Why Gaga isn't here for Chromatica...

[OMonster 14,675]

Here goes... 

Firstly, Gaga knows her fans have been 'demanding' new pop music for a long time now. That's evident by the jokes she (and her team) have made about Joanne, Enigma and other projects over the past few years. 

Spoiler

See Gaga laughing in response to a monster who thought that the Chromatica Ball would be 'just Enigma'; Gaga teasing that she would wear the Joanne hat throughout all of the era, and how she called out people for judging HL / her makeup. 

Because of this, I think she's worked extremely hard to produce an album that 'finally' gives those fans - her original fans - what they want, as one last hurrah before she starts a family and steps away from pop again. This again is evidenced by things like the return of Gagavision, the Chromatica 'Ball' and the direction of her new music. This is all, overwhelmingly, fan-service at its best. 

Now, I'm not saying that Gaga hasn't or didn't enjoy 'returning to pop music' - but I do believe that she felt that she *had* to do it, and has been intimidated by the pressure and expectation she feels from fans and possibly from her record label, too. In fact, Gaga has said as much herself, though in a less direct way:

Spoiler

See interview where she explains that she didn't 'feel like' making music, and that she was 'obsessed' with and 'worried' about 'what to do next'. Also:

 

 When you add all of that pressure to 1) the constant leaks and 2) the COVID-19 pandemic, I think it's understandable (however disappointing) that she doesn't feel the hype, or at least doesn't want to share that hype, in the same way she has before for previous albums. 

The leaks, to an extent, kind of undercut her reason for making this album - which was, imo, to please her fans - since she hasn't been able to announce any of the news herself directly to us. Not the lead single, not the album cover, not the track list, not the duets - not a single piece of information, aside from a released date that was later postponed. 

Meanwhile, the global situation right now has most likely shifted Gaga's mind from 'fan service' to a desire to use her platform for tangible change - not just to please 'her little monsters' again. 

I see it as a similar change in direction to what happened when Bowie died. We know she was essentially ready to go with LG5 before scrapping it after his death, in part, reminded her of her own mortality and unleashed a desire to make music that would transcend expectation. 

The difference now, of course, is that Chromatica was already announced and finalised *before* this sudden shift.

As a result, we're now in a situation where Gaga has to continue releasing this album, despite probably not wanting to right now.

And let's not forget, lockdown (and the year long social isolation that will follow) precludes her ability to present this album in the way she wanted to - which, all reports suggest, was intended to be in a very 'old-school Gaga' way that would deliver on fan expectation. 

When you take all of that away, Chromatica - as an era - is both suddenly impossible to roll-out in the way it was created to be, and simultaneously unfit for the times as it has clashed with a global pandemic that only further reminds Gaga as to why she hasn't wanted to release an album like this in so long - because it feels empty, unimportant, regressive, ect, ect. 

In summary then, Chromatica was for the fans but now it can't be - at least, not in the way she envisioned. And, now, as a result, Gaga is most likely releasing this album because she 'has to' not because she really, truly wants to - and that's most likely why she is expressing such little enthusiasm for this era. It's also why, I'd guess, she won't release another pop album for a very, very long time. 

Thank you for coming to my TedTalk, and goodnight 

[Kindness Hooker 7]

Nope.

Shouldn't you be fighting Twitter monsters and being rude for no reason.

[Suuus 5,632]

Can we please ban this kind of threads thank you

[OMonster 14,675]

3 minutes ago, Kindness Hooker said:

Nope.

Shouldn't you be fighting Twitter monsters and being rude lmao. 

Huh? 

[Anderson123 38,322]

Nah. 

[Gracious Gaga 17,163]

4 minutes ago, Kindness Hooker said:

Nope.

Shouldn't you be fighting Twitter monsters and being rude for no reason lmao. 

Kindness hooker WHO???

[Gracious Gaga 17,163]

anyways,

Give us this day our daily thread 

[steven 5,954]

Enough with these threads, it's getting ridiculous. 

[S0436 10,215]

She spent over a year making this record  Listen to the Zane Lowe interview this year and you can hear that she is still very passionate about her music and this album.

[QueenMortuana 1,193]

[OMonster 14,675]

1 minute ago, S0436 said:

She spent over a year making this record  Listen to the Zane Lowe interview this year and you can hear that she is still very passionate about her music and this album.

I'm not saying she isn't passionate about this record - not at all. 

Anyway, based on the replies here, I don't think people really read the thread (understandable... it's long, lol) and don't want to consider my points. 

I wanted to try and articulate more clearly why Gaga seems to lack enthusiasm for this era. I believe the thread to be respectful and constructive, and not irrational or dismissive of the facts. 

I guess I underestimated the disdain this topic attracts on here right now. 

[LaLa 19,653]

I don't know. I'm sure she's disappointed, of course she is! But she's also talked about how important the concept of 'radical acceptance' is to her mental health, and I'm confident that she'll be able to find a way to move forward with this era with joy and excitement, even if it looks different to how she originally planned it. 

(I also really disagree that she felt she 'had' to return to pop music. I felt a lot of enthusiasm from her in the Zane interview, and Paper mag. I do think she was really struggling with her depression last year while making it though. Just because it came from a difficult place, or had a difficult journey into the world doesn't mean she didn't want to do it)

[IAmNotHere1997 25,824]

Ain't nobody gonna read all that 

[vyniildisk 12,689]

KING! Lets keep this threads coming, they add a lot

 

JK she is def here, but she decided to focus on other important things, just look at how well received was ONE WORLD TOGETHA

[Kindness Hooker 7]

2 minutes ago, OMonster said:

Huh? 

Being petty is fun and IDC LMAO.