victoria secret The stylish Victoria Secret Fashion Show takes place in Paris - and guess who is centre stage ? You guessed it. Lady Gaga.
Stage dives, malfunctions and tantrums. It all happened at the 59th Annual Grammys. 15
grammys go gaga
superbowl
contents
Is it a bird, is it a plane? No. It’s Lady Gaga scaling from the roof of a stadium. Lady Gaga takes the Superbowl by storm.
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ru paul’s drag race 17 tiffany & co. to page 18 to see Gaga’s 18 Head collaboration with the New York jewelry brand-Tiffany.
a star is born 19
It’s a party in the desert. And you’re invited.
Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper film their remake of ‘A Star Is Born’. Take a look at all the behind-the-scenes shots of the pairing on set.
joanne: The review
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Take a look at our review of Lady Gaga’s latest pop album ‘Joanne’. the i We review and reveal all the information behind Lady Gaga’s brand new single ‘The Cure’.
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Content by: Ali Kaoury @gagaoula bars. Of course, this change of image is accompanied by a drastic change in musical style. Born Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, Lady Gaga is now a worldwide phenomenon. Her debut album, 2008’s The Fame, packed with electro-pop hits and catchy tunes, helped shape the pop music scene at the time of its release. Since then, it has been nothing but success for Gaga, who has amassed numerous awards including 6 GRAMMYs and has received critical acclaim all over the world.
JOANNE: A REVIEW A lot can be taken away from Joanne by simply looking at Lady Gaga’s latest album cover, especially when compared to her previous ones. Gone is the eclectic persona and bold fashion statements. Instead, Gaga has turned the “normal” curve, sporting her (now iconic) pink hat which contrasts the light pale blue background. She also goes a step further; the promotion for Joanne included Gaga going back to her roots by performing songs from the album prior to its release in a series of dive
“Life is a dog fight for a lot of people. When you find the pitbull within yourself, that’s Joanne.”
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JOANNE: A REVIEW
After the release of her hugely successful sophomore LP Born This Way - which saw Gaga combine her theatrical background with club-banging production and an underlying message of self-acceptance which she would be known from here on after - all eyes were on her. However, many felt that Born This Way’s successor, ARTPOP, was a commercial and critical disappointment. The period between Born This Way and ARTPOP was a very tumultuous time for the singer. The anticlimactic ending to the Born This Way Ball Tour due to Gaga’s ignored hip-injury and her fallout with her previous manager Troy Carter put Gaga in a helpless position. ARTPOP was described as an “artist escaping from their cage”, the “cage” here representing physical limits and mental disruption.
“Gaga wanted to prove the doubters wrong.” Though the concept of the album was well-realized, the execution leaves much to be desired with questionable features, songwriting and production which fused harsh EDM instrumentation with Gaga’s deeply edited vocals. Personally, I enjoyed the album as it saw Gaga experimenting and evolving as an artist. There were some serious EDM/ Pop tunes which the public overlooked either due to Gaga’s commercial shortcomings or because they felt alienated by this change of style. ARTPOP is often said not to have the sense of direction and cohesiveness that Gaga’s previous albums had. As a result, the once legendary Lady Gaga became simply a “one hit wonder” to critics and public alike. Naturally, Gaga wanted to prove the doubters wrong with her latest album, which sees her at her most vulnerable yet. Named after the superstar’s late aunt, Joanne - who died 11 years before Gaga was born but who became a “genealogical influence” to Gaga both to her as a person and to her career - Joanne is by far Gaga’s most stripped back album in her discography.
