He is known for his flamboyant comic persona, once described as "gleefully narcissistic,"[3] blending elements of Little Richard, Muhammad Ali, James Brown, Prince, and a tent-revival preacher.

"[5][6] Rarely breaking character on stage or off, Fancy Ray is a buoyantly self-aggrandizing, larger-than-life personality given to spontaneous poetry (about himself) and mock-boastful proclamations including his oft-repeated[1][2][3][4][5][7][8][9][10][11] characteristic catchphrase "I'm the best-lookin’ man in comedy."

Writer/producer Diablo Cody, who wrote the liner notes for the album, calls Fancy Ray a "subversive" and "bombastic character (who) looms large in the collective psyche of the Twin Cities ... a nontraditional, nonconformist guy" whose "shtick is almost like a spell.

"Fancy" Wade, a sharp-dressed ladies' man and professional athlete who also introduced McCloney to the music and style of Little Richard, a major influence.

[5] McCloney's career began in 1984 when he won a lip-sync contest at Minneapolis' First Avenue nightclub impersonating Little Richard, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, and James Brown.

[2][4][5][11] Fancy Ray's comic persona includes a flamboyant sexual ambiguity and style of dress, and a theatrical mock-arrogance and vanity once described as "a cross between Little Richard and Ethel Merman"[12] and a "carefully crafted ... naughty alter ego with goofy, winking innocence" that gives him the "ability to soften life’s seedier edges with campy joie de vivre.

[14][15] The show cemented his status as a local celebrity in the Twin Cities, interviewing guests including Ron Jeremy, Bootsy Collins, Whoopi Goldberg, Al Green, Bo Diddley, George Clinton, Carol Channing, Kevin Garnett, and Gloria Steinem.

"[12] McCloney runs a one-man ad agency, Chocolate Orchid Productions,[4] which produces, writes, edits and stars in television commercials for local businesses in the Twin Cities and other markets including San Jose; Phoenix; Memphis; St. Louis, Missouri; and Jacksonville, Florida.

"[5][17] He contributed guest vocals to the 2003 song "Parrots" by indie-rock band Hymie's Basement, and stars in a promotional video for Sleeping in the Aviary's 2010 album You and Me, Ghost, described by the Minnesota Daily as "a tongue-in-cheek homage to all those late night advertisements you’ve probably fallen asleep to once or twice.