Gagadolatry: Confessions of a Little Monster
Six months ago, Lady Gaga barely registered a blip on my pop culture radar. I knew enough of “Poker Face” to have a laugh when some guys I know insisted the song was about playing poker. Sorry, dude. “Bluffin’ with my muffin”? In the immortal words of Inigo Montoya, I do no think that means what you think it means.
Back then I thought Gaga’s songs were annoyingly catchy, and her fashion sense scared me a little—okay, sometimes it scared me a lot. I knew she had headlined at the Dinah last spring, a choice that had puzzled me back when I first heard about it, but I really never gave much thought to it, or to her.
When I watched Gaga perform “Paparazzi” at the 2009 VMAs all of that changed. Marrying high fashion, stellar musicality, sheer spectacle and one of the savviest takes on our celebrity-obsessed, 140-character compressed culture I’ve ever encountered, Gaga rocked, writhed and bled her way into the pop culture hall of fame in under five minutes. Like so many others, I was intrigued.
It all started innocently enough. After the VMA’s performance, I wanted to know more about this Lady, so I bought Gaga’s debut album, The Fame. No harm, no foul, right? Except once I started, I couldn’t stop listening to it. Almost as soon as I began main-lining her music, my fannish fixation came on like the sweetest U-Haul honeymoon the world has never known.
The next morning I woke up with “Paparazzi” even more firmly wedged in between my ears, announcing to the Twitterverse first thing: “Insidious, this bubblegum-snap surge of sweet sweet sugar flowing in my veins. Oh, GaGa, you pop tart demon goddess. SALVEME! INTERVENTION!”; More prophetic words have perhaps never been tweeted, at least by me (according to my girlfriend, who may currently be seeking someone to perform an actual intervention).
Over the next week, I began ferreting out pictures, old interviews, and clips of past performances on the internets. I discovered stripped down, acoustic versions of “Poker Face” and “Paparazzi” that showed off Gaga’s lustrous voice as well as her mad piano skills. As it turns out,
Comments [58]
Poker Face
For Julia — I pulled this from Wil Wheaton's blog. (Yes, that Wil Wheaton.)
http://tinyurl.com/yk3uf4j
We are star stuff. We are the universe made manifest trying to figure itself out. ~ Delenn
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
Cute
That girl bears an almost
That girl bears an almost spooky resemblance to my crazy ex.
Vicki Mendoza Diagonal?
She's cute. Is she above the Vicki Mendoza Diagonal?
http://tinyurl.com/d9j2wz
We are star stuff. We are the universe made manifest trying to figure itself out. ~ Delenn
Surprise, surprise
It never even occurred to me that I might like that show. I may need to reevaluate. Then again, the whole then she gained weight thing... Nah, I was right the first time. Though I do embrace the overall concept of the diagonal.
Ritual sacrifice. With pie.
Tae, you mean you missed Slapsgiving II this week? All I need to finish up my Thanksgiving holiday viewing is Pangs (BTVS)
Anya: I love a ritual sacrifice.
Buffy: Not really a one of those.
Anya: To commemorate a past event, you kill and eat an animal. It's a ritual sacrifice. With pie.
We are star stuff. We are the universe made manifest trying to figure itself out. ~ Delenn
Thanks for the
Buffy!!!!!
Willow: But you have whipped cream. I saw it Giles's fridge.
Buffy: But that's whipped cream in a canister. Look, it's only right if you whip it yourself.
Willow: Hey, and then later, we can churn our own butter and make sweaters out of sheep.
Lake
funny syphilis
I'm looking for a Thanksgiving signature. How about this:
Xander: Maybe it's the syphilis talking, but, some of that made sense.
We are star stuff. We are the universe made manifest trying to figure itself out. ~ Delenn
"His penis got diseases from
"His penis got diseases from a Chumash triiiibe!"
More Buffy.....
Buffy: First Thanksgiving on my own, and we all got through it.
Xander: And you know what? I think my syphilis is clearin' right up.
Buffy: And they say romance is dead. Or maybe they just wish it.
Happy Turkey Day!!!