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JOANNE: A REVIEW
Here, Lady Gaga strives for a rootiser, rawer sound led by her stunning vocal performance and backed by solid songwriting and big production. The instrumentation on this album is very diverse - ranging from acoustic guitar and piano (title track & Angel Down) to head-banging electric guitar (Perfect Illusion) to sensual dance-pop (Dancin’ In Circles). Joanne also sees Gaga explore uncharted territory with a country-influenced ballad (Million Reasons) and a catchy dance-country track (AYO) which comes as a pleasant surprise. The opener (Diamond Heart) starts off very mellow for the first few seconds, then the tension-building drums kick in and we reach an explosive climax, with Gaga belting out the chorus while the drums get heavier and more intense. To me, this foreshadows what Joanne will be. The first few seconds of acoustic instrumentation fronted by Gaga’s raw, almost wounded, vocals represent the “folkier” part of the album while the chorus represents what we have come to expect from Gaga: catchy, explosive hits. She is welcoming new fans and acknowledging her die-hard “Little Monsters”. Lady Gaga is no amateur when it comes to music history. She is classically trained and has a theatrical background which inspires much of her work. On Joanne, she champions her influences in a subtle way. The Florence Welch-featured track (Hey Girl) sounds especially influenced by Elton John’s “Bennie and the Jets”. The track sees Gaga and Florence not simply singing specific verses, instead they are having a warming 3
conversation about girl-love. “Sinner’s Prayer” is as far as Gaga goes in making a country song. It’s a gorgeous cut that sees Gaga adamant to being a sinner to her love-interest. On “Come To Mama”, a broadway tune, Gaga puts her two-cents on politics and the state of the division and disagreement that we are currently in. She preaches universal-love and offers a simple advice: observe nature and how it has sustained itself without conflict. Are we not, at the end of the day, part of nature? “Angel Down” continues Come To Mama’s message but in a much darker and grimmer tone, both instrumentally and vocally. On one of the Deluxe tracks (Just Another Day), Gaga pays homage to The Beatles and the late David Bowie. Gaga gets a little personal on Joanne too with tracks like “John Wayne” in which the singer expresses her love for rugged, wild country men. “Million Reasons” sees Gaga try to sustain a flawed relationship. She’s almost trying to convince herself to stay in the relationship, regardless of how toxic it really is to her. Also “Dancin’ In Circles”, a track explicitly about masturbation, is another kind of personal. This track reiterates Gaga’s ability to make a steamy pop song, like she has done on her previous albums. But perhaps the closest we get to Gaga on Joanne is through the title track, which is a sweet mid-tempo acoustic song elevated by Gaga’s raw, uneasy vocals. On another Deluxe track (Gri-
gio Girls) celebrates her lifetime friendship to Sonya, one of Gaga’s closest friends, and her the rest of her girl-gang. The album, while ambitious and mostly well-executed, is not flawless. The songwriting on some of the tracks suffers from either tacky or repetitive lyrics. The lyrics on Come To Mama stand out as being especially naive and two-dimensional. Gaga offers no new, real solutions. Instrumentally, the album can use some improvement. John Wayne sounds confused - was Gaga aiming for a tropical-house hit or a rock-country song? The track sounds confused, as the combination of the two drastically different genres is less than flattering. Furthermore, since Gaga was aiming to please fans and attract listeners from outside that sphere, the album can feel a little scattered (and also a little try-hard when it comes to the latter) when listened to from top to bottom. It seems Gaga is not fully prepared (yet) to take the huge leap required for her to completely renovate herself. Instead, she experiments on only some tracks. One might say she played it too safe, which Gaga is not known for.
JOANNE: A REVIEW
These flaws are understandable and nothing Gaga can’t overcome in the future. She has already proved that she is capable of switching styles and mostly succeeding, now she needs to work on songwriting and themes. If she could find that sweet-spot which both long-time fans and new audiences enjoy, she could cement herself as one of music’s most versatile artists. The slower songs are the most captivating on Joanne, serving not only to elevate the listening experience but also as a reminder of Gaga’s ability to make emotional, heart-felt songs. Color me impressed!
It turns out that behind the over-the-top outfits, Lady Gaga is a true rockstar at her core. Perhaps the most jaw-dropping and shocking step Gaga could have taken was to do just the opposite strip down all the layers and put out an album that is mostly elemental and bare. While the album is not perfect, it is a strong foundation and an impressive first-step for further evolution. KEY TRACKS: KEY TRACKS: A-YO, Joanne, Million Reasons, Sinner’s Prayer, Perfect Illusion, Hey Girl, Angel Down, Just Another Day
xoxo, J oanne
april 15 /april 22 indio, ca
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After performing at the Super Bowl Half Time Show, releasing a critically acclaimed album and securing a lead role in a movie it felt like Lady Gaga couldn’t be any more on top of her game. Then Beyonce fell pregnant and pulled from Coachella - who would replace her? The only woman who is equal in performance stature - Lady Gaga. She would become the second female to ever headline the festival. The last female to headline prior would be Björk who had done so a decade before. They stakes were high and within 30 seconds the crowd were hers. Producing some of her finest visuals by Ruth Hogben, Gaga’s intro was something of a spectacle. It hyped the crowd and those viewing via the livestream that YouTube and Coachella had provided. With a medley of hits and hard hitting beats the audio matched the stunning visuals. A brunette stripped back Gaga had a black tentacle writhing from her mouth slapping her face in slow motion. The segway from this introduction proved that Gaga had
really thought about her fans for this setlist opening with fan favourite Scheiße. Dressed in a long latex/leather combo trench coat and statement light up belt Gaga performed the German feminist anthem with choreography. Scheiße wasn’t the only fan favourite song performed during the setlist as Gaga included Venus, Sexxx Dreams, Teeth and A-YO.
“Get outta my fucking way.” The high energy set was packed with choreography and a highlight included a blooper during John Wayne in which a dancer managed to get in the way of the songstresses’s feet. To which she shouted “Get outta my fucking way.” kicked him and then performed the challenging and complex choreography that Richy
Jackson had created for the song. - What more do you expect? In true Gaga style she asked the crowd if they “had found anyone they want to sleep with yet?” showing that her stage presence doesn’t lack humour. Talking to the crowd frequently throughout her set she let them into two secrets. The first was a shock announcement. A brand new single - The Cure - to which she debuted her catchy new tune to the audience screaming “TURN IT UP.” The second surprise came at the end of her set during the second weekend of Coachella. She announced to the crowd that during her set she had been filmed for her upcoming movie with Bradley Cooper ‘A Star is Born’ and that the crowd would in fact be in the film. Gaga did not disappoint with her headlining set. It gave a glimpse into her upcoming Joanne World Tour, reminding everyone why Lady Gaga really is born for the stage. A superstar who knows how to work a crowd and give a spectacular performance - Coachella - tick - another addition to the wondrous Joanne era.
