Page 7 - Pop History: Lady Gaga Pt II

Episode Date: April 7, 2020

We pick back up with Lady Gaga as we explore her collaborations with Tony Bennett, her work on "The Hunting Grounds", and of course, her leading role in "A Star is Born"Join us over on our Patreon page for weekly bonus episodes and other fun stuff! Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of Page 7 ad-free.Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Everyone has already shut it off. Everyone has already shut off the episode. I can't. Was Lady Gaga just here? I think so. We just missed her. I mean, she's only five foot two. She slipped right out the door.

I thought you were going to see. I think that it's because the last clip I watched was her Oscar performance of shallow. So my problem is, in my head, it's just shallow over and over and over again. Give it to us. Give it to us. Give it to us, Jackie. You don't want me to skimp on it.

I want you to give me that belted out. Tell me something, girl. No, I'm doing the Bradley Cooper part. Are you doing in modern world? I like that you're making eye contact with me. Are you? You need more. We have to show them we're in love, Natalie.

That's the wrong part of it. I'm singing the Goghout part because, of course. I'm falling. Oh, look at him go. And all the good times I find myself. And I'm longing. Don't change. Should we start the episode over again?

I feel like we might need to start the episode over again. I think everyone's already upset. This is perfect. I think we've done great. I love that deep and watch a deep in the ground. Who's going insane? Not us. I'm far from the fucking shallow now.

I decided that my quarantine personality is now going to be lazy Gaga. and I'm going to do full costumes, full hair, makeup, prosthetics, costume changes. But I'm just going to sit on the couch. I think that she would be totally Gaga for that because we are jumping and welcome to Pop History, Part 2, Lady Gaga. I don't know if you could tell that we're still doing Lady Gaga. And again, this is just the music has been, it has infected my brain. and I think that especially in a quarantine time

in listening to this music about having your artistic freedom about going out there and being yourself and I just, I want to do those things but you can't, you got to stay inside. So I think that where your head is at, Natalie, is completely perfect. Put on the makeup, put on the clothes, go to the kitchen, stunt, stunt, stunt, stunt, strut,

turn back around, go back into your bedroom. I've been cutting the ass out of all of my pants in order to be more fashion forward. I am Holden. Hello, welcome to pop history for our part two of Lady Gaga. And it is, I'm so happy to have blessed you guys with some Lady Gaga renditions early in this episode. Oh, God, I'm just thinking about the back of your balls now.

Oh, yeah. I pulled them out to back and call it my back tail. And I appreciate everyone for hearing that and knowing that for all of time now. Well, because Lady Gaga news, especially at this. point in her career, we are going into the art pop century of Lady Gaga. And something that she says over and over again is that putting out the idea that she doesn't want to be one song. She says that she is the next 25 years of pop music. Damn. And she said it's hard, it's really hard to measure that kind of ambition, that kind of blonde ambition, she pulls on her hair. She said, that kind of

blonde ambition is looked at with a raised brow because most artists don't have longevity today. More like crazy Gaga. Crazy Gaga, especially in fun music that's about underwear and pornography and money, baby. I was very shocked to find out that art pop was like kind of a flop. They were calling it literally art flop. I loved the song, I still do, love the song, applause. And for some reason, that's why I guess I was, I didn't realize we were actually about to talk about the downfall of Gaga.

I didn't realize she had a downfall moment. I didn't either. I think this is just a, I think it's a hiccup. Yeah, I don't know. Yeah, it's more like a hiccup. Yeah. But she, oh, the way she tells it, it's this massive, brutal, you know, tailspin. She feels things very deeply.

Well, you have to also remember, her first album, she talks about this many times in interviews of where she didn't do the small circuit for very long. She went right from doing underground clubs to doing stadiums. There was no in between for her. So to have any kind of hiccup for her is something that obviously she still has nightmares about. Sure, for sure. To the point that I believe it was last year when Lady Gaga tweeted out, I don't remember

art pop. That's all the tweet was. And a bunch of the little monsters. flipped out because the thing is that true gaga fans really do love art pop. It is a stripped down version of what she was doing originally. And I think that that is something that she, because it wasn't as insanely commercial of a success as the fame or the fame monster or born this way. I had no idea. Yeah. Well, I think I was listening to it. I think it's good. It's just not like a step forward for her. And if it's not a step forward for her, it ends up being a

giant step backwards because that's the way that she put stuff out. I felt like we were equally inundated with it as a society, though. You know, like those songs seem to permeate as much as the other songs. Yes. Right. Yeah. But this was her big time for her to finally be the female warhol that she really wanted to be. Art Pop was supposed to be much bigger than it actually ended up being, which is why when we get

into talking about why she drops her manager and things like that and what happened. because what was going on in Lady Gaga's life, if you saw Lady Gaga 5'2, you guys remember that she had this huge surgery. She is in chronic pain. This is a big part of what is going on here because her whole life changed when she fell and hurt herself during the Bournemus way tour and found out that not only that she had fibromyalgia, but also would have had to get a complete hip replacement if she had not gone in when she needed to go in.

And someone going through that kind of traumatic incident is going to change your whole outlook of everything of who's there for you, of why they're there for you. And really, I feel like at that point, I wouldn't want to be creative. I think that I'd need some time to step away, but instead what she did is she just leaned in even further and created something that I think for her brain

was born out of trauma as opposed to her usual creative process. That's how you get the good. Adele, baby. I mean, this is a big part. That's why I think going back. She can't be happy. She has to be constantly breaking up with some. She can't be happy.

This is why I think I really enjoyed Art Pop a lot as an album that I never had gotten into that much before. I saw it in a very different way because she kept saying that I wanted this album to lack maturity. Yeah, she wanted it to be a fun. night at the club and wanted her audiences to have fun. It is interesting because it's born out of this six months that she's laid out and she's studying literature and music with her house of Gaga for the new album. There had actually 50 songs in consideration for this album, which is kind of amazing. And how old was she?

How old was she during this time period? Oh, God. Mid to late 20s. 20s? She's a year older than I am, so 2011, mid-20s. That's so crazy, man. Yeah. The showstopper, of course, we already mentioned, was applause.

Gaga said, I would be ready to go on stage and just be crying hysterically, not understanding even how I was feeling. I was feeling very dizzy. I had a lot of vertigo. I had pain, but it's like, fuck if I know what hurts the most because I'd been on tour for a year. But I didn't want to let them down and I just couldn't cancel because the thought of leaving 50,000 kids in the arena just broke my heart.

So I went out every night and I played and I played and I played until I could. couldn't walk one night. And that's, of course, led to her hip stuff. It's very similar, interestingly, to Prince because they both perform in the same way. Yes. These tiny little bodies, she's not doing any active flexibility training. I can tell. You should be, Lady Gaga.

Got stretch up than muskles thing. She contorts on stage, which I think is so cool. But that will fuck you up unless you are constantly strength training. Which is why I think it is the difference in watching Pink perform versus Lady Gaga perform. Because Pink is an aerial artist. Oh, so cool. She's also a gymnast. She works all that.

She sings while she does it. God, she's so strong. I can't wait to do Pink. We're going to do Pink. But especially, but I will say, the drive, though, that Lady Gaga had, because this was during the Born This Way Ball, and she said, I had broken my hip, nobody knew. And at this point when she did this interview, she hadn't even told her fans yet. She said, when we got all the MRIs finished before I went to search.

There were giant craters, a hole in my hip, the size of a quarter, and the cartilage was just hanging out the other side of my hip. I had a tear on the inside of my joint and a huge breakage. The surgeon told me that if I had done another show, I might have needed a full hip replacement. So this is the level of pain that she's working at. I say just get the robot hip. I mean, make my whole body robot. I can't wait to cut off all my limbs.

