedic look at the two real life friends.[3]
According to directorJason Goldwatch,
The ‘Stay Up!' (Viagra) video represents a new wave in the Music Video. It is a smash up of music video, reality television, and highbrow conceptual art. By taking some of the world’s biggest stars, who are normally surrounded by security and droves of crazed fans, and hiding their identity, we allow them to interact with the ‘real world’, unrecognized, unhindered, and free to walk alone – almost as if new people.[3]