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THE CURE LADY GAGA
ARTICLE BY BILLY KELLY
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t’s been approved by Jesus, Doctors at the FDA, Soccer moms and even aliens. Yes, you read that right, aliens. These have been a small part of the promotional videos being spurred out by monsters on Twitter to promote Lady Gaga’s brand new single ‘The Cure’. ‘The Cure’ is exactly the right title for a song that seemed to alarm, destabilise and mangle an entire fanbase. It came during the middle of Lady Gaga’s headlining Saturday night Coachella set and it is fair to say that the ball hasn’t stopped rolling since. Out of nowhere Gaga addressed the crowd with “I’m so excited for this next bit, because I’ve been trying to keep it a secret for so long.” Gaga then announced that she had been in the studio; despite only releasing her previous sixth album Joanne months before. What followed was an infectious pop song that reminded the world why Lady Gaga and pop go hand in hand. Like everything Lady Gaga does it has duplicate meanings and we’re here to help you decode them. On the surface the catchy and almost generic lyrics “If I can’t find a cure, I’ll fix you with my love.” fit with something that let’s say The Chainsmoker’s might release. But it has a deeper meaning than that we are initial led to believe.
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The alternative meaning struck when listening to Gaga’s second weekend at Coachella. Gaga paid tribute to her sick friend Sonja Durham, who has stage 4 breast cancer and is also the inspiration behind ‘Grigio Girls’ from Joanne. Gaga revealed with a shaky voice that Sonja “wasn’t feeling too good” and that she wished she could be with her and her team at the festival. After this sad news I heard ‘The Cure’ in a completely different light. It seemed that the track was about a sick friend and not a lover. Two weeks prior to the festival Gaga attended Sonja’s wedding along with her friends and family. The single dropped minutes after Gaga’s Coachella weekend one performance and hasn’t stopped gaining traction since. Despite no promotion in terms of a music video, TV performances or interviews ‘The Cure’ has stapled itself amongst the leading positions of charts around the world. The biggest success for the track however is the way in which it has secured Gaga in terms of radio and streaming which is the future of the music industry as sale records are in decline. Currently the track is receiving almost 1.5 million streams every 24 hours. As of early May the total streams stood at 28,046,662 on Spotify and
was #3 on the Today’s Top Hits playlist (one of Spotify’s largest playlists). This is a U-turn for Gaga who fought to be included in any of Spotify’s playlists during her ‘Million Reasons’ era. In a clever marketing attempt Lady Gaga’s team released ‘The Cure’ lyric video - her first lyric video since ‘Aura’. The video features ‘trippy’ graphics and at times unreadable lyrics. Some monsters argued that it was a promotional method as it inspired a flurry of memes and a ‘Buzzfeed’ article directing readers to the video. The future of ‘The Cure’ is as promising as its release with Gaga’s choreography Richy Jackson confirming during an Instagram live post that there will be a music video with full choreography. This is sure to surge the 3 minute 31 second track back up to the top spots of the charts. As Gaga is currently busy filming her first
full length feature film as a lead with Bradley Cooper in ‘A Star is Born’ we are uncertain if ‘The Cure’ and the movie remake are linked or if it is Gaga’s single from a brand new album. DJ White Shadow, the mastermind behind some of Gaga’s biggest tracks such as ‘The Edge of Glory’ and ‘Born This Way’ revealed some exciting news. The DJ stated in an interview that he had worked with Gaga in the studio over a period of six weeks and that their sessions were “fruitful”. With the video due in the next few weeks monsters are waiting in anticipation for the visuals which will probably be directed by Ruth Hogben who shot the single cover and interludes that played during the Coachella weekend. Only time will tell what is in store for ‘The Cure’ but we are sure that it will be exciting.
“it’s been approved by jesus, doctors at the fda, soccer moms and even aliens.”
THE CURE 8
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Wednesday, November 30th 2016. One of many days in Lady Gaga’s legendary career where she just ruthlessly snatched weaves left and right, scalping us, leaving us weaveless and shook. I remember sitting with my laptop, up very late, mouth agape in awe of the spectacle unfolding before me. Okay, maybe it wasn’t that much of a viscerally emotional experience for every viewer but for me at least, it had me shook to the core. This game changing performance took
place at the annual Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in Paris, France. The show is an opportunity for Victoria’s Secret to showcase their newest fashions on their Angels, or celebrity supermodels. Expect light, fluffy, gravity-defying lingerie that looks like an angel descended from heaven right before your very eyes supplemented with stunning, sexy, darker ensembles to balance it all out. Needless to say, the show is the best of the best when it comes to high fashion underwear.