Lake
LMFAO!!!!
My new chart to judge women!!!!!
Lake
She was smoking hot but got
She was smoking hot but got crazier as time went on. While still remaining hot.
I'm beginning to wonder if
I'm beginning to wonder if I'm the only person in the world who still buys CDs!?!?
Nope
As a matter of fact, I'm getting ready to replace my Pink, again. There are also a couple of Catie Curtis CD's that I have purchased for myself and also for friends, rather than copying them.
It would never cross my mind
It would never cross my mind to copy a CD! I guess I like having the original product!
Btw, just to give you a head's up - had my swine flu jab this morning and my arm is aching like buggery, so make sure you get it done in your non-dominant (!!) arm!
Sorry for the go between...
not really you two sexy things! Got a true story for y'all. A young guy in Colorado went to Montrose and got a flu shot. When they were offering the shot back in Gunnison he thought he'd get another shot - to be doubly protected. Dude got the second shot...came down with a horrendous upper respiratory infection. Went to the doctor who put him on two different kinds of antibiotics and an inhaler. He was instructed to stay in the bed, not go out for at least 3 or 4 days, and take all of his meds for fear of the infection turning into pneumonia. Sooooo, moral of this tale: DO NOT TAKE TWO FLU SHOTS!
@kdhales
Bloody hell! When I first
Bloody hell! When I first read this message my eyes fell on the last sentence in caps and I nearly fell off my chair as I have had two flu shots! But on further reading I realised I am okay as one was for seasonal flu and one was for swine. Phew! Can't believe that geezer had two actual flu shots.... what a banana!
Dude is an idiot
Good advice
They are now saying that the worst of it should be past in this part of the country, and the vacine will be available next week.
I'm beginning to wonder if
Whoopsie!!
Double post!!
Free Gaga
I'm giving away the new Lady Gaga album on my blog right now, but only for a limited time, so go get yours! I'm also giving away the new Rihanna and Shakira.
www.carollani.com/wordpress
@carollani
www.gaynation.posterous.com
Not to be harsh....
but is giving away music legal? Or are you giving some other proceeds to the artists? Just wondering...
@kdhales
Mind your business, dear.
Mind your business, dear.
www.carollani.com/wordpress
@carollani
www.gaynation.posterous.com
actually i think
the one thing you may have to worry about is copyright infringment... like if someone from gaga's record company catches you distributing the music.
Technically we can't even have copyright music playing in the background of our slap dash videos.
As far as the moral implications of file sharing, I'm really on the fence about it all... I didn't agree with the attack Hilary Rosen lead on behalf of the record industry in shutting down napster. it was an ingnorant attempt at trying to control the interwebs -- which they lost to a certain extent anyway, unless you considder the million dollar law suits against grandmas ok. yes artists have to make money, but the struggling independant artists were never the once at the mercy of digital downloads it was only the mega stars.
So my only caution to you is carefull you don't attract the attention of the record company, that is the larger legal threat.
tweet me tweeps @gracemoon
So if you don't get caught,
So if you don't get caught, its OK?
i'm adding to my own comment...
just to clarify: the RIAA , which Rosen was a lobbyist, was the big money of the corporate music industry -- the little indies would have never been able to go after file sharing. Also digital sharing benefited small artists/indie labels in getting the word out cheaply and quickly. Unless you have a label (and even if you do) all the musicians i know say that touring is how you make your money. Record deal contracts are written in the favor of the label not the artist.
I know this goes beyond this particular gaga issue... but it open a can of worms about content and the cost of content.
I look at what we have been doing here on Vp, we've been giving a way free content and plan to keep doing it to keep our audience entertained and informed. I'm 100% sure no one is willing to pay for this content -- as has been proven in the industry in general (ny times, slate, etc). And advertising doesn't work. period.
Which is why we are going into the business of paid dating -- seems to be the only thing ppl are willing to pay for digitally. I'm not done with this discussion... more to come later.
tweet me tweeps @gracemoon
I have a family member who is a musician...
free music on the internet is really not 'free' to them. There are other ways to get your blog site viewership up - just ask people to go to it and they will!
