The Fame and Gaga's bizarre early days

[COOOK 76,406]

Back when I was a teen, following and living through Gaga's early fame/The Fame days was a wild experience, and it's easily the era that inspires me the most, mainly because of her drive. She put herself OUT there and worked like no other. You just could see the drive and determination in her eyes, feel she was going to be big- how? No idea back then but something new and fresh was coming to pop culture, and she was bringing change. Her unique appearance stood out in such an intriguing way during that time... I guess this is my "you had to be there" moment.

Her gigs during that time were pretty bizarre and even chaotic, and watching them now is both endearing and hilarious, but she showed up and milked every opportunity that was laid in front of her regardless, carrying herself like the legend she already believed she was. She also had a lot of input in the content she shared and edited all of her videos.

Promoting her MySpace while shopping in Hollywood:

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Record hunting:

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A full-fledged concert in an IKEA parking lot, followed by CD signing and an interview:

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Her first Gagavisions:

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(the foreseeing at 1:00)

Behind the scenes of The Fame photoshoot:

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"THE FAME: Part One":

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The "Poker Island Quest" video game and its short films:

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These notable and inspiring interviews:

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She's always been so kind. The comments in this video melt my heart too

Accidentally hitting her dancer (timestamped):

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Her Hannah Montana lipgloss:

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and I'm missing out many more, aside from her endless performances.
She still to this day inspires me to work hard so if you see this thank you, Lady Gaga!

[nATAH 49,617]

me filing a police report after watching her drive that jeep knowing she was unlicensed at the time

[CatelynnMarie 4,406]

this is so nostalgic and magical i love 

[Tinnitus15 51,579]

She really had that fame spark in her.. miss girly was ready to hit the worldwide stage at all cost 

[Guest]

A master of fame 💎

[Lizzi 219]

It's hard to believe this was nearly 14 years ago... I miss this and TFM era

[salty like sodium 1,915]

WOw this is amazing. I wish she was still as quirky haha

[Charliie 1,829]

This is so inspiring. Many fans don't appreciate this era imo but you can feel a unique, youthful and reckless energy only in the Fame era. I admire her ambition and hard work. Her fearless dedication got her where she is now

She pushed boundaries and got out of her comfort zone, which made her stand out from other new artists at that time. 

[Ziggy 11,864]

What’s super interesting is that, low key, the thing that made her pop off besides having catchy music, was just looking different and putting that look everywhere. People REALLY underestimate the power of appearances and I try to explain to non queer people that Gaga really wasn’t dressing any different than someone on a night out in the clubs in NY or even Chicago if you’re at the right joint or party. But when you push the look as hard as she did, people notice, people ask questions, and people wanna know who’s underneath all that (even though that IS who is underneath it all; they’re just freer to express it). It’s actually staggering how much American culture at large cannot conceptualize queerness. To understand gay men they had to be marriage bound and like the neighbors. But queerness? Gaga blew up bc American culture remains fascinated by the concept of queerness—even today.

but to bring it back, you wear a good look out in queer clubs, you stand out. Period. That’s the social currency to get you into convos so it’s no wonder she made her way through the club scene fast af

[ajmsamuel 1,530]

This. I love this woman for two reasons: born this way and her pre fame game. She was determinanted to be big

[gumzy3000 7,325]

As someone who is in my mid-twenties now, it is MIND BLOWING to think she was only 22 when all this happened to her. Her work ethic and business acumen is another level and I am shook she accomplished so much at such a young age. 

[bowlsofbrett 528]

I was there from the beginning (I’m 33 now). The drive was unmatched and made all the other pop girlies step up their game. 

[Guest]

This era is what got me into Gaga. I was fascinated with her image.

[HotLikeMexico 5,194]

3 hours ago, NATAH said:

me filing a police report after watching her drive that jeep knowing she was unlicensed at the time

I have this feeling shes actually a really bad driver.

[Ziggy 11,864]

31 minutes ago, gumzy3000 said:

As someone who is in my mid-twenties now, it is MIND BLOWING to think she was only 22 when all this happened to her. Her work ethic and business acumen is another level and I am shook she accomplished so much at such a young age. 

Tbh that’s the power of a good team around you. A 22 yr old theater kid with hella talent and vision can only take you so far but bring around the right people and you can SOAR. The power of the first Haus of Gaga is unmatched