Born This Way is Gaga's Magnum Opus

[xoxo Craig 55,649]

19 minutes ago, Bebe said:

"Are we really gonna say its her 'Magnum Opus' because she was a trend setter?"

I mean no... That's almost the polar opposite of that I'm saying. I didn't say she set trends with Born This Way I said she set trends with TF/TFM and then, at the height of her fame/popularity, released an album and visuals that was completely uncompromising and bold without fear of alienating a wider audience. An album that was deeply political, that was sonically and visually different from anything else in pop music. An album that still strongly informs her public perception to this day.

She was more experimental with Born This Way than she has ever been lyrically, sonically, thematically and it's an album that to this day is still such a major part of Gaga as a persona. She wrote a song that was almost entirely in fake-German, wrote a song in English/Spanish about illegal immigration and gay marriage, got up on the VMA stage as a Drag King, released an album heavily influenced by rock/heavy metal with aggressive industrial beats and complex lyrics, she released a lead single that name checked the LGBT community boldly when even the most popular 'progressive' politicians were afraid of publicly supporting Gay Marriage, and she did it with absolutely no features on the album.

I couldn't name an album of the 2010's that managed to both challenge and reflect the changing social attitudes and political ideologies of the time the way Born This Way did. It's such a watershed moment that seems to bridge the gap between the start of the decade with policies such as Don't Ask Don't Tell, Gay Marriage being illegal (and taboo) and the end of the decade with Gay Marriage legal and hit T.V shows RuPaul's Drag Race dominating T.V waves and Trans celebrities being featured on Vanity Fair.

I don't think Born This Way is impressive because it was a success and trendy, it's impressive because of the type of album she created and released at the height of her success with no concerns about trends. When she had the entire world looking to see what she would do next, she released an album that was political, controversial, polarising, challenging, unapologetic and uncompromising. 

Chromatica is a fantastic album that is sonically interesting, cohesive and frankly more personal than her stripped down "Joanne" era that proceeded it. It just doesn't capture the cultural zeitgeist of the moment the way Born This Way did, it isn't as risky as Born This Way was, it isn't as experimental. It doesn't need to be any of those things to be a great album either. It's just not her magnum opus imo.

While I have no doubt the next album she releases will be just as great as Chromatica, and she will continue to put out quality work, I believe history will look at Born This Way as her greatest album. It just has too many things going for it, not all are even in Gaga's control:

1. It's so sonically different from her contemporaries featuring bold lyrics and dark, thumping industrial beats alongside stadium rock anthems.

2. She is known as a political artist, and this is by far her most political work. Exploring themes such as LGBT rights, Feminism, Immigration, Social Norm, and Religion.

3. She was at the height of her fame, at peak Gagamania where she dominated every media landscape.

4. She recorded an album that addressed the major tensions of the time and shifting attitudes of the time.

5. The imagery is such a drastic departure from the image of the female pop star archetype that came before her and that were also current at the time.

I don’t agree... it was an important cultural moment for sure, but its nowhere near her best. Sure it was experimental and yeah she took risks. But The Fame Monster, ARTPOP and Chromatica are all more experimental in terms of music, concept and fashion. Its a complete risk in today's music climate to create a 90s/00s house album while bearing your insides out for the world to see. ARTPOP was her biggest risk interms of fashion and concepts, it was such a big risk that it became messy and even Gaga couldn't explain it. 

Born This Way as a song will be remembered for eternity. But the album? I believe it will only be remembered by fans. Its not cohesive, the cover is a mess, and there's a lot of fillers on BTW. There are experimental tracks on BTW, and her talking about LGBTQ+ marriage was really important. But I don’t think her getting up in drag was that important. It was another thing to be shocking, which Gaga had a reputation  at that point. 

As I said, its very culturally important and because of the album LGBTQ+ progress has excelled. But its not her best album not will it be looked at as her best

[FentyGa 14,340]

no. it’s her best album, but it’s not her magnum opus. that would be the fame monster, quite obviously.

[Bebe 16,562]

5 hours ago, xoxo Craig said:

I don’t agree... it was an important cultural moment for sure, but its nowhere near her best. Sure it was experimental and yeah she took risks. But The Fame Monster, ARTPOP and Chromatica are all more experimental in terms of music, concept and fashion. Its a complete risk in today's music climate to create a 90s/00s house album while bearing your insides out for the world to see. ARTPOP was her biggest risk interms of fashion and concepts, it was such a big risk that it became messy and even Gaga couldn't explain it. 

Born This Way as a song will be remembered for eternity. But the album? I believe it will only be remembered by fans. Its not cohesive, the cover is a mess, and there's a lot of fillers on BTW. There are experimental tracks on BTW, and her talking about LGBTQ+ marriage was really important. But I don’t think her getting up in drag was that important. It was another thing to be shocking, which Gaga had a reputation  at that point. 

As I said, its very culturally important and because of the album LGBTQ+ progress has excelled. But its not her best album not will it be looked at as her best

You are entitled to your opinion, I guess we will just have to wait and see how her work is viewed in another 20-30 years or so