I want only robot limbs. Yeah. Now, another misstep when it comes to art pop that we have to talk about because it's so weird and fascinating, of course, is that there was a track on it that featured R. Kelly. And that is going to be one of the weird, there's just a lot of weird juju going on with this album. It's a very strange. I think it's good to recognize, too, this. She started writing this album before the surgery and then wrote it through the six months of recovery. So I think that that's part of where the weird juju feeling.

is coming from. Man, the live performance of her and Arkelly is so uncomfortable to watch. So uncomfortable. What's the name of the song? I didn't write it down. It's called what you want with my body, right? Which is so wrong in hindsight. The song was written in reaction to an article Gaga read that was discussing her weight

and Kelly was brought in largely because she was living in Chicago. She was taking a lot of the R&B and hip-hop sounds from that city. And Arkelly is a big part of that, unfortunately. Gaga said it was about my obsession with the way people view me. I have always been an R. Kelly fan. And actually, it is like an epic pastime in the House of Gaga that we just get fucked up and play R. Kelly. In her defense, I will say, that's something we've all done. We used to do keys to ignition and all that stuff.

She had no idea. To the extent that we know now. But it's really crazy to look at it from this side, realizing those lyrics mean such different things between her. her and him. Yes. And there was a weird music video that they shot that never saw the light of day. And it was just like a bizarre misstep. After the TV series Surviving Our Kelly came out, Gaga pulled the song from streaming platforms saying, if I could go back and have a talk with my younger self, I tell her to go through the therapy. I have since then. So that I could understand

the confused post-traumatic state that I was in. Or if therapy was not available to me or anyone in my situation to seek help and speak as openly and honestly as possible about what we've been through. I can't go back, but I can go forward and continue to support women, men, and people of all sexual identities, and of all races who are victims of sexual assault. So, and, and you can't find it on Spotify. Like, it's not on the album. It's not on the album anymore. I had watched the SNL, uh, they did an SNL performance together of it. And that's another one that it's just, it is very uncomfortable now to watch. And I think that this is also another part of where her weird juju, this is me completely speculating. But,

the way that she talks about, especially with everything that happened with R. Kelly, and later on when we get into the hunting ground songs that she did in 2015, I think, I'm assuming that we talked about this last week. At 19, she was sexually assaulted and didn't speak of it for seven years. Now, she immediately had risen to stardom while all of this was happening. And I'm assuming that this is the first time since then, these six months in between, that she started processing. and dealing with it in the way that she needed to have done

when it at first happened. So I imagine that all of this is being built up. It also was put into an album that was supposed to be fun and just dancing and not saying anything. Right. That's such a, like for someone that is so open as an artist, that's such a push and pull

that must have been very difficult for her to get through, you know? My theory is, this is speculation again, I think she stepped on a witch woman's foot made her angry and the witch woman in turn put a curse on her home. I hate it when that happens. Every time, you know, it's like thinner. You know, at least he had that time period when he got really thin. I want to support witches.

I really feel for witches, but then they go and do shit like this. Don't step on their feet. Step on a witch's feet and you will hit the street. Hit the street. Yes, you hit the street. be running away from them. Also, so she side note, she pulls in visual artist Jeff

Coons, who is known for his pop art sculptures such as Balloon Dog. You would recognize his stuff if you saw it, I think if you looked it up. Oh, balloon dog, yeah. Those huge sculptures go for like a million dollars. A millions of dollars. It is ridiculous. I looked into Jeff Coons because he's, so he did the

cover of art. He did the cover. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. And because I do love The one thing I did remember about art pop is that cover. She is a mannequin type representation sculpture of herself looking into this big ball. And he actually had put a lot of, you know, obviously thought into creating this, the gazing ball. He says, Jeff Kuhn says, it affirms your existence. And then from that affirmation, you start to want more. There's a transcendence that takes place.

And eventually it really leads you to everything. So that aspect's there. but also I didn't realize that Gaga is in front of the, in the background, it is Jean Lorenzo Bernini's Apollo and Daphne. Yes. And that's the work where Apollo chases Daphne and she turns into a tree. And so there's just glimpses of Daphne's face and of Apollo. Apollo is the god of music. And whenever Apollo would perform music, he would transcend.

He would change. His being would become more feminine. And that's the transcendence that you can experience. through art and life. Your being can change. Your possibilities can change. Your perimeters can change. So I think that this does

create such a depth to an album that not necessarily was asking for that depth, but also, that's pretty fucking cool. Yeah, I think the covers cool. The old gods are so much cool, or we should go back to doing that. Dude, I think that's fucking sick. I would love to worship some old gods.

Okay, I'll bring the goblet. You guys bring the pig's blood. I'm so excited for this. I'll be Mr. Wednesday. That's the old game thing. So a week before the album is released, Lady Gaga, as you mentioned already, splits from her longtime manager Troy Carter. The album comes out.

There's art flop memes. I mentioned that before. There's the controversy around the R. Kelly song, leaving critics divided. Because at least I will say back then it was a little less cut and dry than it is now since the special, the TV series, rather, came out surviving R. Kelly. All this to say, though. Gaga's hitting a weird rough patch. And she had opened up, she had opened up of why she had broken up with Troy Carter at this point.

And it was, so Troy Carter, he's another one of these music dudes that seems a little full of himself. And he was very open about the idea that he created, he's credited with having lifted her, quote unquote, from just being another struggling artist at the bottom of Interscopes Farm roster and elevating her to label Superstar. She was very specific about her vision. All of the music was there. And all she needed was someone to help her translate it to the rest of the world, which is

where I came in. And what Gaga had said about it, now she's never pointedly spoken about it, but she has alluded to it. And this quote says, she says, my heart breaks from the people I have trusted and loved, who I've worked so closely with, who have used me. lied to me, worked me into the ground for their personal gain. When I woke up in the hospital after my surgery, there were many people that were not there. My health didn't matter. I didn't matter unless I could perform. This is a very hard lesson. Those who have betrayed me gravely mismanaged my time

and health and left me on my own to damage control any problems that ensued as a result. Millions of dollars are not enough for some people. They want billions. Then they need trillions. I was not enough for some people. They wanted more. She claims the whole industry turned their back on her upon the release of art pop saying I became very depressed at the end of 2013. I was exhausted fighting people off. I couldn't even feel my own heartbeat. I was angry, cynical, and had this deep sadness like an anchor dragging everywhere I'd go. I just didn't feel like fighting anymore. I didn't feel like standing up for myself one more time to one more person who lied to me. But January 1, I woke up, started crying again, and I looked in the mirror and I said,

I know you don't want to fight. I know you think you can't, but you've done this before. I know it hurts, but you won't survive this depression. And also, that fucking witch is going to pay. Whoa, yeah. She throws that in there randomly. I think this is one of the trappings of getting successful really young because you're so naive. And I think you attach to people in the entertainment industry in a way that you kind of

when you get older understand, those relationships are not real and they are looking at you as a commodity and if you go in understanding that, it won't be as awful for you when they turn their backs because they're not your friends. They look at you as a way to make money and if you can just accept that from the get-go, there's going to be a lot less hurt feelings afterwards. She totally mirrors, she totally mirrors those statements, Natalie. I have another quote here. when you become famous or you become a star there's all these other things that begin to happen and you have to work the system

especially in the music industry today which is so different. You're dealing with this streaming war and it's an absolute nightmare to witness as an artist because it's not about music and it's all about business and that's just not who I am at all. At the end of the day who I really and truly am

is a little girl who love to play the piano. So once you start pulling that little girl into the system she starts to get kind of well why am I doing this? What I want for my fans and for the world, for anyone who feels pain, is to lean into that pain and embrace it as much as they can and begin the healing process. And to that, I also say, that witch woman whose feet that I stepped on back in 2002, I apologize. It's too late.

You were limping for maybe a week. Do you have to make my next album terrible and make me do a video with R. Kelly? I mean, it's just a foot, witch woman. It's just a foot. Holden, as somebody who also identifies as a little girl who loves to play piano on the inside, does this resonate with you? A little bit, but I played with my arms, not my hands. Plap, flab, blap, flap, flap, flap.

