TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) – In less than a week, Beyoncé will bring her “Renaissance World Tour” to Raymond James Stadium – the first time she’s performed in Tampa since 2016.
Fans have been eagerly awaiting her arrival for months, but for Tampa artist Cam Parker, also known as Painkiller Cam, says he’s been waiting for this moment for years.
Parker, who’s been an artist all his life, said he wanted to give Beyoncé a mural for more than three years now as a “thank you for her inspiration,” and when she announced her “Renaissance” album, he knew it was “time to strike.”
“I’ve been wanting to do this for 3+ years now, and when the album was announced, I knew it was time to strike. I pushed it this close to the concert because I wanted to use very fresh ‘Renaissance’ imagery,” Parker said. “I mainly wanted to thank her for the inspiration, the great music and blessing our city with a tour date!” he added.
For six days, Parker worked on the detailed mural, putting his blood, sweat, and tears into the colorful masterpiece – literally. While it was hard work, Parker said those six days painting the mural were the “most rewarding days of [his] life.”
“Six of the longest, hottest, most rewarding days of my life,” he shared. “I worked the first four days from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. the next morning to avoid the busy traffic. I had three mock-ups I rough drafted and changed [them] as the wall and the art told me it should be. Cause at the end of the day, the art kinda tells me what needs to happen to make the composition work.”
The stunning mural, which showcases not one, but three Beyoncés, highlighting different aspects of her latest album, all painted atop a lemonade-yellow background, can be found at 1703 N Tampa St.
While the completed mural is sure to catch passersby’s attention and even be the inspiration for your next Instagram post, Parker said his ultimate goal for his new creation is far from over.
Parker hopes his mural will catch Beyoncé’s eye, much like his Lady GaGa mural on Franklin St. did when GaGa gushed about the art during her 2018 concert.
“I kept [the mural] really hush, hush because I wanted [it] to almost literally appear out of thin air one morning. Like ‘Omg, there’s a Beyoncé mural in Tampa?!’ for passersby,” Parker shared. “My goal is to have [Beyoncé] see it, so she knows it exists when she gets here Aug. 16., whether she acknowledges it during the show or goes to take a photo with it!”
Beyoncé will take the stage at Raymond James Stadium next Wednesday, but concertgoers can stop by and see Parker’s “baby,” which he believes is the “first Renaissance Tour Celebration Mural in the world!”
“I’m only 99.8% sure I’m the first, but I’m also 102% sure I would’ve seen a post/article about a fan giving her a ‘Renaissance’ Celebration mural because I am VERY up to date on all things Beyonce and ‘Renaissance,'” he said. “It’s my baby, but also it belongs to everyone who’s a fan of Bey and anyone who loves art!”