Article by Christian (@uhohsawyeroh)
The VSFS is always a star studded event, and Victoria’s Secret carefully selects the biggest pop stars to perform during various runway segments. This year’s lineup was The Weeknd, Bruno Mars, and of course the woman, the legend herself: Lady Gaga. The Weeknd’s and Bruno Mars’ set were great but in my opinion, the real highlight of the show was Gaga. I think it’s surprising that in all of her iconic eight year career since 2009 she’s only performed at VSFS once. Regardless of when she did it, I for one, am glad she did. Before she sang even a single note of her extensive repertoire of hits, she slayed all of us at the Victoria’s Secret Pink Carpet. She wore a stunning sleeveless, floral, lace gown by Azzedine Alaia. The gown had a nude underdress and deep slits on the sides providing a sexy, yet classy look -the perfect balance. One might feel intimidated walking amongst so many supermodels but, Gaga was not phased at all and tore up that carpet just as if she would any other day. When the carpet was over the performances began where Gaga performed after Bruno Mars. She opened her set with her chart topping ballad, ‘Million Reasons’. Gaga had performed Million Reasons several times leading up to this, but this is one that stands out in my mind. She entered, smoke machine creating a dream-like effect on stage, while an extended intro of the song played. I can distinctly remember audibly gasping when I got my first good look at her dress. It was a gorgeous floral mermaid dress by YolanCris, adorned with several embroidered rose patches. The gown and her stunning red lip shade along with her custom
Cartier ruby earrings came together to give us a feeling of regality. She started singing. Her voice filled the venue as she crooned, serving us goddess quality vocals as she always does. The models began to walk, dressed in feathers and fluff while Gaga performed a few vocal runs to fill the instrumental spaces between verses. The Angels kept coming, interacting with Mother Monster as they passed by her. Reaching out and touching hands, even at one point changing the lyrics from “baby I just need one good one” to “baby she just needs one good one”. The whole performance came together to create a theme of women supporting one another, which we all know are Gaga’s fundamental principles. After we all dried our tears from Million Reasons and after Gaga made a drastic costume change, she was ready to begin the second part of her set. She began, standing in formation with all of her dancers and we got her signature “heeeeeere we go” signifying the beginning of the A-YO. Bedazzling all of us in a sequinned black Saint Laurent ensemble, she belted out the twangy country-rooted bop all with full choreography. After she left us in the dust with A-YO, she began yet another country influenced bop from Joanne: John Wayne. She had a slight change with her costume but it was still that same Saint Laurent piece, however now with an added custom Gladys Tamez hat. The designer, who had created all of Gaga’s previous Joanne hats, partnered with Swarovski to design this dazzling headpiece valued at one million dollars. That’s a pretty penny to spend on a hat but it was hand beaded with over
47,000 Swarovski crystals. The models came walking, this time dressed in darker, edgier fashions. As Gaga got about halfway through John Wayne, she had a helper put a gorgeous white Schott NYC Perfecto leather jacket on her, equipped with a surprise by Living Art of Armando. John Wayne slowly came to a close and the last model walked off stage, met with cheeky finger guns from Gaga. At last it was her turn to leave she turned and her own feathery wings emerged from the back of her jacket. She brought the house down, her guitarist riffing as she made her grand exit, shouting to the crowd in French. After the show, the performers and the Angels gathered together for the finale. She stunned alongside Bruno Mars and The Weeknd in yet another Azzedine Alaia piece. The two-piece outfit was in a stunning burgundy colour and consisted of a shortsleeved crop-top and high waisted mermaid skirt. It was a nice moment as the other performers showed their respect to the legendary presence before them. Just as we all thought we could take a second to breathe, she decided to knock our socks off with yet another perfect moment. Backstage after the show was over Gaga stunned us with the Angels whilst wearing a bra, panties, and satin kimono from Victoria’s Secret’s Dream Angels Wicked collection. Her blonde hair was flowing gracefully and she looked truly and utterly beautiful. She was wearing a pair of Pleaser’s Beyond-087 black towering platforms that looked like they could kill you. Her VSFS 2016 performance will go down in history as one of the most important and
iconic events of the Joanne era. 10
LADY GAGA SUPER BOWL Is It a Bird? Is It a Plane? No, it’s Lady Gaga! By Courtney-Louise Jones As Lady Gaga ended a tremendously successful 2016 with the release of her fifth solo studio album, Joanne, she set the way for 2017 to become something truly spectacular. To kick off the New Year, Gaga followed her 2016 performance of Star Spangled Banner at the opening of the Super Bowl 50 by becoming the first female artist to ever take the half-time stage alone in the 2017 Super Bowl LI. She danced in the footsteps of some of the greatest musicians of all time, from the likes of Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Prince, Stevie Wonder and many more - only after she jumped through the open roof of the stadium beforehand that is.
