A Personal Journey Through MAYHEM

March 7

Yesterday, when I listened to MAYHEM for the first time, a lot of memories of my journey with Gaga's music came up, so I tried to put them on paper together with what I think about the album. Hope you find it interesting!

********************************

When Just Dance was released in 2008, I was 25 years old. I remember exactly where I was when I first heard it—driving with my boyfriend to dinner at his parents’ house when it came on the radio. I didn’t know who Lady Gaga was, but as soon as I heard that song, I was shocked. I turned to my boyfriend and said, “Who the hell is she, and why is this so good?”

From that moment, I was hooked. I couldn’t wait for her album. Back then, in the pre-streaming era, an album release was a major event—completely different from what it is today. On the day the album came out, I went to our local CD store, but they didn’t have it. I searched everywhere and couldn’t find it, so I had no choice but to download it illegally (thank you, Kazaa!). A few days later, I was finally able to buy the CD.

That album played on repeat in our apartment, over and over again. I just knew this was something BIG. Pop music was having a moment—Rihanna’s Don’t Stop the Music, Britney’s Piece of Me, Leona’s Bleeding Love, Madonna’s 4 Minutes, Katy Perry’s I Kissed a Girl, and so many more major hits were dominating the charts. But Gaga? She was different. I could hear it. In the way she delivered every word, in the production, in the sheer craziness and uniqueness of it all—there was something special about her.

In 2009, when I heard she was coming to perform in Tel Aviv as the closing show for the Asia leg of her tour, I was ecstatic. The show was part of a small two-day summer music festival called Non-Stop Musix, sponsored by a major mobile phone company. A ticket for the entire festival cost just $90.

We stood on the grass—maybe 2,000 people, maybe even less. It’s hard to remember exactly, but it wasn’t many. The stage was small and low, maybe just one or two meters off the ground. I was in the front row.

I remember that show like it was yesterday. The transparent balloon dress. The Poker Face performance—a full 8 to 10-minute rendition on the piano. Literally on the piano—from above, from the side, from every possible angle. She danced, she sang, she gave it her all. And she was happy, ecstatic, joyful. Some people in the crowd sang along to every word, but not the majority. She was right in front of us—I could see the intensity in her eyes, her appreciation, her realization that this dream she had fought for was coming true.

That night, I went home happier than ever. It was the best concert I had ever seen.

So much has happened since that night. I became a fan—not just of her music but of her journey, her raw and endless talent. I saw her countless times after that, in every tour. I also missed a few (like when I flew to Paris for a show that was canceled the night before due to major strikes in France).

I love her non-music projects, but for me, it’s always about the music. I have thoughts on every record, every song, every lyric she has released. She’s so versatile—pop, jazz, rock, country—that it’s impossible to love everything she does. And that’s part of the beauty of her career. I don’t believe there’s a single fan out there who loves all of it. That’s what makes her special. Everything she does is good, sometimes amazing, but even if I don’t love a particular song or album, it’s okay. Gaga is a journey.

She took me on a 17-year musical journey that I never could have imagined. She taught me music. No other artist in the world could have made me sit down and listen to an entire jazz album (let alone two!). I still don’t love jazz, but I appreciate it in a way I never did before. And when Harlequin dropped, I realized—I do like some forms of jazz. That’s Gaga’s influence.

Country music? I dislike it even more than jazz. And yet, Dancin’ in Circles, Sinner’s Prayer, and Grigio Girls? I love them. I never, in a million years, thought I’d love country-inspired songs.

This is why I was so hyped for LG7. We all knew it was going to be a pop album, but “pop” is such a broad term in 2025 that it essentially means nothing. Gaga has the power to take pop and turn it into something entirely unexpected.

Yesterday, I sat down with my husband, hit play, and felt my heart race. Listening to a new Gaga album for the first time is a moment that happens only every few years. The anticipation, the unknown—it creates magic in the air.

The fact that the first two songs were the first two singles (DWAS excluded) only amplified the excitement. When Garden of Eden started, it took me just 25 seconds to say, “OH MY GOD. WOW.” When Perfect Celebrity played, I muttered “****ing hell.” By track five, Vanish Into You, I already knew—this was her best album yet.

Every album has its skips for me. I always listen to her albums in full at least 10–15 times, but eventually, I narrow down my favorites. There are always major favorites, regular favorites, okay songs, and a few skips.

I never thought it was possible, but this album has zero skips, not even an "okay" song—every track is exceptional.

Killah, Zombieboy, LoveDrug, How Bad Do U Want Me, Don’t Call Tonight, Shadow of a Man, The Beast, Blade of Grass, Die With a Smile—they’re all perfection. Yes, I have my absolute favorites (most of them, honestly), but even the ones I like slightly less are still a solid 9/10.

The lyrics. The production. HER VOICE. The way she delivers every song. The genres. OH MY GOD.

This is Gaga’s best work ever.

This album brought me back to Yazoo, Cyndi Lauper, Annie Lennox, Michael Jackson (so much MJ in this album), Prince. Some of it sounds so 80s, yet it’s modern, updated, and so Gaga.

This is exactly what she promised—and exactly what I wanted. Yes, it’s pop. But what kind of pop? So many kinds. Gaga’s pop. The pop she sees, she loves, she envisions. I can hear how happy she is, finally. I can hear all her inspirations, all the artists she admired as a kid, all the things she has learned in two decades of making music. And she took all of it, mixed it up, and created something that only she can create.

MAYHEM. Of the best kind.

Gaga, thank you for this album. I’m speechless at how good this is.

I can’t wait for the tour.

Edited March 7 by sagybp

March 7

1 hour ago, sagybp said:

Country music? I dislike it even more than jazz. And yet, Dancin’ in Circles, Sinner’s Prayer, and Grigio Girls? I love them. I never, in a million years, thought I’d love country-inspired songs.

I’m shook at this. These 3 + Diamond Heart for me and I hate country!!

I relate to everything you said. Only song I haven’t connected with (yet) is LoveDrug.
This album got me dancing like a maniac all night.

I feel like the luckiest Gaga fan ever because I enjoy the music she puts out SO MUCH. Many of my favorite tracks are heavily criticized by this fanbase so I’ve learned the best way to enjoy her art is to just ignore everyone else.

The way this woman has consistently written some of my most favorite music of any artist in history.. it is unreal. Mayhem surpassed my expectations yet again. VIY, Shadow, Zombieboy, PC, GOE, DCT, DWAS, Disease, Killah, it’s just bop after bop after bop. This album is overflowing with love and maturity.

She has shaped my life in ways she doesn’t know. When I was 19, I decided to take my career seriously and it was thanks to her. I was so scared but I kept her words in that one ARTPOP interview about discipline and talent close to my heart (parasocial I know), I’m now 31 and one of the best in my field. It was the best decision ever.

Long live Lady Gaga. You are my greatest of all time.

Edited March 7 by LeafBug