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The Gaga Ick-Factor


bpmMonkey
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So! I was just listening to Mayhem for the first time (today, its 6:48am) on my way to the gym. By the point I reached GoE I thought "huh, this woman is really out there, sonically and creatively" and for a second it took me back to a time where this was widely known and accepted that „Gaga isn't for the masses, shes weird, shes out there, shes for the gays" and then I wondered even more: How much of this thinking is still left in people today? I know I was low-key bullied back in school for liking Gaga, she is still one of very few pop-girlies who's vocal about the queer and especially trans-community and so on, so I can only imagine the majority in a rightwing county as the US just doesn't fvck with her - not like other pop stars who still portray a sense of Americana where you can apply a certain level of delusion, so you're able to stream their music and vote for a fascist. 

What do you think? Is there still an „ick-factor" to Gaga or did she win people over once she was critically acclaimed, have times just changed and did people justgot used to her? Cause boy oh boy, there still isn't anyone out there who even does remotely what Gaga and her team are doing. ANYWHO! happy thursday <3

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OliviaRodrigoStan

It has never been the case in my country. And yes, she is automatically associated with gay men specifically, here in Argentina, but she isn't frowned upon because of it. She's seen as talented and creative, there was a mini GaGa crazy back in the days too, I remember when "The Edge Of Glory" video premiered, it made it to the news here, because it wasn't as impressive as the audience was expecting :brat:. Not the local news reporting like GGD users, having meltdowns and everything :icant:

It has calmed down now, but I'm sure they'll be a revival if she tours here next year. 

HEART OF EVER-FROST
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Monstermilo

i feel like her GP appeal is at an all time high rn - people are so in awe of her talent rn

the charts arent reflecting her success during TF/TFM, but as a society, i feel like most people respect her talent more so than they ever have before. 

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Controversial opinion maybe but I don't really think Gaga's music is that out there lol

Her stock as an artist is certainly at a high right now so I don't think there's any ick factor beyond hangovers from 2010

stream bionic
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32 minutes ago, bionic said:

Controversial opinion maybe but I don't really think Gaga's music is that out there lol

Her stock as an artist is certainly at a high right now so I don't think there's any ick factor beyond hangovers from 2010

true-ish. I think her music got much more palatable and she's no Arca or FKA twigs, but still, visually and creatively she's still leading by a far (a scheiß ton of money definitely helps with that as well). But still, going psytrance(more acid btw, flop-me) for Abracadabra, 90s/2000s "euro-techno" for the Elton John song and even before that, the gabber-emo core anthem million reasons. But I definitely agree with you on the hang over icks from the 10s - also that being the reason why i made the thread, so i'm happy to have a discussion about this hihi 

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13 minutes ago, bionic said:

Controversial opinion maybe but I don't really think Gaga's music is that out there lol

I agree, her music was never as outlandish as the rest of her. It's actually pretty standard pop music with a Gaga edge :laughga:  I don't need her to be though, I'm not into .... Idk who's music is really out there? Bjork? 

Like a poem said by a neydy in red
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Honestly I think most people who don't follow pop culture and new releases think that. If I mention I like Lady Gaga, there will always be the "ah yes I remember when she wore the meat dress haha" comment.

The only GGD member who can read / Credits to Celloo Deng for the profile pic!
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Ladle Ghoulash
28 minutes ago, bionic said:

Controversial opinion maybe but I don't really think Gaga's music is that out there lol

Her stock as an artist is certainly at a high right now so I don't think there's any ick factor beyond hangovers from 2010

Idk it depends on how you qualify “out there.” Like it’s not “out there” how Björk is (experimental structure, oblique, abstract, conceptually), but it is out there in the sense of being often conceptually bizarre, ham-fisted and theatrical, and fusing a lot of bizarre and unexpected sounds within the extended pop canon. 

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3 minutes ago, Ladle Ghoulash said:

Idk it depends on how you qualify “out there.” Like it’s not “out there” how Björk is (experimental structure, oblique, abstract, conceptually), but it is out there in the sense of being often conceptually bizarre, ham-fisted and theatrical, and fusing a lot of bizarre and unexpected sounds within the extended pop canon. 

Ja, that has also been more my sense. Obviously saying "really out there" was an exaggeration on my side, but I still think she's doing a lot of things other artist don't and we just got used to it, because it matches with everything else we got custom to over the past 15-20ish years. 

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I think she's like an easy to digest kind of Bjork for the gays, but still challenging your ears at times.

Her albums has more non radio friendly songs than radio friendly songs for example, but yet they are not that experimental as we want them to be.

She's an over the top pop, but she still didn't release her Fossora.

GP likes her when she's "normal" but the moment she'll start going weird again they will turn their back.

 

So sploosh your juice all over me you Riverboy
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18 minutes ago, River said:

I think she's like an easy to digest kind of Bjork for the gays, but still challenging your ears at times.

Her albums has more non radio friendly songs than radio friendly songs for example, but yet they are not that experimental as we want them to be.

She's an over the top pop, but she still didn't release her Fossora.

GP likes her when she's "normal" but the moment she'll start going weird again they will turn their back.

 

Not you bringing this level of effectiveness. Wanna solve climate change next, please 👉🏻👈🏻

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I think her ick-factor was more related to her image and eccentric sense of style than her music (the meat dress for example). Like someone said above, her music is standard (but pretty good) pop music with her signature style. Her style is still slightly eccentric but I feel like she toned it down a lot after the uncalled for backlash ARTPOP got for being "over the top". Tbh I love eccentric and experimental Gaga. I got a bit disconnected from her during Joanne/A Star is Born but I totally understand that it was a necessary move to get back on the mainstream and win the general public so she could come back with something like Mayhem and go back to her actual style.

Here in Mexico she is associated with the gays a lot but so is Madonna, Kylie, Katy, and pretty much every female pop artist but not in a bad way. 
 

I do believe and agree that Gaga is the last pop star that had that huge media and social impact for being herself and standing up for minorities. Madonna did it first (love her or hate her) but it took decades for someone to move people like that again (hence the absurd comparisons, I love them both and they could not be more different, "Born This Way" / "Express Yourself" aside, and being Italian of course lol). After Gaga's generation of pop girls I feel like pop's gotten a little boring but maybe it's just me or just the fact that people aren't shocked by anything anymore.

Anyway I'm glad she's still giving us the music we love cause no one else is doing it like her. 

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I think just not "being subjected to her weird outfits"* (their words, not mine, bear with me lmao) was enough for the general public to "see" enough of Gaga herself to respect her as a singer and a performer.

*back during that stretch between (I want to say) the Alejandro and You and I music videos, I remember people around me were mainly trashing her outfits (the meat dress, fire bra, etc) and just not really saying anything else negative about her. They were just ragging on the clothes.

I remember changing some of these peoples' minds with some of her performances and they'd always say "see, she doesn't need to hide behind those weird outfits" so I think her fashion was a sort of bottleneck or barrier to entry for the normies, so to speak.

But I used to live in a straight people bubble, so :lana:

Spoiler

I took my melatonin gummies before I wrote this so it might not make a lot of sense... :gaycat:

 

could we meet sometime this summer // shine on me your different colors // james lover lover lover lover lover lover
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The 22-y-o upstart breaking all the windows has been replaced by the long-established 39-y-o superstar performer, and 'weird, out there, for the gays' has been replaced by 'great singer, very theatrical, for the gays'.

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People are saying that it was more about her image than about her music, but I sang Scheiße at a karaoke recently and people were like

Wide Eyes What GIF

The only GGD member who can read / Credits to Celloo Deng for the profile pic!
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