And my parents were like, you're playing the piano wrong, Charlie. And I was like, me name's not Charlie. My name's Holden. I also used to be talking with a British accent as a child. There's a lot of things going on. See, I thought that you've just changed. You've just Americanized over the years. It was through your use of the piano, which you know what?

Brava, Holden. That is something you had to find your own pain and embrace it and begin your healing process. And now you shed your accent. But I will say maybe the witch did give her the idea for art pop to have a two-day art rave at the Brooklyn Navy Yard in November of 2013 as a huge album release party. I think my favorite part of the album release party is, so she had a press conference and a live performance. And during the press conference, Gaga revealed the world's first flying dress called the Volantis.

So apparently, the white vehicle, which is described by Entertainment Weekly, as a hover dress, features a central column to which the wearer is clamped by a safety harness and then cover. by a white plastic dress, and it lifts her up off of the ground about three feet. And the dress was designed by Tech House, the House of Gaga's technology branch. And it took them two years to create, I think that's cool as shit. Of course. It's pretty cool. I want to see anything floating.

Yes. So she had this huge release party for it regardless, because, you know, she's still a part of a huge label, no matter how she was feeling at the time. and this is her first art, she called it an art pop film. So this is, you know, the beginning of her starting to act, but she puts out this art pop film

for the song G-U-Y on it. And it's long. It's about a 12-minute-long music video that goes in and out also of other songs and should have been another of how we feel about telephone, of how we feel about her other music videos. I had never seen it before.

It's great. It's cool. of shit. Yeah. But it was just such a weird unveiling of everything that I think it just didn't stick the landing like the other albums had. She has a lot of thoughts. And honestly, and this is why I love that what we're about to talk about, because I think it's the coolest most rock and roll thing Lady Gaga does in her career. It's honestly just people are now used to these really long music videos are used to these big extravagant gestures to the point where oddly enough, these bizarre crazy choices are becoming a little rote in terms of Gaga, which is why I fucking love that she ends up

working with Tony Bennett and doing like a whole American songbook thing. I think it's the best, smartest thing she could have done. So this is back in 2011. Gaga does a jazz version of The Lady is a Tramp with Tony Bennett. And they first met that year after she performed a rendition of Nat King Cole's orange colored sky at the Robin Hood Foundation gala in New York City where Bennett asked Gaga to sing a duet with him on his album duets too. That's what the Lady is the tramp recording happened.

That's what I love about their meeting. She said, I walked off stage sweating and they said, Mr. Tony Bennett wants to meet you. My father got all choked up and my mother said, oh, I need to fix my hair. We all had champagne. I was so happy to meet him. And then he said, I love this interview. I've got a bunch of quotes from this interview. Are you going to cry?

No, not yet. I'm going to cry during the ontogras, probably. The first thing I said was, let's do a jazz album together. This is Tony Bennett. And she said, okay, that quick, I just love what she did on this album. She's up there with Ella Fitzgerald, who is the greatest singer in the world. And then she said, working with Tony has reaffirmed everything I knew, but that you start to forget when your life changes, and it gets really noisy. For Tony, it's all about great music.

I love Tony Bennett. Yeah, right? I was trying to remember he's the one you absolutely adore. I've seen him live and stuff, right? I haven't, no, I've never seen him live. I always wanted to. You're an Italian girl who grew up in Queens. I'm an Italian girl from Queens.

Of course I love Tony Bennett. Which is why, can you imagine, like, I can't even imagine if Tony Bennett came up to me and my mother, my mother burst into tears. Oh my God, your mom would lose her mind. Yes, right. I actually have a quote here from the witch. Tony Bennett, I love him. If Gaga doesn't help up with Tony Bennett, then I will release the curse. Did she release the curse?

Is that a part of this? Is that in your notes? That's what released the curse. So Tony Bennett was born and raised in Astoria and began singing at a very early age in his Italian-American family, getting his first number one hit with Because of You in 1951. Frank Sinatra had this to say about Bennett. For my money, Tony Bennett is the best singer in the business. He excites me when I watch him.

He moves me. He's the singer who gets across what the composer has in mind and probably a little more. He was also asked how did he start doing music. And it's just this answer. It's so classy. It's so delightful. He said, I attended the American Theater Wing School in New York after serving in combat in World War II.

The first thing they taught me is to only sing quality, intelligent songs. Never treat the audience disrespectfully. It was a wonderful lesson. I had a teacher on 52nd Street. Mimi Spear, she said to me, don't imitate another singer because you'll just be one of the chorus if you do. to learn how to phrase study musicians, a piano player, a saxophone player, and see how they're phrasing. I took her advice.

It sounds so simple. But if you just be yourself, you're different than everyone else. And isn't that just a delightful thing? Very cute. I love him. And that's also Gaga's mantra in a lot of ways, too, which is what I think makes them such a good pair. Tony Bennett reached great heights of popularity in the 50s and 60s, but his career does take a downturn during the height of rock and roll. 70s. He gets a big comeback though

in the late 80s, 90s. Now he's just revered. Everyone loves him. They brought in swing band composer Marion Evans to help with an album recording using a bunch of different fantastic musicians and orchestras. And I love that this is where Lady Gaga is now.

And she says, art pop didn't grab the whole world the way the fame monster did, but that's okay. Because I know it's good. That's what Tony has taught me that my intuition is right. When he talks about the 66 albums he's put out, the peaks and valleys, and how it's not about having a hit record, it's the most inspiring thing. So she needs him at this point. She needs him. She needed him. Yeah, it released her voice. It allowed her voice to take center

stage without there need to be some big electronic radio hit or some attitude behind it. And so Gaga announces the album cheek to cheek with Tony Bennett on Twitter shortly after the first inaugural ball of President Obama's second inauguration, Bennett said she's actually a very authentic jazz singer. She'll turn a phrase, she'll make it different because of the moment that she's singing. And so what happens is it keeps the songs alive. The interpretations become very intimate and everlasting. And Gaga said, he, referring to Bennett, brought out a subtlety in me that I've missed for a while because my life is very noisy. It's a lot harder to sing with autotune in a way, you know? It's a lot harder to sing with rigid a lot.

electronic music and lots of spectacle. It can be difficult because it's not always extremely natural. So this, I just love this fucking album. He was like her sing daddy. She, I, I think that she was. I think he was her sing daddy and still is and she carries him with her to the point that not only did Tony Bennett invite her to lecture with him at the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts, he also drew one of her tattoos.

She says, I asked Tony to draw me a trumpet, and he sketched me Miles Davis's trumpet. Then I had a tattooed with his last name, Benedetto, underneath, just so I would always remember this time together. That's one on her bicep, I think. Yeah, the one underneath her arm. Which is adorable. That's great. I will really, I love any of these older men. If they just didn't push a woman off a boat ever, I'm like, you know, then you love them.

You love them. There you go. Natalie loves the old. old men. As long as they are, as long as they're building you up, as long as they are working with you and not against you. And then not just like, hey, look, I got a secret. Look.

And then their balls are hanging out of their fucking pants. Come on. Because that used to be flirting. Yeah. In their time. That's the 1950s flirt. You got to know what the balls look like if you want to go further. And that's why you have those backless pants because you're a traditional man.

Your balls stick out. He's courting. That's his cording. The album pulls from the great American songbooks of George Gershwin, Cole Porter, Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin, and Moore. Bennett's great desire was to introduce the jazz standards to a younger audience through a gaga, which I think definitely happened. Gaga described the album as, quote, rebellious and quote, liberating, which I agree with for her as she could reach her full vocal potential without dealing with the drive to get radio hits out of it, as I mentioned before. Well, and that's what she had said, yeah. She says, there's a part of me that's been too quiet for a long time that's now being reawakened.

After years of producers and record label people telling me to make my voice sound more radio friendly. She was also super nervous to sing with Tony Bennett saying, I just wanted him to hear I have an authentic jazz voice and that I studied that. If he can hear that, I'm okay. If he can't hear it, I'm not an authentic jazz voice. And he did so much for her at this point in her career that I feel like, she put something out there and he listened and came to her because in the same interview, she says, it's heartbreaking. Six months ago, I didn't even want to sing anymore.

