Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga’s music, outrageous fashion sense and ballsy attitude have captured the imagination of both fans and jaded music critics alike. Having blasted on to the pop music scene with her chart topping debut single Just Dance, she has been in the headlines and on the front covers of magazines all over the world ever since.
Born Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, she is the daughter of a wealthy Italian American businessman and attended the prestigious Convent of the Sacred Heart in New York before gaining early admission to the TISCH School of the Arts. A very accomplished musician, she learned to play the piano by ear at the tender age of 4 and by the age of 14 was performing at open mic nights in clubs like the Bitter End in New York.
Gaga has certainly earned her stripes the old fashioned way as far as performing goes, having put in the hard graft on the club scene for a number of years before landing her record deal. ‘I played every club in New York City,’ she says ‘and I bombed in every club and then killed it in every club and I found myself as an artist.’ She also spent endless hours in the studio whenever she could, writing songs and developing that unique pop/electro sound that has proven to be radio friendly yet edgy and original.
Music producer Rob Fusari, who worked with her on some of her earlier tracks, is the man who came up with the name Lady Gaga, having compared her vocal style to that of Queen frontman Freddie Mercury. Recognising her potential and the unique sound she was nurturing, Fusari sent a demo of some of her tracks to his friend Vincent Herbert at Interscope Records. Herbert immediately signed her to Streamline, an imprint of Interscope and she began working as a songwriter. She then spent over a year writing material for a number of artists on the Interscope roster, including Pussycat Dolls, while simultaneously working on material for her debut album.
The Fame was finally released in August 2008 and went to number one in Canada, Austria, Germany and Ireland, while the singles Just Dance and Poker Face both went to number one internationally and in the US, topping the Hot 100 on the Billboard Charts. The album and singles have earned a total of 6 Grammy nominations to date and The Fame won in the category Best Electronic/Dance album. She has also received 9 MTV Music Award nominations and won all three Brit Awards she was nominated for.
Almost as famous for her outlandish fashion sense as she is for her music, Gaga works with a collective called Haus of Gaga on all her stage creations and has gained an army of fans in the fashion world. In the world of manufactured bubble gum pop stars, Lady Gaga is the real deal and with her unique look, sound and take on the world has been a much needed breath of fresh air.
