The Development of ARTPOP

[seashellplay 512]

 

What portions of ARTPOP had been completed by 2012/early 2013? 

It is common knowledge that the development of ARTPOP began shortly after Born This Way, in the marvelous month of May - It is of my knowledge that the 'heart' of the commercial record was of the first to be completed and developed - there actually exists a video of 'ARTPOP' echoing from Lady Gaga's transportation mechanical, and her vehicle had been halted by repulsive fans; however, this served as one of the first leaks of ARTPOP. The version lacks the 'alien-heartbeat' like beat, although it seems to be lyrically the same - Gaga had described in an interview the song had not experienced severe changes, something rather different, especially compared to her other tracks, such as Venus, Applause, and Aura. 

 

We have received confirmation that development of the as early as October of 2012, G.U.Y. was in production - and the sister-track Venus as well was apparently 'the first' but this makes no sense what so ever, with ARTPOP being the first. The lyrics of 'Do What U Want' had been supposedly completed on a plane, in 2012? It is safe to assume 'Applause', the record lead single and closer, began development in early 2013 - later to nearly be scrapped, but saved by Iovine's preference towards the song. There were references to Aura in a 2012 tweet, and there was iirc an 'alter-ego' named Mary Jane Holland during the BTWB

 

[GagaUnderYou 4,915]

Gaga has mentioned that ARTPOP the first song for the album, and Venus being the last recorded. Applause was a personal record for her that the label ended up loving and making it the lead. She initially wanted Aura to be lead. I would love to hear the ARTPOP demo. 

The track by track ARTPOP helps: 

 

[seashellplay 512]

4 minutes ago, GagaUnderYou said:

Gaga has mentioned that ARTPOP the first song for the album, and Venus being the last recorded. Applause was a personal record for her that the label ended up loving and making it the lead. She initially wanted Aura to be lead. I would love to hear the ARTPOP demo. 

The track by track ARTPOP helps: 

 

Thanks, but I've seen this before. That's where I got the information on the development of the tracks - do you have any other sources?

[Bloody hooker 6,445]

You can ready more about the development of ARTPOP here:

https://ladygaga.fandom.com/wiki/ARTPOP_(album)

[yes and 4,884]

As for me, it always seemed that ARTPOP had at least 3 different concepts.

The first one was "dead blonde", and Princess Die was the main song of that concept. Back then, she put on lots of vintage clothes in 2012, and then she dyed her hair that literally meant "dead blonde". 
Idk but I feel like it could be one of Gaga's ideas that blondes didn't have happiness and suffer such as Diana, Marilyn, Grace Kelly.  Besides, it was quite logical because ARTPOP = pop-art vice versa and it was a significant part of all the retro culture. 

The second one was connected with future and technologies. I guess she changed musical direction of the album very much after working with Madeon and Zedd. It was the time when she started wearing a bright green wig and showed us the glowing wig. That concept became a part of the final concept more or less. 

The third one is what we consequently have. Obviously, if she didn't have the trauma, ARTPOP would've been released much earlier and such songs as DWUW and Dope wouldn't have happened, but we have what we have. 

* it's just my thoughts from the prospect of an old fan * 

[BARCODE 1,141]

Does anyone remember how pissed off monsters were at that girl for saying "GAGA LISTEN TO MY CD" lmaooooo. That girl was a running joke all of 2013 lmao

[Twitter 14]

3 hours ago, BARCODE said:

Does anyone remember how pissed off monsters were at that girl for saying "GAGA LISTEN TO MY CD" lmaooooo. That girl was a running joke all of 2013 lmao

Yes. 

[COOOK 76,405]

5 hours ago, dancewithnobody said:

The first one was "dead blonde", and Princess Die was the main song of that concept. Back then, she put on lots of vintage clothes in 2012, and then she dyed her hair that literally meant "dead blonde". 