Super Bowl LI in Houston, Texas, the announcement of Lady Gaga as the headline act for the Patriots vs. Falcons game was met with trepidation from the wider NFL audience. Questions of whether the multi award winning artist’s performance was the right decision for the sport’s regular viewers’ taste, to whether the star would turn the event into a political stunt following her outspoken opinions of the election of the 45th president of the United States. In November of 2016, just hours after the announcement of the country’s newest president, Lady Gaga caused controversy as she hung from the side of a garbage truck as it drove through the streets of New York Prior to the Pepsi sponsored City, holding a ‘Love Trump’s half-time performance at the Hate’ sign high above her head.
Whether she would turn an entertaining game of football into a political stunt was the question on everyone’s lips. In an attempt to diminish the spiralling rumour mill, Lady Gaga took to the stage at the pre-Super Bowl press conference with the show’s organisers and Pepsi sponsor. “The only statements that I’ll be making are the ones I have consistently been making throughout my career.” She announced to the press when asked if she had any plans to make the expected political statement. “I don’t know if I’ll succeed in unifying America. I believe in a passion for inclusion and the spirit of equality. My performance will uphold those philosophies.” 12
Gaga did confirm, however that her performance was set to be something for all to enjoy. “This performance is for everyone. I want to, more than anything, create a moment that everyone that’s watching will never forget.” And that she did. With the press conference giving nothing away in regards to the Half-Time show itself, all eyes were drawn to the roof of the Houston stadium at the end of the game’s second period on February 5th, where the world watched in trepidation as the lights shone on and behind the star. From the edge of the rooftop of the stadium, Lady Gaga opened her set with an array of illuminated drones behind her that moved to form a waving image of the star spangled banner as she sang a rendition of
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Woody Guntrie’s ‘This Land Is Your Land’, which had already become a popular anthem at rallies across the country protesting President Trump’s election. Her small verse was rounded up with the American Pledge of Allegiance, quoting ‘one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all,’ before leaping from the roof to make the greatest stage entry in the history of the Super Bowl. She swung from the roof to a stage suspended on cables and began her 13-minute choreographed set in true Gaga fashion – by belting out some of her greatest and most successful hits in a silver sequined bodysuit and matching heeled boots. Edge of Glory was first up out of the pack, followed by Poker Face and Born This Way with the huge crowds singing along,
word for word in the portion of each song she chose to sing in the ultimate Lady Gaga medley. During Born This Way (an already controversial and politically charged song that united the LGBT+ community and the extended diversity in the world), Lady Gaga rebuilt the song to fit her set, skipping over the lyrics to end with the chorus that celebrates diversity of all sorts as if to take a stance at the anti-equality politician, Vice President Mike Pence, who was in attendance of the game, Gaga belted the chorus to ‘Born This Way’ - with the inclusion of: ‘No matter gay, straight, or bi Lesbian, transgender life... No matter black, white or beige Chola or orient made I’m on the right track baby I was born to be brave.’
Then, the crowd was hit with Telephone (unfortunately without Beyoncé this year, after rumours that last year’s performer would join Gaga for the number; Gaga was joined with a glittering crystal star phone instead) and a huge rendition of Just Dance backed by an endless stream of perfectly choreographed dancers all dressed in black and purple techno-style outfits. A few songs into the set welcomed Lady Gaga’s first outfit change of the night from her glitter ball body suit to don a gold glittery jacket with her keytar as the ultimate accessory as she ran across the stage and eventually joining her huge crowd of choreographed Little Monsters on the pitch itself. The fans each waved torches in unison to create some of the most beautiful lighting effects any live performance had ever seen. And, without further ado, the gold jacket was gone; the silver body suit was gone, and
a pair of glittery hot pants and Lady Gaga’s very own bejewelled set of white shoulder pads were revealed in their place. Even the bedazzling crystals that were embellished around her eyes were removed perfectly on stage by her dancers during a huge group hug. Even the dancers themselves stripped away their grungy outfits to reveal their own white and bejewelled costume change. During her vocally intense rendition of Million Reasons, the only song performed from Joanne, at a piano in the middle of the stage, Gaga paused to pull off a perfect shout-out to her parents Cindy and Joe Germanotta, saying: “Hey dad. Hi mom!” The whole affair was wrapped up with an intense and highly choreographed performance of Lady Gaga’s most successful hit, Bad Romance. The star danced, ran and skipped across the stage as she hit every note of the song before ascending up the side of the stage
to receive a flying football in a perfected jump from the stage. Gaga’s 13-minute gig pulled an incredible 117.5 million viewers, making it the second-most-viewed halftime show in Super Bowl history, after Katy Perry’s wild ride of a performance in 2015. However, Lady Gaga’s performance itself became the most tweeted about event, obtaining 2.2 million real-time tweets about the #PepsiHalftime show, and as well as a total of 5.1 million tweets about the performance leading up to, during, and in the 10 minutes following. To officially wrap up her incredibly successful performance, Lady Gaga took to social media as she paired up with Ticketmaster and Live Nation to announce her self-titled world tour that would be hitting over 48 cities from August of this year, with tickets on sale a few days after the performance.
