Video Premiere: Lady Gaga - Million Reasons

[Psychedelic 1,098]

Worst Gaga video ever tbh!  

It's so sad, I love this song. It deserved much better. I feel so connected to this so song that many times I pictured the video being my story being told, and it was so moving in my head.

Many story lines could have been picked but this one does not make sense. It is not about not having great visuals or anything in that matter, but that story sucks.

I mean, the PI video didn't even have a story and you could think this is an improvement but NO. For PI at least it was okay not to have a story line, it is not a video I wanna watch many times but at least everytime I watch it, I feel connected to the power of the song and it being performed the way it is on that video.

But for MR, it all feels so awkward and random... and WHY ON EARTH DID SHE TAKE SO LONG TO PUT THIS TOGETHER?  It is so basic... I can't. I quit Joanne lol

 

[thunderzap00 121]

Definitely have to admit the video was disappointing. Don't get me wrong - I'm here for the toned down aesthetic, but i cannot with her using the Apple Music Commercial set piece as the main scenario for the video ... like just reused ****. On to the next single / video please 

[Bebe 16,564]

I can't say it's my favourite music video  

To me it feels strange. She goes from lying ,collapsed, in the desert and all these SUVs come and take her. It's like "Is she being picked up and being forced to work? Is she being saved?" She walks into the makeup room and there is nobody acknowledging the previous scene, there is a weird disconnect. 

It felt to me like she had just been picked up in the desert where she had escaped, her team had found her and taken her back to work and she had then resigned to having to work again. There was no acknowledgement from anyone that Gaga had just arrived, that she had just ran away into the desert to roll around escape from it all - It was just like 'We've taken you and now we are going to put on your makeup, dress you up and put you in front of the camera to perform".

Maybe it would have worked better if we saw her team in the desert comforting her in the beginning rather than just seeing these Black SUV's roll up and then see her in the back of the car. It wasn't until like 2:28 of the video that I realised she was being 'rescued' or that her team had come to comfort her and 'pick her back up' so she could continue on. Maybe just some hugs or smiles with Freddy or Sarah to show that her team is supporting her would have communicated that.

I kinda feel like I would like it more if it was longer, if we had more time to sit with Gaga in the car, if we saw more interaction, if we actually saw her sister then maybe it would have worked better.

I actually really liked Perfect Illusion, I still consider it among her best music videos. This, personally, just didn't feel cohesive.


I also don't think MR was very interesting visually. I fell in love with Gaga in a large part because she was this theatrical, avant garde visual artist. I wasn't expecting some pop-art/art-pop style epic music video with choreography and an entire fantasy world like she has done in previous music videos but I was expecting a little more. The visuals for her AMA performance was stunning, the visuals for her MR performance on SMAPXSMAP was stunning. She could have done simple and stunning. I just don't personally feel like this delivered that.

What I will say though, is that if she continues on with these continuations that would be something I'm interested in. Then Million Reasons might not even seem so bad, it would just seem like a scene from a larger film used to tell a larger story. If her next MV started with that ending shot, with Gaga putting down the guitar and then moving on to show some other aspect of her life (maybe exploring her relationship with fans, or her rehearsing and performing ) then I could potentially dig that. It depends on how it was executed though.

I'm not so against these realistic, behind the scenes, behind the mask sort of music videos. I find the concept compelling and I was here for PI. MR just missed the mark for me.

[metalguru 584]

5 minutes ago, Slayer said:

I know, I had to roll my eyes at the "backstage" set. I can't think of anything more inauthentic than a pop star inviting her fans to see a more personal side of her by filming a video of her pretending to cry on a set made to look like a dressing room.  

Authenticity would have been a compilation of home movies of her and Taylor, or hell, even her singing to the stars in her backyard. This whole video just felt as artificial as anything she's done before (just without the creativity).

I even no no to Taylor twist. She needs a fresher image. Taylor twist theories was so cheesy. You are absolutely right. I think she is killing her image right now. Beyonce got year end lists by storm with an album that full of samples and army of writers yet she is still "fresh". I don't like to see her jumping from Joanne era to A Star Is Born. All i ask is good music 

[Slayer 9,227]

1 minute ago, Psychedelic said:

Worst Gaga video ever tbh!  

It's so sad, I love this song. It deserved much better. I feel so connected to this so song that many times I pictured the video being my story being told, and it was so moving in my head.