@kdhales
I promise to never download
I promise to never download your family member's music for free. Girl Scout's honor!
I go to concerts and I buy merch from the artists I love, because they get much more money from those sales than they do from their music. I don't want to support enormous record label conglomerates.
www.carollani.com/wordpress
@carollani
www.gaynation.posterous.com
Tae is right and wrong below,
Tae is right and wrong below, it's actually copyright infringement (not domain law) and it'll get ya in a whole heap a trouble C-Lani. The record labels are rabidly pursuing folks who distribute their property on the Internet. Napster, Pirate Bay, etc. You should be very careful about that. As should anyone who actually downloads the files from your blog as they can be traced and fined or jailed.
Robin
Thanks for the help with the terms.
Anytime.
Anytime.
oi
we musta been posting at the same time. agreeing with you above.
There is a super intersting book about the new world of digital sharing -- about how backward the laws are, and how stiffling it is for creativity... will have to look it up and get the story striaght.
tweet me tweeps @gracemoon
The record labels (like the
The record labels (like the auto manufacturers) have not figured out how to make a profit in this new e-based economy. They are way behind he technological curve and need to change their entire business model.
Don't know the book..
but read a bunch of trade articles on the sub. The only labels making it these days are the ones changing with the digital times...read the other day where iTunes/Apple is being looked at like a big bad record label! Interesting...Also interesting how many artists, because of the interwebs, are finding it easier and easier to produce their own music and shows - excellent third part administrators in place for web hosting, merchandise selling, VIP fan packages, etc. I love going to band sites and looking at the site form!
@kdhales
Doing one doesn't make the other legal
Domain laws apply regardless of your personal feelings. Do you have releases from the artists for this social justice experiment?
Ok
I think I'm starting to get it...
Its taken me sometime to get beyond her fag haggery (and when she means gay shes talking about the boys - i haven't been convinced she's aware of lesbians, aside from her alleged katy perry style girl kissing.)
But that a side, clearly she's the most interesting thing in pop culture.
I'm actually digging both Lambert and Gaga -- two mos queering up the mainstream.
but both of them give awful interviews, they don't know how to talk about gay issues and they both sound totally uncomfortable and dumb. my advice to them is just put the message into the performance.
I say more tonguing and and weird blood dripping performances on network TV!
tweet me tweeps @gracemoon
Moonie, Gaga identifies as
Moonie, Gaga identifies as bi. She spoke about her sexuality and how she approaches talking about it in the media as well as her relationship with the gay community in the last minute and a half of this new interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYpIC5OM_Jg&feature=player_embedded
I'm still puzzling out some of the nuances, but in a nutshell, she says she's had "beautiful relationships" with women but has never been in love with a woman before, but likewise, that she's not sure she can say she's ever been in love with a man either. One of my fave songs on the new album ("So Happy I Could Die") starts off with her talking about whacking off while thinking about a "lavender blonde" chick. She's explained many times that "Poker Face" is about having fantasized about women in bed with one of her ex-boyfriends, too.
boy
you are a zealous convert aren't you?
tweet me tweeps @gracemoon
Uh huh. I can't help it. I
Uh huh. I can't help it. I heart her. She is like the demon love child of all of my favorite musicians and artists, come to save pop.
Listen Watson
I've had about enough of this!
www.dianacage.com
@dianacage
We've only just begun
You?! Think of poor Tami. Ha.
so mysterious...
what's the deal with your free front row ticket?
That was a metaphor,
That was a metaphor, Professor.
o, i get it now
you know i skim EVERYTHING that has to do with gaga, right? no offense??
c'mon take the bait I'M GOING ALL IN
wait
i thought you hated gaga?
tweet me tweeps @gracemoon
Thus
the skim, rather than read. PC is probably too much of a gent to out right skip anything Julia writes.
you're right, N2T
HARSH, watson, HARSH.
Right back attcha, fishy-fishy
I've decided that Em is that little boy on the playground who relentlessly picks on and makes fun of the class weird girl (Gaga) because he is secretly in love with her.
LMAO!!!!
Lake