David Bowie was able to achieve cult status in the early 70s because he created a sexually ambiguous image for himself and played it up with makeup, dyed hair, and nonconventional futuristic-like clothing. He was successful at “confounding the images” and free of gender in a way and therefore was pushing the limits in ways that had never been pushed before. Another artist that is known for pushing the limits in extremely similar ways is Stefani Germanotta. You may know her as Lady Gaga.
Lady Gaga released her first album, The Fame, in 2008 after many years in New York working as a songwriter for Interscope Records. The album included the singles “Just Dance” featuring popular rapper Akon and “Poker Face”. It was a commercial success and the album reached number one on the charts in six countries and she quickly became a world-wide success. She released a follow-up album, The Fame Monster, in 2009 and it also went on to top the charts with songs like “Bad Romance” and “Telephone” featuring Beyonce. “Her second studio album, Born This Way, is scheduled for release on May 23, 2011 after the arrival of its eponymous lead single "Born This Way" which achieved the number-one spot in countries worldwide and was the fastest-selling single in iTunes history, selling one million copies in five days”.
Lady Gaga has said many times in various interviews that she has been inspired by glam rock artists like David Bowie, Elton John, and Queen and also by pop singer Madonna. Her stage name was actually inspired by the song Radio Ga Ga by Queen and she is infamous for having an odd somewhat Avant-garde sense of style which she herself creates with the Haus of Gaga, a group of stylists and designers that work on her projects. She has worn a dress made out of meat which caused lots of controversy and even appeared at the 53rd Grammy awards earlier this year in an “embryo-shaped incubator”, or what many referred to as an egg. In 2009, Gaga was rumored to be intersex and responded by saying, “At first it was very strange and everyone sorta said, 'That's really quite a story!' But in a sense, I portray myself in a very androgynous way, and I love androgyny”, on a Barbara Walters special that aired on ABC.
Gaga claims that she is trying to incorporate performance art into the mainstream but critical reception of her persona, music, and fashion sense are mixed. In my opinion, she brought something new to the table for the current generation which is why she became such a huge phenomenon so quickly. I also have to say though, that she is not original, or the first one to do what she is doing but she has said who were influences were and I’m glad she did a good job of reinventing what Bowie did in the early 70s as well as recreating the appeal of Madonna in the 80s. She’s different and although I’m sure not everyone is a fan of her outlandish style, there are plenty of people out there who are inspired by her message and in return have helped her break records and win five Grammy awards amongst 12 nominations to date.
Lady Gaga. Web. 29 Mar. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lady_Gaga>
Nice blog! You either know a lot about Lady Gaga or did some serious research. She is for sure an artist that does what she wants and is very different and therefore I think she is looked at as a threat. Unfortunately people are too fast to judge and are fast to put her out there as this bad person for doing the different things that she does but she just has her way of expressing herself. I know that she doesn't mean harm to anyone or does not try to offend anyone but people take things too literally. Music used to be a form of expression and now it has turned into, what is the artist wearing and what they do in their videos. However, no one will take the risks that she will in her music or the way she expresses herself in person. Some people just don't understand where she is coming from and that's with any average person but because she is famous, she gets it publicly. Her music and style is different but it is obvious that it works for her because she has made it to the top various times and will probably continue to do so in the future.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I am not a huge fan of Lady Gaga as a person, I do enjoy her music. She has said some certain things in interviews that were a turn-off to her personality; but she is talented. She is crazy talented. She has such a unique sense of creativity and artistic ability.
ReplyDeleteMy friend went to a Gaga concert last year and showed me pictures of some of the fans. Wow. The fans are crazy. Everyone wanted to imitate Lady Gaga in makeup, hair, and clothing. It is very much like the modern day "cult" that David Bowie inspired. It's not the norm to see the majority of Katy Perry fans going to Katy Perry concerts dressed as Katy Perry. Her style isn't extreme enough for something like that. Lady Gaga has the distinct hair style, makeup, etc. to even have her own Halloween costume line. It's a bit outrageous! She is such a phenomenon! It will be interesting to see how far she goes and how far her fans will follow her. They already watch for her every move, waiting anxiously for whatever she decides to do next.
I must admit that Lady Gaga has a very strange sense of fashion. I’m not a huge fan of Lady Gaga but there are a couple of songs that I like of hers. As I was reading your blog I couldn’t help but think of her “Bad Romance” music video. That is one that always makes me think about her outfits. Also she had a weird thing going on with her eyes in the music video as well. I would have to agree with you that she is a good comparison of Bowie. She is bringing a new wave of people who are dressing similar and/or acting like her. It is amazing how much power is in the control of the media.
ReplyDeleteWhat did catch my eye in your writing was that you said she has won five Grammys and was nominated for twelve. I didn’t know that. That is a pretty good accomplishment for not being in the music industry for that long. That is pretty awesome I must say, also selling a million copies of that one song or album in five days. As far as I am concerned, that is a great deal. Your blog was very informative. Good job Alexis.