The argument is not an old one: Lady Gaga’s work derives generally from everyone who came before her — David Bowie, Madonna, Elton John and Grace Jones to name a few. Her aesthetic conjures imagery from nearly every decade and every genre of art and music. She’s an artistic encyclopedia, a combination of extremes in pop culture, from Marilyn Monroe to Bruce Springsteen.
Nearly a year ago, Madonna called Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” reductive after much media attention regarding the comparisons between Gaga’s 2011 single and Madonna’s Express Yourself of 1985. More recently rapper M.I.A. stated that “[Lady Gaga] sounds more like me than I do” and later “People say we’re similar, that we both mix all these things in the pot and spit them out differently, but she spits it out exactly the same. None of her music’s reflective of how weird she wants to be or thinks she is.” It would prove difficult to thrive in the pop music industry without sampling the aesthetics of music icons; in the music industry nothing is created or destroyed.
Gaga is not alone. The Picasso quote “Good artists copy, but great artists steal,” proves itself to be very relevant in pop culture today: there’s a reason Nicki Minaj looks like an extra in Liquid Sky and Rihanna’s music videos look like a scroll through a seapunk-infested Tumblr dashboard. Pop artists’ imagery constantly recycles itself.
Gaga has covered all bases, from rap to jazz, yet it all seems to work cohesively. From a distance, her career may be seen as a chaotic, abstract work of art. Gaga throws every form of subversion into her work along with the kitchen sink. Her elaborate (and sometimes off-setting) wardrobe consists of designer couture, trashy vintage findings and prime cuts from the meat market. Nothing goes untouched, and nothing is going too far — including paying homage to David Bowie’s lightning bolt in her debut album “The Fame” or Isabella Blow’s multitude of eccentric hats and extraordinary clothing.
Lady Gaga will release her fourth studio album, “Artpop,” (stylized as ARTPOP) this spring. “Born This Way,” her third studio album, buzzed with electronic, grinding beats that sparked much publicity in their similarities to 80s pop hits (*cough* Madonna). I’m anticipating nothing more than the hyper-pop, chest-pounding and brain-hemorrhaging (in the best way possible) dance music that she has consistently produced, but I won’t be surprised if the music sounds like the middle ground between Cyndi Lauper and Lil’ Kim.
