Lady Gaga

• Born: March 28, 1986
• Place of Birth: New York City, New York

One of the first major pop stars of the twenty-first century, singer-songwriter Lady Gaga became known for her acclaimed songwriting, powerful voice, and ever-changing visual style. In addition to her critically and commercially successful music, she earned attention as an actor and philanthropist.

Lady Gaga was born Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta in 1986 in Yonkers, New York. She began her career after dropping out of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts in 2005 to concentrate on music. She performed with the Stefani Germanotta Band for a time before pursuing a career as a solo artist. She based her image on versatile postmodern pop icons such as Madonna and David Bowie while incorporating more contemporary influences as well.

In 2007, Interscope Records hired Lady Gaga as a songwriter for such well-known artists as the Pussycat Dolls and Britney Spears. After hearing her sing, R&B singer Akon signed her to his Kon Live label. Lady Gaga released her debut album, The Fame, in 2008. The singles “Just Dance” and “Poker Face” reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, while the album’s third and fourth singles, “LoveGame” and “Paparazzi,” also made their way into the top ten. The album won the Grammy Award for Best Electronic/Dance Album and was nominated for Album of the Year.

Lady Gaga opened for the New Kids on the Block during their 2008 tour and headed the Fame Ball Tour the following year. In late 2009, she released the EP The Fame Monster, which produced the singles “Bad Romance,” “Telephone,” and “Alejandro.” The album later won the Grammy Award for the best pop vocal album, and “Bad Romance” won the awards for best female pop performance and best short form music video.

By the end of the 2000s, Lady Gaga had established a dedicated fan base known as “little monsters.” She continued to create popular music, receiving additional critical and commercial recognition after the 2011 release of her second full-length album, Born This Way. She followed this up in 2013 with Artpop, though it did not reach the same level of popularity or critical praise as her previous efforts had.

Her next album, Cheek to Cheek (2014), proved a career-saving departure for her—an acclaimed jazz standards collection recorded with crooner Tony Bennett. Their chart-topping collaboration earned the duo a Grammy Award for the best traditional pop vocal album. The following year, Lady Gaga's career took another detour: a starring role in the television series American Horror Story. The part of the villainous Countess garnered her a Golden Globe Award.

Like several of her previous albums, Lady Gaga's fifth effort, Joanne (2016), landed in the number-one spot on the Billboard 200. Inspired by her late aunt, the album is marked by blues and rock rather than the typical pop sounds of her previous records. After a lauded performance as the headlining act for the halftime show of the Super Bowl in early 2017, she was forced to postpone part of her worldwide tour promoting Joanne later that year due to struggles with fibromyalgia.

Lady Gaga returned to acting, though this time making the leap to the big screen with the 2018 film A Star Is Born. The film is one of several remakes of the 1937 original film of the same name produced by David O. Selznick. Lady Gaga plays Ally, a young singer who is discovered by musician Jackson Maine (played by Bradley Cooper, who also produced and directed in addition to cowriting the screenplay for the project), who is plagued by struggles with alcoholism and drug addiction. In addition to receiving critical praise, the film was a major box office success, taking in over $436 million at the box office worldwide. Its soundtrack, featuring several songs written or cowritten as well as performed by Lady Gaga, was a similar success, debuting at number one on the Billboard 200 upon its release.

A Star Is Born ultimately brought Lady Gaga a host of awards and honors. At the Grammy Awards in 2019, she and Cooper took home the award for best pop duo/group performance for the film's song "Shallow," and she and her cowriters also won best song written for visual media for the same track. "Shallow" was additionally nominated for record of the year and song of the year. Separate from the film, Lady Gaga also received the Grammy for best pop solo performance for "Joanne (Where Do You Think You're Goin'?)." Then, at the Academy Awards that same year, Lady Gaga was nominated for best actress and won for best original song with "Shallow." A Star Is Born was also nominated in the category of best picture.

Meanwhile, Lady Gaga's music career continued to take turns. In December 2018, she began a residency in Las Vegas, Nevada, with performances ranging from her full pop hits to more basic arrangements of jazz standards. In May 2020, she released a new album, Chromatica, marking a return to more dance-based tracks. It topped the Billboard 200 albums chart upon its debut. Lady Gaga saw her profile raised even further when she was invited to sing at the inauguration of President Joe Biden in January 2021. Her performance of the national anthem was widely lauded, and, as in past appearances, her choice of dress and its potential statement at this significant national event were widely discussed. At the Grammy Awards held in March 2021, she and Ariana Grande won the award for best pop duo/group performance with the track "Rain on Me." Chromatica was also nominated for best pop vocal album, though it did not win.

Having proven successful in their collaboration for 2014's Cheek to Cheek, Lady Gaga and Bennett teamed up once more to release a new album covering jazz standards, this time with a focus on the music of Cole Porter. Once again earning listener and fan praise, the album Love for Sale (2021) and the companion music video for its track "I Get a Kick out of You" received a total of five Grammy nods for the artists. In the end, she and Bennett claimed the award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album. At the same time, Lady Gaga had continued her acting career, costarring in Ridley Scott's House of Gucci as Patrizia Reggiani, who becomes part of the legendary Gucci family through her marriage to Maurizio Gucci. In 2022, Lady Gaga cowrote the song “Hold My Hand” for the Top Gun: Maverick soundtrack. In July that year, Lady Gaga set out on her The Chromatica Ball tour.

Lady Gaga also signed on to star in the highly anticipated sequel to 2019's Joker, an origin story of the iconic comic book villain. She played Harley Quinn, Joker's lover and accomplice, in 2024's Joker: Folie à Deux.

Impact

Known for sporting campy or outlandish outfits and hairstyles, Lady Gaga established herself as a critically acclaimed recording artist and a cultural force to be reckoned with. She has been credited with refreshing the pop-music industry in the early twenty-first century. Critics often noted the strength of her voice and the quality of her original songwriting in an industry where many pop stars relied largely on songs written by others.

Lady Gaga also used her considerable fame to advocate for various social causes. She and her mother established the Born This Way Foundation in 2012 to help young people find outlets for expression, promote mental and emotional well-being, and foster relationships. She was recognized by the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation for her support of causes related to the LGBTQ community. In 2015, Lady Gaga and songwriter Diane Warren cowrote the Oscar-nominated “Til It Happens to You” for the documentary The Hunting Ground, about the epidemic of sexual assaults on US college campuses. She also partnered with the Elton John AIDS Foundation and spoke out about gun violence.

Bibliography

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Lady Gaga. "Billboard Cover: Woman of the Year Lady Gaga's Raw, Revealing Interview." Interview by Chris Martins. Billboard, 3 Dec. 2015, www.billboard.com/articles/events/women-in-music/6784920/lady-gaga-billboard-woman-of-the-year-2015-cover-story. Accessed 22 May 2024.

“President Biden Announces Key Appointments to Boards and Commissions.” The White House, 13 Apr. 2023, www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/04/13/president-biden-announces-key-appointments-to-boards-and-commissions-23/. Accessed 22 May 2024.

Spanos, Brittany. "Welcome to ‘Chromatica’: Inside Lady Gaga’s Triumphant Dance Floor Return." Rolling Stone, 30 May 2020, www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/lady-gaga-chromatica-making-of-bloodpop-axwell-1007139/. Accessed 22 May 2024.

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