LADY GAGA
I recall seeing her for the first time on the hit TV show So You Think You Can Dance. There was something about her movements, and probably the heavily sequined leotard she was wearing that caught my eye. As a sixteen year old in love with musical theater, I was entranced. She had the whole package: a rockin' body, stellar vocals, and a killer wardrobe. To top if off, she could dance and had a truly unique sense of self. Right after that episode of SYTD, she became a sensation. Not only did she did she shock and appall audiences with her strange acts, but her music brought back the familiar techno sounds of pop.
Of course, the critics began to scrutinize her, saying her music was just overdone Britney Spears and similar to every other diva on the planet. However, I feel this is not the case. Similar to Madonna, Lady GaGa is constantly changing her image to suit her mood. She is inventive, creative, and ready to give it her all for hers fans. Consequently, that is something I admire and find to be very daring in the art world. It isn't often that people will put everything on the line to be themselves in front of crowds of people. As well as that, Lady GaGa was also classically trained in music as well as a little piano. You can hear those influences in her music, especially in her vocals. As a classically trained singer myself, I can tell when she's really using her mechanisms the way you're supposed to.
Furthermore, as I stated before, she's the whole package. She writes her own music, does her own dancing, designs her costumes, etc. She is the triple threat of the pop world and for that very reason, I find her fascinating and thrilling to watch as well as listen to.
http://www.ladygaga.com/bio/
This is a link to her biography which provides a lot of insight as to her personality and humble beginnings in rock and Burlesque.
http://www.youtube.com/user/ladygagaofficial?blend=1&ob=4#p/f/8/qrO4YZeyl0I
This link is to her ever so famous video Bad Romance. I felt it was appropriate to link to one of her videos because it provides a lot of insight to her movements, which are unique in nature and almost skeletal, as well as her fashion sense, which does differ from video to video. Bad Romance shows an eclectic mix of alternative glam rock and dark fantasy. Furthermore, this song is also a great example of her stunning vocals, particularly in the end during her riff of "Want Your Bad Romance."
http://dancemusic.about.com/od/artistshomepages/a/LadyGagaInt.htm
This is an interview with Lady GaGa where the interviewee asks her a lot of questions about what sorts of artists have inspired her work. The origin of her stage name, Lady GaGa, is also revealed. :)