And what does he say? He says, do you know what Duke Ellington said? He said, number one, don't quit. Number two, listen to number one. And then she says, right? The other day, Tony said, I've never once in my career not wanted to do this. It stung. Six months ago, I didn't feel that way.

I tell Tony every day that he saved my life. And then the interviewer asked, you felt like giving up, why? And she said, I'm not going to name any names, but people get irrational when it comes to money and how they treat you, what they expect from you. But if you help an artist, it doesn't give you the right. Once the artist is big to take advantage of them.

I was so sad. I couldn't sleep. I felt dead. And then I spent a lot of time with Tony. He wanted nothing but my friendship and my voice. And then she began to cry. And then he holds her hand and says, says, I understand. And then she says, it meant a lot to me, Tony. I don't have many people I can

relate to. Wow. It's just what I love this interview. I cried like five times. I love Tony Bennett. He's such an amazing father figure. Oh, and another touching moment, because Lady Gaga was very inspired by Amy Winehouse, who passed away just a couple years prior saying, I thought of her almost every day in the studio. I wish she was still here. She was jazzed to record. And if you do remember the Amy Winehouse documentary. There's another touching scene with her and Tony Bennett and she's so nervous. She's like in the

deepest throes of her addiction and yet she walks in the studio and becomes a super nervous little girl to be there with Tony Bennett and he takes care of her and treats her with such respect. I love him too. He really is just seems like this amazing father figure. Sing daddy. Yeah.

Especially to these like very troubled pop singers and stuff that get thrown through the system and then Tony's there to like to pull you away from it for a little bit and be like no this is you know don't remember where you came from Tony's got it sorry guys

there was a commercial in Pittsburgh for years there was a mattress mattress store and it was this very strange looking man his name's Tony and his store was called Tony's got it and the commercials always went Tony's got it oh what did he have just mattresses? Yeah what did he have? Okay so only if it's

mattresses. That is the clincher there. Yeah, Tony's big wet mattresses. Back in the day there was a little bit of a fad for a little while where people would soak their mattresses. I'd rather than be wet than be too dry. That's what I always say about my mattresses. You do, and I always thought that was weird, but now it makes

sense. So they ended up doing a small tour in 2015 with Lady Gaga opting to perform in smaller acoustic music halls as opposed to the arena she had been filling. I wish I could have seen some of these shows. They'd be places like Radio City Music Hall, the Royal Albert Hall in London, which are the amazing theaters. I'm sure they were

brilliant. But yeah, I love this turn in her career. I think this is when she starts to really click in. And find more of herself. And I think that it's very important to look to a pop star that is not, at this point, you can tell that she's doing this for her. She's finally doing something that is for her. And you got to give respect whether you like that album or don't really dig it. you got to at least respect the fact that she's doing her. And you know what? You do you, girl. I just put big two fingers up.

Natalie, like, to give her a peace sign. Now, in this same time, Marriott. Are we tight American Horror Story? Well, actually, before we get to American Horror Story, I did want to talk about the fact that I distinctly remember being so excited because she had played small roles in Machetee Kill in 2013. and Sin City 2, a day to kill in 2014. So how did she get her first big screen role in Machete Kill's as La Camille?

She was actually getting a tattoo next to Danny Trejo. Apparently the two struck up a conversation about machete kills while waiting in L.A.'s Shamrock Social Club tattoo parlor when Gaga mentioned she would love to work with Robert Rodriguez. Hell yeah. So a representative for Open Road films has since, confirmed that then Danny Trejo called up Robert Rodriguez to say that Gaga was interested and then she got the role. She was given a small role in it which is also why she's in Sin City too. That's how I always get my parts too. I'm just like I would like to be in this and

then everybody. And then they say here you go. You'll be in the movie and that's that's film guys so if you want to get into entertainment it's that easy. I mean it definitely shows because that's exactly what happened again with Robert Rodriguez for Sin City too. because he really wanted to work with her again because he had a very good time doing it and he wanted just to put her in a small part in Sin City 2 in between her tour dates and he said she happened to be on tour in Houston

just a couple of cities away from us in Austin she was ready she brought her own wigs I said we're not going to have time to make a wig for you so she showed up we did the scene she knocked it out of the park and then she was back on tour that's another thing that you if you were getting into the entertainment industry, always bring five to six wigs with you to every audition. I mean, it's how she's getting in Robert Rodriguez movies.

Rodriguez says that he is certain that Gaga could have a long acting career if she wants it because he says the camera loves her. She's a great performer. She's performed twice for me now and I was blown away by her discipline. She studied acting before she became a singer and you could really tell. And as the saying always goes, if you want to beat the witch, you got to beat. Be the witch. And that is when she starts doing American Horror Story.

Gaya finally gets her big, big acting shot with American Horror Story Hotel season five. And this one, she's a vampire, not a witch. Not my favorite season. Sorry. Right, right. I also didn't really like it, but I dig, dig her choices in it. Lady Gaga and her outfits. Wasn't her fault I didn't like it.

No, but I completely. Because she did go on to win the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a limited series or TV movie. for her playing of the Countess in the American Mastery Hotel. The Countess. Owner of the mysterious Hotel Cortez in L.A. who is also a blood-sucking fashionista. On her first day of shooting, on her first day of shooting,

she puked into a plastic bag and then gave it to show co-creator Ryan Murphy. Ew, as like a joke or whatever. I mean, that's like so, I laughed. Ha-ha-ha-ha. Oh, puk in a bag. Oh, that is my favorite joke. So this is where, um,

she had gotten up because of you know now since this is her big how did she get her role on american horror story don't you also want to know that she puked in her hands she pukes the director but that's how you get every role in hollandwood no she cold called ryan murphy and straight up just said i told him i wanted a place to put all of my anguish and rage and that I was excited to play a killer. And Ryan Murphy said about her, we relate to each other because we're both transformers. We do something trying to work out shit in our personal life. And then the next year, we put on a different costume and we're somebody else.

Because Ryan Murphy does bounce all over the place when it comes to what he creates. I'm a little, I worry about him. Yes. Yes. Gaga said, it's always been so important to me that if I were to ever make a move in television or as an actress, that it would never feel like a move and nobody would ever go, oh, here she is trying to become an actress

and put out a clothing line and a record label. You know, that's the sort of thing that everyone expects, right? That is time for my empire. I don't give a fuck about that. It is completely unfulfilling to me. It does nothing for my soul. What I did want was to be taken seriously

as an actress. Now, my only thing is that actually, isn't that exactly what she's doing? I mean, she has... House of Gaga, which has a technology category. It has all the whole, like, she's got her whole house laboratories now that makes makeup. Are you starting a feud with Lady Gaga right now? I'm saying I'm saying I'm just saying maybe you are creating an empire.

Maybe that's exactly what you're doing. You better watch yourself, Jackie. It sounds like Jackie Zabrowski is starting an online feud with Lady Gaga. I'm scared of her. And her little monsters. No. The little monsters call her mommy. I'm the mommy now, dog.

That's what I'll say to all of them when they ask me quick. But she did, she did, she came back in the season six of American Horror Story before we move on. Yes, yes. Just want to say that I like that season a lot and she was really good at it. Yes. Roanoke, she plays, of course, a witch, thus completing the circle of the curse. So I thought that the circle of the curse ended with the Tony Bennett album. Not fully.

So she takes his backseys. The witch takes these backsies? She did. It was just that if you, she finished the half circle, the course with the Tony Bennett thing, that removed the curse from her next album. But in order to fully, she had to become the witch in order to fully beat the witch.

That's the witch, melted. Yeah. Once the witch saw Roanoke, season six of American Horror Story, the witch melted so that all that was left was her eyeballs. And that is where we get to her breaking up with Taylor Cannon. Oh,

because she had the witch's eyeballs so she could see things that she could not see. before. Okay. Then she could see the future and Saul did not see Taylor Kenny in it. Taylor Kinney was her longest relationship up to that time, which led to an engagement, but it ended in July of 2016. Gaga cites her career as the main cause. Here's a good quote from Gaga about the way she feels about her relationships.

