The genius of the My House sample in Replay

[LastNight 5,731]

With Gaga's powerful new interview, I think it's time to revisit the song Replay and unpack it a bit more.

Replay is the most incredible song in terms of how the story is weaved through both the lyrics and the instrumental. In particular, I get chills thinking about how the My House sample is used in the track and I think it's a deliberate choice that goes deeper than it just sounding good.

My House is a slinky, sensual song about Diana Ross being in control of her life. It's flirty, it's playful; she sets the scene for her lover in a really romantic way, while remaining very much in control. If you read into it a bit more it's not just about owning your life and your sexuality, but also your body. 'It's my house and I live here'  a metaphor for 'it's my body, I reside here, and I decide what to do with it.' The song oozes a womanly confidence.

Replay couldn't be more opposite to My House. It's about trauma, shame, being out of control of your body and acknowledging that you've been wounded. Gaga is talking about a painful experience where she was not in control, and she's also letting us know how out of control she still feels while processing what happened to her. She blames herself, she blames the other person, she is stuck in an endless loop of negative thoughts that she can't escape from. While Diana very much knows what to do and say, Gaga clearly states that she does not.

Using the My House sample is such a powerful contrast to the story Gaga is telling, but it's not just the inclusion of it - it's how it's used. Taking this particular song and splicing it up into the swirling tornado of the Replay instrumental is GENIUS. It's distorted and mixed up with the other music during the chorus; it's like this dance between Gaga's torment and the freedom that she aspires to.

Every now and then the 'It's my...' vocal sample pops in, it's blink-and-you-miss-it and it cuts off before Diana can even finish her line, but it's such an important detail. Despite all of the noise in her head this little voice of hope breaks through the cracks, before it's quickly whisked off again in all the chaos. It's a voice that reminds Gaga her body is still hers, despite what's been done to it by other people - it's hers and no-one else's. To me this reads that somewhere in Gaga's psyche there is a tiny ray of hope that bursts through every now and then, it's hard to catch on to, but as she says in 1000 Doves: "I'm not perfect yet, but I'll keep trying"

BONUS: If anyone hasn't heard this yet, someone did an amazing breakdown of how it's sampled in the song:

(Also, credit to @HiddenWeirdo for mentioning the car noises in the song in the other thread, you inspired me to make this one!)

[Celloo Deng 53,868]

What a great thread, thank you for sharing! I love that she sampled legend Diana and this theory makes it seem so meaningful and special 

[Levine 23,023]

One of the best thread ever. Thank you for this, I didn't know many of the things you said

[Noah 26,643]

This makes so much sense and I totally think this is the reason that sample was chosen. It builds an interesting contrast. 

[Glamourpuss 29,062]

This is amazing. I love it when someone discovers something in her songs. 

It was a genius idea to use that specific sample. There is so much depth in each of the songs waiting to be analysed because she never tells us anything directly, it's there to be discovered over time like how now we're looking back at her past projects since the new revelation and seeing the glaringly obvious hints.

[littlepotter 74,599]

Very smart analogy

[Ronlop 6,882]

Love your analogy of it! Replay is definitely one of her most powerful songs 

[HuffsAhoy 7,433]

Fantastic analysis, the English teacher in me is living!! So many of the songs on Chromatica have a much deeper meaning than meets the eye, and this is a great example. \

[Der Meister 3,000]

Have you heard of Daft Punk’s discovery album?

[Siena 5,868]

This. Also one of the most powerful things about this song I believe is the part that everyone seems to miss, which is the beginning sound of cars silently driving past. Perhaps this is the sound she replays in her head since it’s what she heard after she was dropped off on the street corner.