LADY GAGA SUPER BOWL 14
THE 59TH GRAMMY AWARDS LADY GAGA X METALLICA
GRAMMYS GO GAGA
Try and define Lady Gaga - its too hard right. Her versatility is her power. One instance she can be in a full Comme De Garçon ensemble then a few hours later converse and jeans. Her music style ranges from pop to dance to jazz, so it was no surprise to anyone when it was announced that she would take to the Grammys stage to perform with rock legends, Metallica. February 12, 2017. 6pm - Lady Gaga is preparing for the night ahead. Sat with her make up done, outfit planned, all ready to go. The only thing left to do - send fans into meltdown. Thus, she posted a picture online of what appeared to be a brand new tattoo spread across her entire back. The image was a moth which turned out to be a transfer specially made for the event. You may be thinking why a moth - we did too but it all became clear when the opening chords of Gaga and Metallica’s performance began. The rockstar metal group and Gaga were performing Metallica’s 2016 single ‘Moth Into Flame’. The staging was dramatic with flames, grinding dancing and guitars being thrown. The whole per-
formance screamed rock and roll from the outset. Fire glared from the stage whilst Gaga screamed the lyrics: “Light it up ah, light it up / Another hit erases all the pain / Bulletproof ah, kill the truth.” She then ran and stage dived head first into a crowd below who held her up until she was dragged back by security. The rock tone continued when a technical malfunction left Metallica’s front man James Hetfield’s microphone useless. This resulted in Gaga and Hetfield face to face singing into a microphone together. The 30 year old singer wore an ensemble of outfits throughout the night including an outfit which showed serious underboob by Alex Ulrichny. Continuing the rock theme of the night Gaga continued to wear a leather off the shoulder outfit at the Interscope After Party. Throughout the night Gaga posed with celebrities including John Travolta, Celine Dion and even posted an Instagram picture with Adele. The night showed that Lady Gaga cannot and will not be defined in any sense of the word.
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ru paul’s drag race Oh. My. Gaga!
Imagine this for a crazy concept: RuPaul’s Drag Race - a staple of LGBT media; and Lady Gaga - a singing goddess, actress, activist and gay icon. Merge them together and what do you get? The most fabulous episode in TV herstory. On Friday March 24th, wigs truly flew as Lady Gaga entered the workroom sporting killer 10-inch Pleaser platforms and a custom bodysuit & jacket by Perry Meek. “So this the Derrick Barry of the season,” - no Alexis Michelle,
this contestant is all too real. Am I disappointed Jo Calderone never made an appearance? Perhaps, But Gaga’s character Ronnie is just as good I guess. Gaga looks so proud of herself as she reveals it’s actually her, by removing her baseball cap and popping on a pair of shades. Truly the costume change of the season. A highlight of Gaga’s interactions with the girls is her conversation with Eureka O’Hara, who gave a heart wrenching speech confessing her adoration for Gaga and her inspiration to the drag community. During her early days in downtown
New York, Gaga mingled with the art-centric community of the Lower East Side club scene. She credits drag as an inspiration for fashion sense and demure; “Drag for me has been an opportunity to leave myself when I didn’t want to be me. Drag has been part of my life for the longest time.” The main challenge for this episode was a pageant for the title of “Miss Charisma, Uniqueness, Nerve and Talent” which required the contestants to create a look based on their own personality, and their best Lady Gaga drag.
TOOT OR BOOT? Peppermint Grammy Awards 2016 - The detail on the coat is gorgeous and the hair is almost identical. TOOT! Valentina CFDA Awards 2011 - The wig seems a little too cheap and shiny, and I wish the train was longer and had more volume. BOOT! Eureka Telephone Music Video - YAAAS SHOULDER PADS! I will say I’m not a fan of the hair though. Also, those glasses are spray-painted lab goggles. BOOT! Charlie Hides Brit Awards 2010 - Okay, yes I may be bias because Charlie’s a UK queen but that outfit is perfection. The detailing of the lace must have taken hours. McQueen would be proud. TOOT! Farrah Moan Alejandro Music Video - The hair was a good move, the jacket is a great recreation but WHERE WAS THE GOD DAMN REVEAL?! BOOT! Sasha Velour Applause Music Video - Yes, yes, everything about it yes. Even down to the movement of the white sheet behind her, she slayed this. TOOT! Alexis Michelle Golden Globes 2016 - This has to be the closest look I’ve seen on the runway. Donatella should watch out because Alexis is coming for her gig. TOOT!