I sold 10 million records and lost Matt, who was the creative director of House of Gaga. I sold 30 million and lost Luke, who was the hair metal bro. I did a movie and lose Taylor. It's like a turnover. This is the third time I've had my heart broken like this. And I don't think that it's fair because it seems that there are a lot. Are you starting to beef with Lady Gaga offline right now? Are you the mommy now, dog?

No, not the mommy. I'm just saying that from what we know of Luke, he sounds like a jerk off. Yeah, more like fluke. Yeah, more like puke. Wow, guys. In a bag and give it to a man. Yeah, more like cucumber in my water. because it doesn't make it better.

Jacket, I was bad. Wait, so we're learning today you don't like cucumber water. I'm fine with it, but sometimes it's made because it tastes like vegetable. And I don't need it in my water, okay? But it's spa water. It's spa water. No, spa, you're gross, yuck.

Cuk water. She is, I feel like she gets a bad rep on the internet about like, like, oh, she just keeps getting engaged, keeps engaged. She seems like a person that is very, passionate and loves to love. Oh, yeah. I don't think that, like, just having multiple, like, multiple engagements makes you a flirty bird,

a bad girl, flirty bird. I'm just saying maybe the people she's falling in love with are assholes. And I, yes, that's what I just said about that actor that I don't know anything about. I think he's a monster. Whoa. Yeah. Taylor, uh, Taylor Kinney. Are you starting an online fight with Taylor Kinney right now?

Yeah, maybe there's a few. and he doesn't even know what's coming for. Well, I will give you a million reasons why this next album is an absolute showstopper. I'm putting you on fucking on pause, on pause, on pause. I'm putting you on pause, pause, pause, putting you on pause, pause. Because we need to talk about... Quarantinas ruined my brain.

I paused. What are you to talk about? We have to talk about the hunting ground. We have to talk about the hunting ground. 2015 that the hunting ground is a powerful documentary this is serious

Holden, no more smiling. What's the hunting ground? It's a powerful documentary that focuses on the epidemic of sexual assaults and the growing

network of student activists who are working to combat the violence. Stop, he's still laughing. I'm sorry. I'm taking it seriously. I'm not taking it seriously. I'm not taking it seriously.

This is a total shift I wasn't prepared for it. I'm putting it into the next gear. Okay. I'm driving. and stick. Let's hunt over here.

What's going on? What do we... So Lady Gaga wrote and sung two songs for the soundtrack. One was called Swine and the other was called Till It Happens to You. Now, Till It Happens to You should... Mary, can we listen to a clip of Till It Happens to You? Tell me, hold your head up.

Hold your head up and be strong. Because when you fall, you got it. It's very upsetting song. And she co-wrote the song with Diane Warren, a seven-time Oscar nominee for songs and recorded to accompany this amazing, powerful campus rape documentary. So Lady Gaga said about it, when you look terror in the eye and you go numb like that, it's like something really dies in you. And that's something Diane really helped me with. I'm the artist on the other side going, I don't know if I can reveal this, Diane, and she's saying, you can. but I had to forgive myself.

I had to sit down at the piano and say, you didn't provoke that person. It's not your fault. For women to be as sexualized as we are in the media and then to be judged for wanting to be sexual beings, that to me is a cage. We can't survive unless we're beautiful, but if we're beautiful, we're asking for it.

And Diane Warren said about working on this very powerful song with her, she said she brought it to life. When I brought it to her, it was a very somber ballad, and she had this vision of making, it this epic song. Now, the song is raw. It is haunting. And it was, it ended up being nominated for not only a 2016 Grammy in the best song written for visual media category, but it was also nominated for the 2016 Academy Award for Best Original Song. Was it the Grammy performance where she brought on all the people who were in, like they basically, there was a huge row of people

and shadows. Yeah. Yeah. That really, really got to me and that just happened to be the same time that I was starting therapy

in dealing with my own shit. So that was really beautiful and moving to me and very helpful, honestly. Hell yeah. And I'm so, I'm proud of her

that she went to this extent because that must have been very difficult to do. And the music video is very, it's beautiful and upsetting. And I like that rather than just making it a sad song. It's a story of owning yourself and finding yourself again. Yeah, which honestly

is, again, another big part of the turning point for her and how this next album becomes a real, it feels like the opposite of art pop. It's like a stripped down raw, this is me album with Joanne. I'm throwing it out there. I think that this is my favorite. I love Joanne. And this was the time period where they started filming five foot two, right? Yes. Yes. Yeah. Was her recording Joanne? So Lady Gaga gets a new manager with Bobby Campbell and joins Artist Nation, the Artist Management Division of Live

Nation Entertainment. Gaga wanted to surprise her fans with this album. She says it's a wonderful soul-searching experience and it's very unlike art pop in that way. She gets back to working with Red One, who she worked with on her earliest stuff, her early big hits, on a number of the songs. And the big player here is Mark Ronson. That's known for his collaborations with Amy Winehouse, Adele, Lily Allen, and Miley Cyrus. Ronson and Gaga worked together, co-produced the album for six months. They're working in Rick Rubin's

Shangri-La recording studio in Malibu, which makes so much sense because Rick Rubin is very, his approach is very stripped down as well. So it makes sense that they would be in this studio. And this is her allying herself with another person that comes from where she comes from. Mark Ronson said, it just felt very familiar from the start to work with her. We both grew up in New York, 10 blocks from each other. I'm older, but you do the same shit. Drink beer out of paper bags on museum steps. She was like anyone I could have been friends with growing up, which I think is kind of fun, but I remember.

I remember. And Ronson said this about people not thinking that they would want a stripped down album from Gaga. He says, whatever your preconceived notions are, the minute you're, meet her and see the piano or the guitar and see how real or legit she is. Everyone's like, oh, fuck, I want to give her the best song I've ever written. Yeah, and honestly, that's the way I felt watching her performance on Howard Stern is that was the first time I'd ever just seen her in a piano. It was so moving to see that. And the first song, her and Ronson Wright, the first day they got together in that studio, Shangri-La and Malibu, was Joanne. The song, of

course, inspired by Gaga's late aunt, Joanne Germanata, who had a profound effect on Gaga's life and career to the point that she tattooed the date of her death on her left bice. Joanne died when she was just 19 years old of lupus, which got more complicated after she experienced a sexual assault. Gaga said, my connection to her has been strong my whole life. I always wondered what it was, the mystery of Joanne, this person that I never got to meet that was an absolute tornado of love and tragedy. She was a powerful, beautiful force in my family's life, and then it's like a beautiful light that just goes out. So I've always, used the fact that she didn't get to live the rest of her life as a sense of strength and power

within me that I have to go out and live the rest for her. It's an acoustic country ballad that was recorded apparently in one take, which is insane, according to Gaga. And there is a scene, we talked about it before we started, where she plays it for her father and her grandmother at her grandmother's nursing home. The father had to, like, leave the room. At the end, the grandmother said she, quote, got it right with the song, gave her the love. Gave her the blessing, all that good stuff. Now, apparently they did, which I imagine was very different than the other albums that she had recorded, that apparently the sessions for creating Joanne were very loose and informal.

So they had also brought in a Nashville songwriter named Hillary Lindsay, who is best known for co-penning Little BigTown's Girl Crush and Carrie Underwood's Jesus Take the Wheel. Wow, were you about to call them Little Big Turd? That's always, every. Every time what I'm always ripping on them, I'm always called them little big turd. Are you starting a feud with Little Big Town? I believe how many online feuds have been started in part two on Lady Gaga.

Little Big turd, I'm going to put you in the toilet and you're going to get flush. More like toilet flush rather than girl crush. Girl flush. Yeah, you bastards. They're not bastards. So the sessions were so loose and informal that apparently. Lindsay and Gaga even wrote one song around her kitchen table while sharing a plate of spaghetti. I think that this really ties into how much I would love to hang out with Lady Gaga.