Idk but I feel like it could be one of Gaga's ideas that blondes didn't have happiness and suffer such as Diana, Marilyn, Grace Kelly.  Besides, it was quite logical because ARTPOP = pop-art vice versa and it was a significant part of all the retro culture. 

She always said she’s interested in how celebrities obtained fame, kept it, and lost it. So she wanted to go on this chapter where now it’s the death of the blonde superstar (herself), with Disney Princesses and tiaras as this era’s “disco schtick”.

Those concepts together with Princess Die were a more cohesive concept than ARTPOP ultimately had in the end.

Edit: Also, it someway became the death of the blonde superstar, we all know what happened afterwards... it truly is a reverse warholian experience

[gagzus 13,646]

Ok, long read ahead so be warned idk how to put a spoiler on mobile so RIP this thread and bandwidth.

———

The album started production in late 2011 around the time of Marry The Night being a single. But she already had the next album title in mind by the release of BTW in May 2011. Gaga started working with Zedd in 2012 when he was her opening act for the BTWB writing and recording with him and Paul on the road, Fernando was also working with her on a few songs (Partynauseous being one eventually) and Madeon came into the fold in autumn 2012 presumably to replace Fernando, around this time Zedd became the main producer on her record for a time, with Paul replacing him in 2013 as the main producer when they had to redo most of the album during her downtime. She had two major meetings with Interscope in 2012, I’m not sure of the first one but the second one was in September. Then she had a major meeting with them in 2013 again after she had fully recovered and went out into public view again.

(Please remember some of things I’m saying from here are based on me putting information together and some we know for definite or some I have heard from knowing people who met her and asked stuff backstage at the BTWB in the UK, so take what I say lightly and not purely factual)

By the time the September meeting was done she had recorded ARTPOP, G.U.Y., MANiCURE, Sex Dreams, two versions of PARTYNAUSEOUS, part of Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe, probably other songs we’ve never heard and other demos too for Ratchet and Red Flame existed. September was supposed to be a finalising meeting because Interscope wanted her to release an EP ASAP instead of an album just to keep her name out there and release ARTPOP in 2 EPs so she could get streams and keep herself in the charts (an idea she later expanded on but never completed) during the last meeting in September she was supposed to turn in an EP but didn’t have one ready so they extended her time frame and she was to drop at least a single by April 2013 with a summer 2013 release for an album instead of an EP. In this meeting her collaboration plans with Azealia and Kendrick fell through because they wanted her to distance herself from Azealia’s bad image and Kendrick’s team wanted her to make PN the lead off her album and make it solely hip-hop because her gay fanbase and dance music wasn’t good for Kendrick’s image (as he was just starting to get major notice in the hip-hop world at the time), she wouldn’t compromise and Kendrick’s team wouldn’t give her more time to perfect her part of BDKMV so the collabs were all shelved. Then obviously by April she had had her hip injury and pushed everything back to recover.

Interscope pushed hard for her to do some hip-hop/rap collabs because they were gaining traction on radio at the time (and basically ruled airplay for the majority of the 2010s in the end tbh) so they had setup the collabs for her, later they still wanted a collab with rappers even more as rap became bigger in 2013 and that’s when she collabed on Jewels & Drugs.

In terms of songs the majority of the songs from the final cut of the album were written and recorded between August 2012 - October 2013. Mary Jane Holland was written in September/October with Aura, Do What U Want was written and mostly finished in Nov/Dec 2012 and R Kelly was added in early 2013, Donatella was written on a plane to Thailand and had a demo recorded over email with Zedd in October/November (the day after she was in Italy to see Donatella and was throwing flowers from her chateau balcony she wrote it).  MANiCURE, Sex Dreams, G.U.Y. and her more happy/fun/sexual tracks were recorded in 2012 mostly when she was happy, high and unbothered. sadder and darker songs like Swine, Dope, Gypsy (in context not sonically) were made when she was either touring in pain and after her hip broke. Applause had a concept by late 2012 BEFORE her hip injury, conceptualised when she was in the UK for the tour (as the leaked concept demo proves, with her talking to Helen in the background, and a friend of mine who met her backstage at the BTWB said that she said she was making a song that would include her fans on the record (presumably the cheering and screaming recorded at the show- we can assume the cheering sample in the song is from the O2 Arena in the UK, but obviously at the time they didn’t know what she meant).

