Lady Gaga in five small masterpieces

BarcelonaLady Gaga (New York, 1986) is the most interesting diva of her generation. A great singer and remarkable actress, she has created music consciously representing those who are different, respecting the legacy of the American songbook with Tony Bennett while pushing the boundaries of self-parody in her albums, films, and television series. Seventeen years after the revolt of the marginalized that she promoted on the album The fame (2008), Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta is presenting the album Mayhem (Interscope, 2025) on a world tour that includes stops at the Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona on October 28, 29, and 31. The concerts on this tour are structured in four acts that unfold over almost two and a half hours, and feature new songs such as Abracadabra and Perfect celebrity They share a repertoire with past achievements such as Bad romance and Born this wayand with forays into soundtracks such as ShallowIn fact, the five songs, each a small masterpiece, explain who Lady Gaga is.

'Bad Romance' (2009)

Far from obvious, Lady Gaga walks in a minor key over a 4/4 electronic rhythm inherited from German techno, which makes room for vocal lines connected to house music. And all of this in a monument to pop that celebrates unconditional love: she wants to love even the darkest parts because she wants to love fully.

'Born this way' (2011)

Lady Gaga, now perched in a more self-affirming major key, takes up Madonna's mantle to create one of the great LGBTQ+ anthems of the 21st century. Disco culture permeates Born this way, the song that served as the figurehead of the self-titled album and confirmed that the New York artist had no limits.

'Shallow' (2018)

Unbeatable in extravagance and difference, Lady Gaga also made artistic gestures equivalent to showing up without makeup to a costume party. Such are the albums she made with the crooner Tony Bennett, strolling through standards where she could shine as a melodic singer. And that's what the film's soundtrack is like. A star is born (2018), which she starred in with Bradley Cooper. The rock ballad ShallowThe song, co-written with Benjamin Rice, is a staple of her tours. And her performance in the film confirmed Lady Gaga's remarkable talent as an actress, as she reaffirmed in Joker 2: Folie à deux (2024), especially in scenes like the one on the staircase where she embodies the feeling of disappointment and farce in a striking close-up while performing That's entertainment.

'Perfect celebrity' (2025)

"You love to hate me / I am the celebrity "Perfect," sings the angriest Lady Gaga on the album Mayhem. Perfect celebrity It connects with the mean-spirited satire that Courtney Love displayed in the song Miss World from the group Hole in 1994. There are screams and choruses dragged out by sarcasm as in the times of grunge, but on an electronic pillow.

'Abracadabra' (2025)

The Lady Gaga of 2025 also maintains the extravagant spirit of her early albums, and the twisting of syllables and syntax. The most compelling proof is this. Abracadabra where he brings together pop, electropop and acid-house and where he takes the opportunity to reclaim the post-punk of Siouxsie & The Banshees, specifically that of the song Spellbound.