As much as she is very invested in career, at this point, I think that she was trying to own herself a little bit more, that apparently, even Mark Ronson said, she'd be late to the studio and send me a text like, I'm so sorry, I'm just marinating the chicken. He says most of my memories of making Joanne are non-musical and warm and fuzzy. Just her over the oven, dressed like a 50s girl from the leader of the pack video, preparing breaded chicken. She took care of everybody. I mean, her family is sort of like the stereotypical Italian classic family, but I love them. Feed them. Feed them.

And 5'2 when they show the baptismal bullshit. I don't know what those things are called. Baptism? Baptism, yeah. They're so cute. Their family's very sweet. No, baptismal bullshit, I believe it's the proper turn. I mean, it's very, I'm sure it's great.

The baby looks very uncomfortable, but, you know. And I do, I love, I love this album. And when it first came out, I was like, oh, hell yeah, Gaga's going country, which I kind of expected another turn after the Tony Bennett album. But what Mark Ronson says, it is not by any means a rock record. She loves her fans and all those people who supported her from the beginning. For her, it's not about. Fuck them. I'm done with that. I want to do this now. In the studio, she's always like,

maybe we put that little famous monster hook in there. There's definitely a lot in there. And Haley Lindsay also agrees. She says, if we're talking about the style of music, this record is not country by any stretch of the imagination. It has some folk influences at times, maybe some acoustic guitar, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's country. Totally. I hope fans hear it for what it is. Lady Gaga speaking from the heart. She can show the world that she doesn't need all the tricks. She can still grab you and have you in the palm of her hand. Also though,

Mark Gronson does credit producer Blood Pop who worked with Justin Bieber and Madonna in the past for actually, quote, bringing the album into the modern era. That it was largely, like, it probably would have sounded a lot more country and stuff, apparently if it wasn't for Blood Pop. Also, also, she brings in so many

cool musicians for this album. Tamimpala frontman, Kevin Parker, father John Misty, Queens of the Stone Ages, Josh Home, Beck, and Florence Welsh from Florence in the Machine for a duo on the song Hey Girl, which again, you can see footage of them recording that on the 5'2. I love Florence and the Machine. Oh yeah.

I would also like to credit Spaghetti because that makes you happy. I love a spaghetti. And that is, of course, how they got the song, I love my Spaghetti. Which is, well, the secret track in the album. Are you ready for tomato sauce? You're going to make me cry, Jackie. Stop. You're gonna make me cry

when she starts lamenting about the meatballs. Please do a female weirdo, Yankevig, where you do Lady Gaga. I'm down only about Italian food, though. Yes, I'm violent. I'm going to meatball. I'm in. I live for all the sauce,

the sauce, the sauce. Oh, hell yes. I live for all the sauce, sauce. There's so many ways I can go with this, guys. I've got a new quarantine project. There you go. All right.

Fucking damn it. Next, now we can talk a little bit. We've already mentioned it a few times because this is all happening while the documentary Gaga 5'2 is being made that was released on Netflix in September of 2017, chronicling her on the set of American Horror Story, recording her studio album, Joanne, and putting together her halftime performance for the Super Bowl. The most eye-opening element, at least for me personally watching the documentary, was the chronicling of her battle with Fibroa. Myelgia, which as a medical condition characterized by chronic widespread pain and a heightened pain response to pressure. Gaga said, I get so irritated with people who don't believe fibromyalgia is real. For me, and I think for many others, it's really a cyclone of anxiety, depression, PTSD, trauma, and panic disorder, all of which sends the nervous system into overdrive. And then you have nerve pain as a result.

People need to be more compassionate. Chronic pain is no joke. and it's every day waking up not knowing how you're going to feel. And I think that there's a confusion with that with saying, well, this is just in your head. Why can't you stop it? It is definitely linked to your brain, but it's not something that people are just making up. You know, like they are in genuine pain. My grandma suffered from probably something very similar.

I know she was in pain, but they could never find the thing. It's not like, oh, this is a broken bone. No, this is like a torn muscle. It's just, your mind and your body are so interconnected in so many weird ways that you, it's hard, it's almost harder to figure out how to cure something like that because it's inside of your head. Right. And she talks about how it was exacerbated or it did spawn from her sexual assault at the age of 19. Then also just the, the effects of fame, the effects of like just all of the things she was going through dealing with being a super famous, incredibly hardworking pop star led to this point. And director Chris Mowkerbell had said that originally, Gaga didn't really want to do the documentary.

Then she slowly became open to do it, but didn't know exactly which approach and style she had wanted. Down the line, Mowkerbell said, there were some things that she felt strongly needed to be included, and she had a clear vision as to how to represent these aspects of her life. One of those storylines is her chronic body pain. It was very important that we represented this experience in a way that could be helpful. to other people that might be struggling with chronic pain. She was also generally sensitive to the perceptions of young women and girls. Her role as an influential woman is something we took very seriously.

He also goes on to say, I always got the feeling that part of her creativity comes from an internal struggle. She is an outsized amount of talent and ambition, but also needs to have real human connections to be happy. Those needs can often be at odds, because one is usually at the expense of the of, She's definitely fighting for balance. I like to think of this film as a simple portrait of a truly complex person.

She's put herself in such a position of influence and is really thoughtful and hyper aware of that power. One of my personal takeaways is that there is a lot of power in allowing yourself to be vulnerable. Truth. Truths. That is a fucking truth bombs right there. Who's the Bray Brown? Brene Brown? She's a lady, a motivational speaker.

and she does a thing called the powerful and mobility. Very nice. Experiencing shame can be powerful. I'm always ashamed of myself. You're so powerful then. And almost everything I say. Also, the next thing on my list is one of my favorite halftime specials. Gaga performs a medley at the 2017 Super Bowl halftime show.

I did not know that she was only the eighth performer ever to complete the halftime show solo. Wow. I did I know that either. Yeah. She did poker. I mean, and she owns that halftime show. She does poker face, born this way, telephone, million reasons. Yeah.

I do. My favorite part, though, is when it's just her on the piano, she's about to go into a million reasons. And you just hear her go, hi, hi, mom, hi dad. And I just like my heart. That's boring. I like when she comes from the ceiling. Oh, my God.

I like the drones because I was like, oh, they're going to explode the stadium now. I'm giving you a million cheeses. Giving you a million cheeses. Giving you a million cheeses. A amount a million cheeses. I bow down to each. Want to make my plate seem bigger. Lord.

Give me some more to eat. I need some meat balls. No more cheddar. Oh, more cheddar. Fuck. Cheddar, cheddar. We'll work on it. Don't worry, guys. I'm coming in hot with it.

The Fashion House Versacee created the War Degrored. for that show, by the way, and a fleet of 300 drones formed an image of the American flag behind the singer. It's a great halftime show. It really is. And also, despite it being right after the election of 2016, that we will all remember for the rest of our lives, she decided to not make her show one about politics. She had said about the press, she said at the press conference

before the performance, the only statements that I'm making during the halftime show are the ones that I've been consistently making throughout my career. I believe in a passion for inclusion. I believe in the spirit of equality and that the spirit of this country is one of love and compassion and kindness. My performance will uphold these philosophies.

Which you know what, especially at that point in time, and still, we need it. We need things that are apolitical. Everything is doused in politics. It's so hard. It's so hard to not. I do really appreciate people who can present things that aren't that way because of my head. Those voices are constantly screaming.

Screeching. People are just being nice. Yes. Pappah, paumish on my chicken Pomichon. No, bad. Oh, my chicken Pomichon. That doesn't even fit.

That does not work. In the Shasha, shahalots. And the shahsha shahalots. I think spaghetti works better, but we'll work on it. All right, either way. Here we go. Let's talk about it. Star is.

is born. The fourth remake of the same, of a film of the same name, which dates back to 1937 with the original being not about musicians, but instead actors. However, the main beats stay the same. A young ingenue falling in love with the famous actor who's also a drunk who gets her a big break in the business. I really want to do an episode where we go through all three, all four versions. Yeah, the four versions of it. And because it is quite a trip, and I've seen most of them at this point. And, and, And it is, it's very interesting the different takes and how time changes the social norms and how that changed. It's really interesting.