Many story lines could have been picked but this one does not make sense. It is not about not having great visuals or anything in that matter, but that story sucks.

I genuinely can't even figure out what the story is. So she's in a field doing a performance, then she's rolling in the desert by herself and really upset about something. Then her friends come in big black cars to give her a hug and take her to a dressing room where she gets ready to do the Apple ad performance. But then her sister gives her a rosary and she's really sad but we don't know why.... Like, what is supposed to be happening? I assume she's crying about Taylor, but it could also be her PTSD or depression or her sexual assault... It's hard to get involved in the story when it's not clear.

[Psychedelic 1,098]

Just now, Slayer said:

I genuinely can't even figure out what the story is. So she's in a field doing a performance, then she's rolling in the desert by herself and really upset about something. Then her friends come in big black cars to give her a hug and take her to a dressing room where she gets ready to do the Apple ad performance. But then her sister gives her a rosary and she's really sad but we don't know why.... Like, what is supposed to be happening? I assume she's crying about Taylor, but it could also be her PTSD or depression or her sexual assault... It's hard to get involved in the story when it's not clear.

Exactly, it isn't clear. I is not properly told. It doesn't even make sense 

[metalguru 584]

6 minutes ago, Slayer said:

She literally just said the other day that she was diagnosed with PTSD. Plus she only broke up with her fiance of five years a few months ago. She's not happy.  

 

Just now, Slayer said:

I genuinely can't even figure out what the story is. So she's in a field doing a performance, then she's rolling in the desert by herself and really upset about something. Then her friends come in big black cars to give her a hug and take her to a dressing room where she gets ready to do the Apple ad performance. But then her sister gives her a rosary and she's really sad but we don't know why.... Like, what is supposed to be happening? I assume she's crying about Taylor, but it could also be her PTSD or depression or her sexual assault... It's hard to get involved in the story when it's not clear.

Yeah... PTSD...

I am kinda over with her "messages". Dada poetry was meaningful because it was free. Glam rock was successful because it was a response to fake seriousness of some of the 60s artists. I don't know which story i should believe now. No more weakness-no i am a survivor scenarios please. 

 

 

[HausOfMiklaus 1,803]

I don't know about you guys, but I thought this video was beautiful. It was a sharp contrast to the crazy frenetic energy of Perfect Illusion; Gaga adrift in that desert and her friends dashing in to save her was kinda sweet.

Plus PI had its own look, and we can't not bring the Joanne iconography – the pink hat, the guitar – to the screen. It's cool that she chose Million Reasons for that since I'm not sure she'll make the title track a single (even though it's a great song, one of my favorites in the album). It's why I think her third single is gonna branch into new territory, but the MR video makes sure that this aesthetic has its time in the sun.

The rosary from Natali was also a nice touch. It's from family and it's an intimate moment "backstage", but she's also a Catholic girl and the lyrics reflect that. This was so heartfelt and I'm happy that she shared it with us. 

[Bebe 16,564]

9 minutes ago, Slayer said:

I genuinely can't even figure out what the story is. So she's in a field doing a performance, then she's rolling in the desert by herself and really upset about something. Then her friends come in big black cars to give her a hug and take her to a dressing room where she gets ready to do the Apple ad performance. But then her sister gives her a rosary and she's really sad but we don't know why.... Like, what is supposed to be happening? I assume she's crying about Taylor, but it could also be her PTSD or depression or her sexual assault... It's hard to get involved in the story when it's not clear.

 

7 minutes ago, Psychedelic said:

Exactly, it isn't clear. I is not properly told. It doesn't even make sense 

The story, as I understand it, is that in PI Gaga has escaped from the pressures of her life to go to the desert. She is driving around in a Jeep (that's now apparently abandoned in the desert) and then gets out and just releases all her energy and imagines/hallucinates this fantasy situation where it's just her, her musical collaborators and her fans and she is just performing for them. In this moment she is completely free.

This was a release for her. As MR starts she has just released all that energy and is faced with the reality of her situation again, the perfect illusion has shattered. Her team come to pick her up, they comfort her and she has to return back to her actual life. She goes to her dressing room and she gets a gift from her sister with a note and this act of kindness, this knowledge that her sister loves her and is thinking of her while she is struggling, gives her the strength to dress up and perform for the cameras.

I agree that, for MR especially, the story isn't really told all that well though.

