Please Don't Hate On 06.24.09: Lady GaGa

Posted by Jay Carroll on 06.24.2009

Pop my column cherry and bring on the comments.

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With the advent of Youtube, message boards, and the Internet allowing us to see celebrities and artists in all shades of lights, one bad performance, one poorly taken photograph, and any round of bad publicity can be enough to give ammunition to an army of detractors. My purpose for writing this column is to separate the good from the bad, and help those artists that have had unfair accusations tossed at them to get their names cleared. For those I deem worthy I will dedicate a column a week and defend their good name. If you wish to see an article written on a certain artist or band, just leave the artist/band's name in the comment section and I just might use that artist/band in a future column (and credit you for the idea, of course). With that said, I now present the first in a series:

Please Don't Hate: Lady GaGa

Something tells me the guy in the back has love muffins on his mind...

From first glance, it's easy to dismiss Lady Gaga as another singer in a list of crappy pop singers with dance rhythms that go way past her talent. Throw in her style of dress, which can be described kindly as "eccentric" and the rumors of her being a she-male, and it is just downright simple to label her as a flash in the pan with little to no staying ability. However, if you so choose to dig a little deeper under the surface, you can find more than enough reasons to like Lady Gaga.


Complaint #1: She has no talent.

Like most artists in her genre (dance/pop), Lady GaGa haters love to trot out this as a main reason to dislike her. With the pop industry being filled with acts that can't sing, don't write their own songs, and really don't have talent, new artists are quickly written off if they show the slightest hint of not having talent out the ass. Lady Gaga should not be thrown into this heap, as she has written songs for other artists such as Fergie, Britney Spears, New Kids on The Block, and the Pussycat Dolls before being signed as a solo artist. She also learned the piano at the age of 4, was admitted to the Julliard School at 11 (although never attended), and was granted early admission into the NYC Tish School of the Arts at 17, none of which are easy accomplishments. Also considering that she was performing in New York's Lower East Side rock scene and branched out to be different from her crowd, I'd say she's done a very good job of getting away from that scene. Listing Queen and David Bowie as influences also helps her stand out from the crowd of cookie cutter artists that she has been unfairly compared to. Putting all of this together, you have an artist that is not adverse to trying and succeeding at new styles of music. Talented, in my humble opinion.

Complaint #2: Between the fake hair, face covering, weird clothing styles, and she-male rumors, I'm afraid. Very afraid.

I'll address the she-male rumors, accidentally started by Christina Aguilera at the end of 2008. Aguilera was quoted as saying, "I'm not sure who this person is, to be honest," and, "I don't know if it is a man or a woman," when asked by a fan about Lady GaGa. Between this and Lady GaGa's non-answer to the question, the Internet has run with this rumor in the same way it ran with the "Ciara is a she-male" stories back in 2005. And the same way those rumors were based on something that couldn't be proven is the same way these rumors grew legs and ran wild. Unfortunately, there's no medical proof, plus she has a few ex-boyfriends that would probably testify against this rumor. Her weird clothing styles can be attributed to her influences in David Bowie (who is famous for, among other things, releasing an album and touring under the sexually ambiguous character of Ziggy Stardust), Queen (Freddie Mercury in particular), and the fashion world, specifically Donatella Versace. Her creative team, House of GaGa, is directly influenced by one of the most iconic American artists of all time: Andy Warhol. By tossing these four elements into a blender, Lady GaGa's fashion sense can be easily seen.


Apparently, Mr. Mercury made Anakin his bitch at one point.

Complaint #3: Haven't we seen an artist similar to Lady GaGa before? From NYC's club scene, sexually charged, blonde, weird dresser… MADONNA! And she's no Madonna.

This might actually be the best formulated complaint, since Madonna has been around for almost 30 years and has no plans on leaving the public eye, despite the fact that she is 49 years old now. The same way every other female singer has to live in the shadow Madonna has created over the years, Lady GaGa has the same things going against her, and even moreso because of her similar looks and abilities. Unlike Madonna, Lady GaGa came straight out of the gate with her sexuality and tying it to her music, and hasn't started slaying sacred cows such as the Catholic Church and Pepsi to do so. Plus, since Madonna has been out for 30 years and can still sell albums and put asses in seats on tour, emulating Madonna on accident or purpose isn't exactly a bad thing to do at all.

Complaint #4: Yeah, she's popular now, but she's just going to be a one album wonder. So why should I bother liking her now if she's just going to disappear in two years?

Using her own quote about her stage set, I'd say that Lady GaGa has no intentions on leaving the public eye or the music industry anytime soon. Lady GaGa: "Some artists are working to buy the mansion or whatever the element of fame must bear, but I spend all my money on my show. I don't give a fuck about money. What am I going to do with a condo and a car? I can't drive." Sound like an artist hell bent on staying relevant and reinventing herself as needed to stay a hot commodity in today's and tomorrow's music industry.

Yes, her songs are sexually ramped up. Yes, she comes with a rather unique way of looking at things and fashion sense. And her chosen style of music lends itself to more one-hit and one-album wonders than most every other genre. However, after reading this article I hope I've opened your eyes and gotten you not to hate Lady GaGa.


And now for your listening and viewing pleasure, her latest single:


That's my time for this week. I hope you enjoyed the column, and I'll be back next Wednesday complete with a shiny BANNER! In the meantime, you could do me a favor and comment on the article, or click on any of the following:

Allistar is giving us musical lessons. This week's topic is Fall Out Boy.
Adam examines Green Day vs. Cage the Elephant, and introduces me to a new band in the process.
Joshua answers the age old question, "We all know Nickelback sucks, but do they really just make the same songs over and over?"

Until next time, take care of yourself, and those around you.