There's also still an embarrassing drunk award show moment and an attempted rehabilitation, a suicide, and a letter from the dead. Of course, you also have the 1954 version starring Judy Garland. And here are Esther and Norman are actually singers. And then in 1976, you've got the rock and roll version with Barclay. Strysand and Chris Christofferson. Of course, with them in kind of a more rock opera style approach. Initially, this film, this new, new remake,

Starr is Born, was to be directed by Clint Eastwood, which actually makes a lot of sense to me, and starring Beyonce, who later had to walk away from the project due to her pregnancy and other commitments, and at the time, Bradley Cooper was in talks to star. This is, I just, I didn't even realize how many that there were.

Received nominations for Best Picture, best actress for Lady Gaga, Best original song, best actor for Bradley Cooper, best supporting actor for Sam Elliott, best adapted screenplay, best cinematography, and best sound mixing, and also was up for multiple Grammy Awards. They really did not get out of the park with us. Which is kind of amazing because Lady Gaga not super, you know, she hasn't obviously been in really many movies and definitely not like Oscar movies.

Bradley Cooper, this is his directorial debut. He ends up sliding into the director role around 2015 over Clint Eastwood. Still in talks with Beyonce to Star, though. But then Bradley Cooper approaches Lady Gaga after seeing her perform at a cancer research fundraiser, which, by the way, this is like the second time Lady Gaga was performing at a benefit and got like a huge break out of it. So do that charity, y'all. Bradley Cooper said, I knew nothing about her.

Whatever, Bradley Cooper. Also, if you think about it, though, this is their first big project after the curse has been lifted. And I think that is a big part of why this hits it out of the park, not just help. helping people in charities and benefits. Well, the witch, even said, I have a quote from the witch. Bradley Cooper, he helped me carry my groceries to the car one day. I unsupert not curse him. How is she talking?

She melted already. Yeah. Oh, right. I'm just a pair of talking eyeballs. Yeah, it's terrified. Can I let me read this real quote from Bradley Cooper. I knew nothing about her. I didn't even know really what she looked like before I met her.

And I was, I couldn't believe how comfortable. she made me feel and how present she was is. And then we went to the piano and sang. And it was this kind of wonderful thing. I couldn't believe it. So that was the beginning of the journey. And the first time we sang together, everything's live. We sing everything live in the movie.

Oh yeah, there's nothing. We're not lip-sinking. And I turned to Lady Gaga, who was singing next to me. And she was looking at me like I was Jackson Main, who is the name of the main character of the thing. And when you're in a scene and the actors fully believing that you're the character, you can't not believe it yourself. So she really gave me that confidence.

I think it's also cool. So this is something we talked about last episode, that even when she is recording the studios, Lady Gaga tends to not go anywhere not fully made up, which is why Gaga 5'2-2 was such a big thing because that was her first time showing that she is someone that does hang out and sweat. She is a human being.

But when they first started after they had her test for the movie, and when they brought her in, she came in with her normal makeup, how she's done up, and Bradley Cooper came out with a makeup wipe. And he said, I want to see you. And then he, without permission, started Patty. She shut it in her mouth, actually, to clean out her mouth first. And that's kind of like sexy in a different way. Wow, that's a lady gag.

Gaggagg. And what Lady Gaga, not gag, gag, says, it put me right in the place I needed to be. because when my character talks about how ugly she feels, that was real. I'm so insecure. I like to preach, but I don't always practice what I preach. And that is something that I very much understand and identify with because it is something that you want to create within yourself

by putting out this lesson of love yourself, live yourself, love your body no matter what you look like. And you still put on makeup. You still go through the motions of trying to pretend that you look, different than you actually look. And that goes back to being bullied from when she was very young. Yeah, but it's also a human thing.

Yes. I like makeup. I think it's fun. It makes me feel happy. And I don't think in itself it's a weakness. No. But it can become a crutch to feel like you are good enough. Yes.

Yeah. I mean, it's like when I draw a little man's face on the tip of my penis and then I get it big and hard and I literally use it as a crutch. I sort of lean on it and walk with it. I've seen him do before. It's very unsettling. Yeah, I bet.

It sounds really upsetting. With the assless pants that he wears with his balls and out. It's a lot of hold it, but also he's being him. Yeah. And I support that. That's me. Lexi must be so excited. She is just so not close to divorce at all during this point.

Now, I will say, I fucking love this movie, and a big part of it is because of how authentic the music feels. And doing the research, I realize now, why? Because not only did they perform all of the songs live in the film, which was apparently upon Gaga's insistence, but they also co-wrote and produced most of the songs on the soundtrack, 19 out of the 34 songs they worked on together and created together. And Gagga was even saying, like, Cooper would be in the studio even when she wasn't working with Mark Ronson. By the way, they pulled him in to work on the album, which makes a lot of sense because it, again, it has that raw Joanne vibe to it. Oh, yeah. The music is so good in this movie. I mean, and also, there's,

Their chemistry is just so intense and it was so successful. They were in pre-production on a sequel to it before the virus hit. I mean, did you not hear about it? Yeah. No, yeah. I'm in for it. It's called, look who's a star now. And it's the two lees are chihuahuas.

Wow. Is that a joke? Natalie? Are you bringing us up and then putting us down in this or not? No, no. Oh, no. I have a quote for the witch. I have a quote for the witch.

It Natalie makes a joke about a sequel to my favorite movie. I will be cursing her now. Oh, no, Natalie. Attempt at an aerial. It's not a joke. She will fall to the ground. No, don't say that. It's not.

It's not. There's two chihuahuas and they talk. It's like homeward bound mixed with a stars born. Oh, it's real? Never mind. Neverbarned. The Lady Gaga talks about. I really love that, again, it's like, it has more of the feeling of a strip down, Joanne.

But I also love that they attacked making the music from this from their character's standpoint, as opposed to her as Lady Gaga. So Lady Gaga says the difference from the difference between Allie and me is that when I wanted to become a singer, I hit the concrete running. I was dragging my piano from dive bar to dive bar to play music. I was calling people faking being my own manager to get gigs. I really believed in myself that I could do this, and I wasn't going to stop until I made it. The truth is, when we meet Ali, she's given up on herself, and that's very different from me.

I just wasn't overwhelmed by the odds. The truth is, if we were not sitting here today, and I hadn't sold as many records as I have, I'd still be in a bar somewhere, playing the piano and singing. It's just who I want to be. And another thing, which another way that she brings Tony Bennett with her to her creation of this, She says, Gaga and Cooper developed a shorthand while working on set.

If Cooper wanted Gaga to evoke a feeling of warmth, he'd whisper, Tony. Knowing that she has a close relationship with singer Tony Bennett, and that whenever she thinks of him, she gets a certain feeling of love. It makes me feel creepy. It's a little creepy to look at his own eyes and scream. I whispered Tony. Bradley Cooper does creep me out a little bit, I'm going to say. Really?

Yep. Interesting. I just want to kiss him so hard. It's just that his eyes are so low. light blue. It looks like he doesn't have pupils. It's like the ocean, though. So for the song, of course,

shallow is the big standout. Collaborated with Mark Ronson on that song as well. She apparently played the melody for it two years earlier, most likely while working on Joanne. It was written from the point of view of Gaga's character, Ali, and it becomes about how her

and Jackson's desire to go deep in their relationship and out of the shallow area of it, But also, initially, in all of the other ones, the guy, instead of hanging himself, spoiler alert, he drowns himself. And Cooper's character in the initial script was supposed to have drowned himself at the end of the movie. And so also, Shallow was going to be largely about that instance. Yeah, yeah. And so, but also to get that scene where Jackson first convinces Alley to take the stage and sing Shallow with them, they filmed that, they filled the house,

rather with 2,000 Gaga fans to get that authentic reaction. Afterward, she played a bunch of her hits on piano for them, which is super cool. Gaga said, I was able to play off of not only memories of what it felt like to be nervous to go on stage, but I also just had it right there. I was standing on the side of the stage during that moment in shallow. I was watching him rip, roar on the guitar, and sing. I really felt nervous. I really felt afraid.