[Psychedelic 1,098]

Just now, Bebe said:

 

The story, as I understand it, is that in PI Gaga has escaped from the pressures of her life to go to the desert. She is driving around in a Jeep (that's now apparently abandoned in the desert) and then gets out and just releases all her energy and imagines/hallucinates this fantasy situation where it's just her, her musical collaborators and her fans and she is just performing for them. In this moment she is completely free.

This was a release for her. As MR starts she has just released all that energy and is faced with the reality of her situation again, the perfect illusion has shattered. Her team come to pick her up, they comfort her and she has to return back to her actual life. She goes to her dressing room and she gets a gift from her sister with a note and this act of kindness, this knowledge that her sister loves her and is thinking of her while she is struggling, gives her the strength to dress up and perform for the cameras.

I agree that, for MR especially, the story isn't really told all that well though.

Well, that does make a lot of sense, but it did not up until you explained it... so if even most of her fans cannot understand it at first, how are casual fans and GP give an F about it?

They'll go like... that sucks! 

[Reality 66,831]

2 hours ago, Nayru said:

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To start with, I never tried to imply that a "die-hard fan" would not be able to like this video. Taste is subjective and I understand that even the most perfectly executed video would be (unfairly & aggressively) critiqued on this forum.

This 2012-onward trend of dissecting and badmouthing each and every aspect of Gaga's appearance & growth/ change of direction as a musician is one of the million reasons I do not tend to actively engage with this fanbase anymore btw. So I commend you for bringing up a different perspective into this discussion. Please understand, that I am not here to hate on Gaga.

I truly support Gaga's need, both as an artist and a human being, to outgrow all of her pain & leave each and any preconceived notion we have about her behind. With Joanne she has definitely taken a direction that might be completely unfamiliar to us as fans, but is still powerful enough to connect us through all of the emotional openness & vulnerability of the album. (Whether you are a fan of the sound itself or not)

That said, I do like the album, I do recognize she has delivered some spectacular live moments, I do feel relieved that she seems to be a lot happier and content than during the last album cycle, and I love this element of "unpredictability" you mentioned earlier about her. The thing is, I'm not complaining because I feel entitled to a 100% photoshopped, polished, and choreographed version of Gaga that does not exist.

I'm sad because I feel like Interscope does not give a **** about her anymore; Gaga has offered them so much and they just half-ass any promotional decision they can. Gaga is just one person and she cannot micromanage everything. They had the responsibility to make sure that she doesn't burn out and yet they left her to fend for herself in a lot of ways... Now that I've thought about it for a while, maybe this is exactly why the video treatment for Million Reasons bothers me so much. Gaga is offering such a good single, the sales are steady etc. and then they s*** out this kind of video? Who is making those decisions? At this point, Gaga needs a team that is steadfast and experienced. I simply do not want her career to fizzle out like this...

 

 

 

I completely understand what you're saying, and first, I'd like to thank you for having an intelligent conversation with me  With topics like this, and sometimes with the amount of emotion people just put out, it's difficult to just have a one-on-one with someone.

I agree with pretty much everything you're saying, and I'd like to apologize if you thought that my post was directed specifically towards you, it wasn't. When I said "you" in my post, I was really just referring to us, the fans.

The only thing we just seem to disagree on is the video itself. I love it, and actually, the more I watch it, the more I love it. I think it gets the message across, and quite honestly, if she didn't do the Apple commercial, I don't think people would be really complaining about the video. I reckon the main reason why people really don't like it is because we've already seen the Apple commercial, so her dancing in an outfit like that with a guitar in front of a white screen isn't necessarily new. 

That said, people's thoughts on the video are subjective, and as much as I could try to persuade them to look at it at a different light, or look at it from a different perspective, their opinions will be their opinions. 

[HANZ 4,380]

WHAT A BORING MUSIC VIDEO

****ing hate this era

[Redstreak 6,653]

The video...

[Emigrante 9,354]

1 hour ago, metalguru said:

I even no no to Taylor twist. She needs a fresher image. Taylor twist theories was so cheesy. You are absolutely right. I think she is killing her image right now. Beyonce got year end lists by storm with an album that full of samples and army of writers yet she is still "fresh". I don't like to see her jumping from Joanne era to A Star Is Born. All i ask is good music 

You've got hella good music with Joanne. 

[macca 1,285]

1 minute ago, Emigrante said:

You've got hella good music with Joanne. 

Maybe for you. But not a lot of people. worst album she has put out