Shea Couleé Monster Ball Tour - I can definitely see where she was going with this, but it just seems a little messy whilst the Living Dress has a clearer structure. The wig is great, but where’s the headpiece?! BOOT! Trinity Taylor AHS: Hotel - Definitely a highlight of the group, the hair is a little too big (but I guess it is drag), the rest of the look is so god damn flawless. TOOT! Kimora Blac On The Go - There’s no doubt the look is Versace, but it’s nowhere near the original. Girl, we know you’re a body queen but that’s just a bunch of straps. The hair & hat is cute though. BOOT! Jaymes Mansfield Vogue Cover - Jaymes, oh Jaymes. You took an elegant cover and made it a mess, seriously what was with that walk?! And you look like a Cadbury’s wrapper! I’m sorry boo I can’t. BOOT! Nina Bo’nina Brown MTV VMAs 2009 - I’m pretty sure those titties just knocked me out. It’s so simplistic yet sexy and high fashion at the same time. TOOT! Aja Commes des Garçons - Now I get that she’s going for that “inspired” look, but the sleeves should have been brought in a little and the back seam needed covering up. That makeup though girl. BOOT!
by lewis
They say Lady Gaga can be split - Lady and Gaga. Well in her recent collaboration with jewelry designer Tiffany and Co. Lady made an appearance.Tiffany described her as: “fiercely feminine as the new Tiffany HardWear collection, the legendary Lady Gaga captures the spontaneity and creative spirit of New York City.” Gaga shot an advert with the New York jewelry company which aired before her Super Bowl Half Time Performance. The ad was shot by fashion photographer David Sims and was styled by legendary fashion icon and former Vogue editor, Grace Coddington. In a black turtle neck with her French Bulldog, Asia - Gaga looks into the camera and says: “In New York, you’re born knowing that Tiffany is the best, and that it is where the magic happens. The brand is definitive and iconic, yet continues to push and evolve with the times. To me, Tiffany represents timeless American jewelry.”
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A STAR IS BORN
“I am so excited to star in my first movie alongside someone I’m so lucky to call my friend. I always wanted to be an actress on the big screen. The story of “A Star is Born” is so special and I’m so grateful to Bradley for making my dream come true. Can’t wait for you to meet Ally. She has her first scene in 5.” - Lady Gaga on Instagram (April 17. 2017)
Gaga and Cooper locking lips on set
First promotional image of Gaga and Cooper
The ‘ASIB’ couple backstage at SNL
Screen Test for ‘A Star Is Born’
Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper are set to go where the likes of Judy Garland, Barbara Streisand & Fredric March have been before. They’re set to feature in a classic remake of the 1937 film ‘ A Star Is Born’. Filming has already commenced on “A Star Is Born,” in LA and various other locations such as New York City & the iHeartRadio studios. The latest remake of the the oft-made story of two celebrities who meet when one’s star is on the rise and the other’s is waning. To commemorate the occasion, Warner Bros. has released the first image from the set, giving you an exclusive behind the scenes look, Gaga is seen belting into a microphone whilst Cooper, guitar in hand, looks on with sheer admiration. Gaga is being billed as Stefani Germanotta, her birth name, and the film marks her first
leading role in a major motion picture. It also represents Cooper’s directorial debut. A collaboration critics are already seeing as a prime opportunity to watch these two superstars glow. Bradley Cooper will play Jackson Maine, a country music star who discovers a talented unknown named Ally (Germanotta). Ally’s career quickly eclipses his own and Jack struggles to accept that his best days may be behind him, putting pressure on their developing romance. Previous versions of the film include the 1937 classic with Fredric March and Janet Gaynor as Hollywood stars, the beloved 1954 George Cukor musical version with Garland and James Mason, and the financially successful, if slightly campy, 1976 update with Streisand and Kris Kristofferson as rockers. The re-boot featuring Gaga and cooper is set to be released on September 28th, worldwide. ARTICLE BY @Hausofrobert
JAMES CORDEN - CARPOOL KARAOKE A night in which Gaga anointed herself once again onto the pop culture throne, Gaga’s appearance on ‘The Late Late Show with James Corden’ became an instant fan favourite in recent years. Having toured the United States, performing jazz records with Tony Bennett and delving into the acting world in ‘American Horror Story’, Gaga’s return to pop music was highly anticipated by fans across the world. Starved of talk show appearances and red-carpet posing, Gaga came back with a splash by taking up the James Cordon’s passenger seat. A gig already employed by the likes of Adele, Britney Spears and Justin Bieber, Gaga’s appearance was heralded by both critics and fans. Introducing herself as “Lady HaHa”, she poked fun at Donald Trump, stealing the opening monologue for herself before being ordered off the stage by a scantily clad Mr. Corden. Gaining sympathy from the booing audience, Gaga was invited to sit with Reggie and the band for the evening and perform her latest hits. ‘A-Yo’ became a cult hit, with viewers tweet-