It really just took me back to that place. That's so fun for those audience members. I know. part of it. It's so cool. And that reaction feels so real. So it makes a lot of sense that they were actually Lady Gaga fans because when she starts belting out shallow, that is a, you feel it. Man, it gives you those tingles.

Also, they would sneak in filming during actual music festivals such as Coachella and Glastonbury. Gaga would shoot headline a show, then get more shots. It was like insane. And they even go on during Christopherson set at one of those shows and got some shots. which is amazing because, of course, Chris Christopherson does the Barbara Streisand version. God, I love Chris Christoperson. And Gaga had described working with Cooper that it just has changed me.

Watching Bradley work was phenomenal. And then having him believe in me, it gave me more ammunition to believe in myself. And I just feel so blessed to have had that experience, which, of course, it is very funny. And her reactions to how everyone felt after they performed shallow at the Academy Awards, together where their eyes are locked the entire time. And of course, the internet goes crazy because they must be in a relationship. Her relationship had ended,

and he was still in a relationship, but everyone was like, oh, maybe he's cheating on her. And she just laughed about it afterwards because she's like, I guess we did a good job. I mean, I will say it was weird to me that one part where she's saying, she cheat, cheat on your wife. Yes, that was weird that she inserted that.

Why are you reaching for things, you know? Everybody's always trying to put stuff on her. All right, the home stretch, y'all. Shall we talk about, I have a little bit on the Las Vegas residency that I'm so sad I didn't get to see. I'm very sad. The Gaga signs on for a two-year residency called Lady Gaga Enigma. There were two types of shows.

She does like a cheek-to-cheek, jazz and piano show where it's the American songbook mixed with stripped-down versions of her own songs. And then there's the Enigma show, which is like her big pop show. I did see some footage from it. It looks fucking great. Yes. And she launches during this time her vegan makeup line house laboratories during this time. I remember we talked about this on page seven when it was happening at the end of 2019 consisting of 40 products from liquid eyelers to face masks, stickers and all sorts of things.

So there you go. You can have face like I got a fit. That's a murder. But she's not making an empire. There's no way she's making an empire. Don't even think about how she is making an empire. She's not. She's not doing that.

All right. Let's talk about, I lament to speak towards this, but chromatica. So chromatica is supposed to be what was supposed to be coming out on April 4th. We were doing this for this debut of the album, which got pushed back because, of course, it will go hand in hand with her next tour. So it does make sense of why she pushed it back. This is the true tragedy of this time period. I know. I hate the quarantine.

I want chromatica. Was that we would drop this to accompany the new album. She started working on this back in 2018. In recording studios in L.A. and New York City, blood pop was brought back in for this, for this one along with German electronic music producer, Boyce Noise! Gaga confirmed this will be a dance record that, quote,

I put all my heart, all my pain, all my messages from the other realm that I hear of, what they tell me to tell the world, and I put it into music. I believe to be so fast. And you know, energetically, purely pure. I want people to dance and feel happy. I would like to put out music that a big chunk of the world are here

and it would become a part of their daily lives and make them happy every single day. I am not the witch hiding and lady Gaga skin. Wait a second. I am not the witch hiding and Lady Gaga skin. Have they formed one? Are they one body now? I don't know what we're going to do.

I don't know what's going on. How do we get the witch out of Lady Gaga? I think she swallowed the eyes. I don't know if we can do anything. She swallowed the eyes. That makes so much sense. I mean, and I know I get it because it's like, oh, do they feel like peeled grapes? Could this be something that is nutritionally good for me?

But psychologically it's bad for you, Gaga. Those eyeballs out. It was meant to tempt her, much like the apple in that. Oh, that's bad. She said that I want to put out a record that forces people to rejoice even in their saddest moments. And she says as well, and by the way, I'm not standing over here with a flag going, I'm all healed, everything's perfect. It's not. It's a fight all the time.

I still work on myself constantly. I have bad days. I have good days. Yeah, I live in Chromatica. It took a minute to get there. And that doesn't mean I don't remember what happened. Yeah, she says, I live. on Chromatica, that is where I live.

I went into my frame, I found Earth, I deleted it, Earth is canceled, I live on Chromatica. She's doing a fun, like, robot space thing right now. So if you guys watch the music video to Stupid Love, dude, I'm here for it. Whatever she's doing right now, I'm fucking... You know what's fucked up.

Earth didn't get canceled. He did this. Oh my God, did she. She did this. Wait a second, so she swallowed the eyeballs. She became the witch. Earth has been canceled. Yes.

Do we then in turn also live on chromatic? now? Maybe. I think so. Well, if the witch lives on chromatica, then we inherently live on chromatica. But if the witch lives somewhere else like Mars or some sort of distant galactic planet, then we may live on that figuratively and literally. So hopefully the witch will not curse us with another bad album. And I love, it was fine learning about Lady Gaga. It was exceptional learning about Tony Bennett. But it was so important to me to learn about this fucking witch. Yeah, it was very scary. And I'm glad that we are now, we have now something else to fear. Now, I did want to end our Lady Gaga. Now, Oprah had asked her, when you look back on

the past 10 years, at what moment do you feel like you were most able to express that kindness heals all things? She says, I think it really started with my relationship with my fans, looking out into the audience and seeing so many people who were like me, people who felt different, who didn't feel seen or understood, and then also seeing a lot of kids who felt afraid to be open about who they are. It became sort of an existential experience for me, where I thought about what it means to be an individual. I wanted to fight for those individuals. I actually said this the other day on social media. I said, I didn't do this for fame. I did it for impact. And that's the truth. I recognize very early on that my impact was to help liberate people through kindness. I mean, I think it's

the most powerful thing in the world, particularly in the space of mental illness. And I think that that is a good weight of wrapping up. Sure. What she's doing and what she's trying to do. And in this day and age where there are million celebrities, and I think also what we're going through right now in how we feel about celebrities and celebrity

culture and putting people up on a pedestal, that this is a person that no matter what has tried cool different things that has suffered a lot in her past and is trying to work through those things with not only creating art, but with a huge sense of

spreading kindness. And that is something that we desperately need now more than ever is remembering to be good to each other. It's true and it doesn't always have to look like you know Johnny Good shoes. Goody shoes. You know what, Goddy Good shoes.

Johnny Good shoes! I swear to God if you come close to me with your apple seeds. Oh! Like, you know... I'm more bad shoes. No! Get out of here! Okay, I'll leave now. Bye.

Well, that was easy. Clomp. I think it can look, it can look like. I'm done with both of you. Get out of you. Fine, go. Bye, Mark. Charlie, Holden, whoever you are, little girl,

loves to play piano. Oh, my God. Calling him out like that. Wow. We just started a feud. Wow. Are we in an online feud? Well, call me Nelly, all right?

Because I love it. Call me Nellie. Okay. We gotta go. We gotta go. We gotta get out of here. We gotta get out of here. We gotta go.

We gotta get out here. Thank you so much for joining us, everybody. If you'd like to check us out further, patreon.com forward slash page seven podcast for just five bucks. There are monthly, I'm sorry, for just five bucks a month. There are weekly bonus episodes on there, plus more these days because of the quarantine. Also, you can find me Twitch. com.

Jackie and I party down 6 p.m. ET on my Twitch channel. Don't miss it, Natalie. I am lazy Gaga You can follow me on Instagram, Twitter TikTok, some other stuff probably under the Natty Gene and also we have an Instagram

and a TikTok for page 7 under page 7 LPN And I'm just Jackie Lady Jaja and Lady Jaja wants you to smile You can follow me on Instagram but check that worm We love you guys

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