Does anyone else feel like Joanne is a concept album?

[Guest ARTPOPSlays]

I know Gaga said that it her first album that isn’t a concept album. Hi everytime I listen to it I can’t help but feel like it is. Maybe that’s not what it was intended to be, or maybe she went into it differently than she would normally approach making a concept album. It’s definitly more stripped down than her other albums but there are still some Elements that feel conceptual for me. What do you guys think? 

Disclaimer: This isn’t a joanne hate thread so anyone who comes here to spread hate please don’t 

[Bonkers 29,959]

I think she had an album partly done that she scrapped because she clicked with Mark Ronson and his band, and Joanne is what came from it.  And she wanted to show off her voice and gain more mainstream followers from the country side of the industry.

[Guest ARTPOPSlays]

2 minutes ago, Bonkers said:

I think she had an album partly done that she scrapped because she clicked with Mark Ronson and his band, and Joanne is what came from it.  And she wanted to show off her voice and gain more mainstream followers from the country side of the industry.

If that is the case, I wonder what it sounded like. I know everyone has this theory that was pure pop Gaga, but I remember her from the beginning before Mark came along saying she was going back to her roots. So either way it was going to be more stripped back from what I believe 

[NFRatwell 23,290]

8 minutes ago, ARTPOPSlays said:

If that is the case, I wonder what it sounded like. I know everyone has this theory that was pure pop Gaga, but I remember her from the beginning before Mark came along saying she was going back to her roots. So either way it was going to be more stripped back from what I believe 

I imagine Angel Down (demo) like songs, and disco influence since she was planning on working with that disco guy (not to mention she met Nile around this time too). 

[Battle 4 Ur Life 6,726]

it totally is tho

[Red 98,423]

I mean, it's not full on conceptual a la Electra Heart but I do feel like it is. All of Gaga's albums are.

[Bonkers 29,959]

10 minutes ago, ARTPOPSlays said:

If that is the case, I wonder what it sounded like. I know everyone has this theory that was pure pop Gaga, but I remember her from the beginning before Mark came along saying she was going back to her roots. So either way it was going to be more stripped back from what I believe 

I *assume* those songs were banked and the big hits will eventually be released.

[Pop Music 20,540]

2 minutes ago, Red said:

All of Gaga's albums are

THIS 

[Red 98,423]

1 minute ago, Haus Swiftie said:

THIS 

The most conceptual being The Fame Monster

[FfFfFfFF 56,628]

It may not be full-on conceptual but is there's definitely a theme surrounding it. 

[Chromaticunt 5,529]

No, I think it's quite clear it's just a collection of random songs. A recurring theme is family, but not enough for it to be a concept album. 

I think it would have been better reviewed if it was a concept album.

[Bio 23,538]

I mean she had the concept of getting to middle american 30 year old women and created songs that would accomplish that, other than that I don't see it.

[JustJames 1,046]

I mean, how can she literally define the entire album and era around embodying her deceased aunt, both in terms of the supposed inspiration for its sound and the promotion/aesthetics, and say it wasn't a "concept"? So, like, does she have multiple personalities or is she claiming to be a medium? Because as far as I recall, she referred to herself - and requested others to do the same - as "Joanne," and I thought she wore a pink cowboy hat and cropped shorts repeatedly to drive home this narrative - or, dare I say, concept - but I suppose Interscope just pulled the plug on her wardrobe budget for the era?

/sarcasm I actually find it kind of... anti-Gaga... of her to constantly refer to Joanne as this personal, raw experience for her and her fans when its entire premise was based on her creation of a character that shared nothing in common with who she - Stefani or Lady Gaga - has told us she was/is. Her name, in life or on stage, is NOT Joanne. She is from NYC, not the midwest. Her musical roots are in jazz, not folk. Like, nothing about this album or era was organic or introspective. 

I'm fine with that. I'm fine with not getting to know Stefani Germanotta on a personal level, because she worked her butt off to create and perfect the celebrity of Lady Gaga. She can leverage her personal experiences to whatever degree she wants, so I'm not saying that I don't want her music to not reference jazz or growing up in NYC. I just don't like the disconnect between what Joanne was and what Joanne has been sold to us as. 

Honestly, Joanne seems more disingenuous as a fan than ARTPOP ever did. ARTPOP fits into the persona and character arc of Lady Gaga the artist; an ambitious combination of ideas across multiple artistic media that can be listened to repeatedly and leave you with a new insight into her motivations at the time. It was wonderfully chaotic. Joanne, on the other hand, and its "Bowie died so I scrapped my AHS-inspired masterpiece" narrative was off-putting from the start. I'll blast Diamond Heart, Million Reasons, and a few other songs still, but its sound and story fits far too perfectly between her post-ARTPOP rebuilding phase and ASIB rebirth phase for me to believe it was anything but 100% conceived.

[Doot 2]

No because concept albums usually have the theme present in every track. A concept album is supposed to be completely centered around the theme, which majority are not for this album. 

What does her masturbating have to do with Joanne? Nothing. 

What does her "illusions" of men and social media have to do with Joanne? Nothing. 

If anything, the album is simply dedicated to Joanne. That's about it. The closest she's had to a concept album was The Fame Monster. 

[RAMROD 111,156]

When does Gaga solo album never a concept album is the question, so yes, yes it is. 

Joanne is thematic album about family and The Higher Being.