ing “Where can I download the song ‘Mirror on the Ceiling”? But it was the ‘Carpool Karaoke’ segment which raked in the most viewers as Gaga slid into the famous passenger seat. Sporting a gold sequinned top with a festive bow, a slick ponytail and hoop earrings, Gaga looked very much the Lady. L.A traffic was no match for this Manhattan girl as she brandished the colourful language and creative hand gestures of which all New Yorkers become fluent in. Cordon, at first, cackled nervously before settling into Gaga’s twisted universe. Discussing the Super Bowl, Michael Jackson’s fashion sense and her new driving license, Gaga made ‘Carpool’ history by being the first guest to take the wheel and drive James to work. Giggling like a naughty teenager who hijacked her parent’s car, Gaga had James reaching for a helmet out of fear for his life. In typical ‘Carpool’ fashion, Gaga belted along to some of her most popular hits, ‘Poker Face’, ‘Born This Way’, ‘The Edge of Glory’ and ‘Bad Romance’. Enquiring as to whether her re-
cord label had reservations when approving the chant “rah-rahroma-ma-ma”, Gaga quipped “They don’t get to do that because I’m the boss’. To which all of us exclaimed “YAS GAGA!” Now, it wouldn’t be a Lady Gaga interview if her outlandish fashion sense wasn’t a point of topic, “I don’t like it when fashion fails me. Or maybe I fail fashion. The point is to be unfashionable”. During a throwback extravaganza of some of Gaga’s most iconic looks, James adorned the infamous yellow police tape wrap, as seen in the Telephone music video; the Alexander McQueen, red lace body suit (worn at the 2009 VMAs); and a pastiche of the infamous meat dress. Gaga was rendered speechless (no pun intended). Finishing off with a completely unedited rendition of ‘Million Reasons’ of which James let Gaga take complete vocal control. The power of her stardom shone as bright as ever as Corden stopped singing along and sat back to admire the Lady’s immense soprano talent, emotional lyricism and sheer star presence. Kevin Worrall (@RealitysCorpse)
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ARTICLE BY JAKE MELLOR
AMERICAN MUSIC AWARDS
Lady Gaga performed her beautiful ballad ‘Million Reasons’ from her most recent #1 album, ‘Joanne’ on the 20th of November at the 2016 American Music Awards. Lady Gaga had several outfit changes at the AMA’s, wearing a white trouser suit on the red carpet designed by her friend Brandon Maxwell. She also wore her 10 inch pleaser heels and a big white hat to top off the astonishing outfit, before changing into a black leather studded dress for a barefoot performance. Lady Gaga’s dress is from the Spring/Summer 2017 Rodarte collection, we love the rock chick aesthetic combined with the pretty and flattering fit and flare silhouette. Gaga performed on the stage with faux grass surrounding her alongside light up blue bell flowers. The set of this performance was created by Ruth Hogben. Her
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old friend and her visual director for most of her backdrops & stage set’s. Gaga said in an interview that the set of the stage looks “exactly like her garden back at her home.” The backdrop behind her had a beautiful night’s sky on it, and it looked so incredible. This performance was so different to her usual performances, it was very stripped back and pure Gaga. She just sat in her chair, among the grass and played the guitar. She looked incredible with her long blonde wig and her makeup done by Sarah Nicole Tanno, which is Gaga’s makeup artist. For me, this performance was one of her best performances she’s done, the vocals were perfect and there was one special part in her performance she stopped playing the guitar and just belted out Million Reasons and her voice filled the whole place.
x factor Lady Gaga and X Factor UK have a history of great performances. Bad Romance in a giant bathtub, becoming a headless confessional for Marry The Night back in 2011 and her most recent ‘Venus/Do What U Want’ mash up. Fast forward 3 years later and Gaga would give the fourth instalment to a shocking collection of performances. Singing her hit single ‘Million Reasons’ Gaga belted her ballad standing in front of a giant pink moon. Standing on a platform in heels wearing a skirt with tassels she managed to maintain her balance stood on a tiny platform which raised her tiny frame ten feet in the air. Without any harness Gaga managed to hit notes as high as she was literally. With a smoky stage and Gaga lying on her back 3 meters in the air in front of a giant pink moon she gave a strong visual which would look great as a tour performance.
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It’s the biggest night on the British Fashion calendar so it’s no surprise that Lady Gaga is there. Alongside her friend and designer Brandon Maxwell she walked down the red carpet in London in a custom black velvet Brandon Maxwell gown. Her hair styled sleek, blonde and tight in a bun showing off her elegance and beauty. The look was finished with simple earrings and soft make up. The star-studded event was hosted by model Gigi Hadid and guests included top names in fashion such as Kate Moss and Nicole Scherzinger. Lady Gaga was listed amongst the best dressed on several lists including British GQ, Harper’s Bazaar and Elle.
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royal variety performance Lady Gaga has gained the stature of being pop royalty but for the Royal Variety performance she had to perform for actual royalty. Dressed in a nude silk Brandon Maxwell gown Gaga sang her hit ballad ‘Million Reasons’ for Prince Phillip and Princess Camilla. Covering her tattoos with make up Gaga showed her conservative side whilst performing one of her best renditions of her ballad from ‘Joanne’. Accompanied by an orchestra the performance took a different turn to previous live versions showing the power and elegance of her vocals.
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