The year is 2003. You're hanging out with your friends when, from behind the closed door of a cool older brother's bedroom, you hear the now-iconic strums of a guitar which begin the Fountains of Wayne song 'Stacy's Mom'.
The song soon became a signifier of coolness, and whether you were the older sibling who discovered it or the younger generation captivated by the song about someone's mum, kids across the globe were secure in the notion that Stacy's mum had got it going on.
Fountains of Wayne sought to further confirm this notion through the music video for the track, which featured New Zealand model Rachel Hunter as the infamous 'mom' and Gianna Dispenza as Stacy, the girl whose male friend made little effort to hide the fact he was much more interested in her mum than her.
The video comes to an end with Stacy walking in on her friend having, let's call it 'alone time', with thoughts of her mum, leaving her shocked and laughing at his compromising position, but fast-forward nearly two decades and it seems clear Dispenza doesn't have to worry about the shadow of a fictional mum hanging over her.
The former music video star has now established herself as an artist, having created numerous drawings, sculptures and paintings. In the years following the release of 'Stacy's Mom', she went on to attend the Academy of Art University in California and San Francisco Art Institute, as well as achieving a masters in painting from The Royal College of Art in London.
She has put on multiple exhibitions and earned awards for Best Emerging Artist and Best Figurative Artist, among others, and has a following of more than 11,000 people on Instagram who describe her artwork as 'beautiful' and 'amazing'.
Though Dispenza has come a long way since her appearance as Stacy, the song remains a fan favourite and never fails to transport listeners back to their childhoods or teenage years.
The track was Fountains of Wayne's first to enter the charts, where it peaked at Number 21 on the Billboard Hot 100 and Number 11 in the UK. Following the success of the track, the band were nominated for two awards at the 2004 Grammy Awards, namely Best Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals and Best New Artist.
Meanwhile, Stacy's mum herself, Hunter, has featured in magazines including Italian Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar and Elle, as well as in a number of global advertising campaigns.
Featured Image Credit: FountainsOfWayneVEVO/@giannadispenza/Instagram
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