Conceptually the album went through many changes that Interscope stunted her from doing, the original concept was the decay of the blonde superstar as the media- and the world turned against her slowly. Interscope felt the concept was too dark with songs like Princess Die being about suicide and other dark themes weren’t appropriate. Around this time we can assume they had a talk where they told her “we just want you to be pretty and make pop music” and thus the second concept started; Disney Princess in a rave, which was stunted because 1) Disney is a brand so copyright concept issues and 2) she was associating a brand with raves, drugs and sex which we can assume Disney wouldn’t have taken lightly had she went ahead with it. So the deeper concept about making the art come first and making technology, fashion and art become one with her music. Where the music was pop with art imagery, and her educating people through her medium about art. And we know how this went down. We can assume the disney princess concept was around till early 2013 when she was probably told she couldn’t do it because brand image association. 

The first few songs she made that ended up on the album were ARTPOP, G.U.Y., MANiCURE and Sex Dreams. With Dope and Venus being two of the last ones. Hip-Hop collabs were pushed by Interscope and as we now know her management/label had her voice heavily filtered, layered and auto tuned on the final outcomes without her knowledge so they could get the album out as fast as possible. And she basically said that fame went to her head during this time and after the era was a disaster behind the scenes, Tony came to her rescue.

[Chromaticunt 5,529]

If I had a penny for every ARTPOP thread I could buy a time machine prototype, go back to 2013 and buy every f*cking copy available so people can finally get over it "flopping".  

[homomo 22,716]

41 minutes ago, gagzus said:

 

The first few songs she made that ended up on the album were ARTPOP, G.U.Y., MANiCURE and Sex DreamWith Dope and Venus being two of the last ones. Hip-Hop collabs were pushed by Interscope and as we now know her management/label had her voice heavily filtered, layered and auto tuned on the final outcomes without her knowledge so they could get the album out as fast as possible. And she basically said that fame went to her head during this time and after the era was a disaster behind the scenes, Tony came to her rescue.

Dope was a reworked version of I Wannna Be With U, which was written at least by February 2013 when she tweeted “I’d rather be poor and happy than rich and alone. -  - - - - -  - -  - - - -  - ARTPOP”

Unless you meant Dope was one of the last to be finalized, then carry on

[yes and 4,884]

5 hours ago, COOOK said:

 

Those concepts together with Princess Die were a more cohesive concept than ARTPOP ultimately had in the end.

Edit: Also, it someway became the death of the blonde superstar, we all know what happened afterwards... it truly is a reverse warholian experience

You are totally right. That concept would've been understood much better by GP and critics wouldn't have given her a lot of negative backlash.

As for now, it seems that she is changing concepts of LG6 again and again 

[Biggest Fan 988]

10 hours ago, BARCODE said:

Does anyone remember how pissed off monsters were at that girl for saying "GAGA LISTEN TO MY CD" lmaooooo. That girl was a running joke all of 2013 lmao

Yes I remember this video 

I always laugh 

[MessyTop 12,885]

Still fascinated by the ARTPOP era. So full of mystery, mystique and behind the scenes drama. The album aged so well!! Bravo ARTPOP 

[Italian 554]

5 hours ago, gagzus said:

Interscope pushed hard for her to do some hip-hop/rap collabs because they were gaining traction on radio at the time (and basically ruled airplay for the majority of the 2010s in the end tbh) so they had setup the collabs for her, later they still wanted a collab with rappers even more as rap became bigger in 2013 and that’s when she collabed on Jewels & Drugs.

Does this mean that Jewels N Drugs was not her idea/vision