Having a gas

Israeli ‘fart’ artist blows away ‘Britain’s Got Talent’

Hand-farting musician Guy First receives standing ovation for his performance of classic songs at audition

Guy First at his audition for Britain's Got Talent on April 13, 2019. (Facebook)
Guy First at his audition for Britain's Got Talent on April 13, 2019. (Facebook)

Israeli hand-farter extraordinaire Guy First earned a standing ovation from all four judges and the audience at his audition for “Britain’s Got Talent” on Saturday.

The audition consisted of a mashup of the songs “Take On Me,” “Ghostbusters,” and “Eye of the Tiger” — all played by First as he squeezed fart sounds out of his hands to the beat.

First, a charismatic performer from Ramat Gan, had all four judges giggling as he broke wind around the stage. The audience sang along audibly to his covers, and First finished his act by blowing kisses to the crowd.

“Holy wowzies. I just got 4 yeses for my hand fartzies!!!” he wrote in a celebratory Facebook post, noting that all four judges let him pass to the next round of the competition. “Honestly wasn’t expecting this kind of a reaction. I’m bloated awayyyyyyy.”

First, a photographer with a massive repertoire of fart jokes, has a wide internet presence. His YouTube channel “State of the Fart”has some 8,000 followers, though his most-viewed videos are posted across a variety of platforms.

One of First’s series, “Fart Alongs,” is a weekly livestream in which he hand-farts to requested songs, often against a greenscreen so that animations can be added. Commenters on his videos have praised his craft and requested a slew of pieces for him to cover.

The fart artist discovered his craft as a child by imitating his older brother, he said in a radio interview last October. In 2015, he was photographing a heavy metal band visiting Israel from abroad and hand-farted along to their songs. A clip of his escapades went viral and established him as “a legend in the metal community,” the website MetalSuck wrote of First’s ability to cut the cheese.

It was then that First knew he had to do something with his talent, he said.

First credits his ability to hand-fart on key to years of practice and the fact that, when he was a kid, “there was no Facebook” and life was “boring.” In one online Q&A, he listed the satirical musician Weird Al Yankovic as an inspiration.

Though some of his videos have upwards of a million views, First admitted in the radio interview that he still hasn’t figured out how to explain what, exactly, he is doing — though he stressed that his fart sounds are always recorded live.

When asked about his plans last October, First said he was happy to perform when requested, though he wasn’t exactly sure what was next for his music.

“I go fart by fart,” he said.

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