i saw lady gaga’s ridiculous concert last night! i was the lucky guest of WY whose boyfriend is on a business trip in asia and couldn’t make it. the seats were smack dab center – far enough back that we had to look at the jumbotrons for her facial reactions, but close enough that we could still see her (and her dancers’ – yum) amazing abs. she performed all of her greatest hits including born this way and a few unreleased tracks. as expected, she changed a gazillion times: red cape with heavy shoulder-padding, barely there black bikini, scaly green skirt that was pulled off to reveal a sparkling, green leotard, latex evening gown, firework-bra, blood, etc. she’s so theatrical that i found myself thinking, shit – i’d rather watch this than a musical any day!
while i was a fan before, i actually have a lot more respect for her as a businesswoman, artist, and person now. there was a tender moment during her show where she talked about how her middle and high school classmates would poke fun at her so she’d spend much of her childhood feeling really insecure. as she sat on the toilet one day crying, her mother came in for a pep talk telling her, “everyone is born a superstar. you just have to build your stage and they will come.” and look what she’s become. i admit i was ridiculously moved.
she went on to say that sometimes when she’s not feeling so brave, she remembers all the little monsters out there who turn to her for strength and courage and so she dons a brave face for them. beyond the whole role model blah blah blah thing, it takes a shitload of chutzpah to be so “out there” and so dedicated to the gaga brand, 24-7. i mean, there are some days when i feel that deep-inside i’m a redhead, but there is no way in hell i am going to dye my hair fire engine red and parade around while people stare at me and expect my personality to match my look. that’s A LOT of pressure. it got me thinking about what in the world my visual brand would even be. bowl haircut? mr. roger’s cardigans? pimply face? and you know how they say fake it ’til you make it? if i had fire engine red hair, would people really treat me all that differently? image is everything — how far would i be willing to go?
Will Dao 