From “Paparazzi” and “Bad Romance” to “John Wayne” and “Rain on Me” — we talked to the Gaga collaborators who helped make some ofthe best videos ofthe 21st Century

1. HOME MUSIC MUSIC LISTS JULY 8, 2020 8:45AM ET
LadyGaga’s15GreatestMusicVideos
From “Paparazzi” and “Bad Romance” to “John Wayne” and “Rain on Me” — we talked to the Gaga collaborators
who helped make some of the best videos of the 21st Century
By & &
Filippo Monteforte/AFP/Getty Images
Lady Gaga will go down in history as one of pop’s great visual auteurs. With every new era, she has delivered
instantly iconic imagery, fashion statements and, of course, videos that have further amplified whatever
sound or style she’s experimenting with at the current moment. Inspired by the daring imagery of Michael
and Janet Jackson, Madonna and David Bowie, Gaga has taken advantage of every mode of changing
TIM CHAN CLAIRE SHAFFER BRITTANY SPANOS
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2. technology available to build complex, forward-thinking universes in her music videos. For 15 of her most
memorable, thrilling videos, here are the stories behind how they were made as told by her collaborators.
“Just Dance”
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Gaga stormed onto the scene in 2008 with this raucous house party-themed video, which quickly established
the singer as a provocateur for the post-pop tart age. Sporting her then-signature platinum bangs, flat-top
shades, and a lightning bolt sticker that paid tribute to one of her idols, David Bowie, Gaga’s visual
introduction to the world came in the form of four minutes of frenetic, high-energy fun.
With cameos from Akon and Colby O’Donis — both of whom are featured on the track ± the Melina
Matsoukas-helmed clip had a decidedly DIY vibe, from Gaga’s straight-out-of-the-mall styling to the
seemingly random array of background props (blow-up killer whale? Check. A pre-Peloton spin bike? Check.
Disco ball? Duh.) As a music video, “Just Dance” is a far cry from the sweeping cinematography and complex
narrative arcs of Gaga’s later releases, but therein lies its charm. For all the pre-packaged acts that came
before her, Gaga was refreshingly formula-free, a testament to an artist who had honed in on her voice — and
style — years before landing her first record deal, or yes, starring in her first video. More was more in Gaga’s
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3. world, and the singer celebrated the ideas of extravagance and drama in full, glittery glory.
Gaga may have sung about having “had a little bit too much,” but even from her very first video, she proved
that there was no such thing as excess.
“Poker Face”
Youtube
By the time “Poker Face” rolled around in the fall of 2008, Gaga had already established herself as a full-
fledged superstar, with a keen eye for aesthetic and entertainment bombast. It’s this level of commitment that
made this otherwise straightforward music video pop, from the staccato-style choreography that matched the
P-P-P stutter of the song’s chorus, to Gaga’s pool-side face-off with a Harlequin Great Dane (a breed that
would make appearances in subsequent videos for “Love Game,” “Paparazzi,” and “Bad Romance” as well).
Shot over the course of a day at a mansion in Malibu, the video for “Poker Face” also introduced Gaga the
fashionphile, from the latex catsuit and mirrored mask she wears while emerging from the pool, to that cut
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4. out blue one-piece that made shoulder pads and no pants another instant Gaga signature. The flurry of looks
were bewilderingly strange and sultry, and as crop tops and cut-off shorts went the way of TRL (which had
signed off the air just a month earlier), “Poker Face” positioned Gaga’s free-thinking fashion as the new litmus
test for artists moving forward.
“Eh Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)”
Youtube
Even though it was filmed on a Los Angeles studio lot, “Eh Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)” is pure Little Italy
fantasia, a cornucopia of pink stilettos, cigars, spaghetti, Great Danes, and so, so many spray tans. “I wanted
to show a different side of myself — perhaps a more domestic girly side,” the woman born Stefani Germanotta
said of returning to her Mediterranean roots in the clip. “And I wanted to create beautiful, stunning Fifties
futuristic fashion imagery that would burn holes in everyone’s brains.”
Directed by Joseph Kahn, “Eh Eh” was shot over the same weekend as “LoveGame,” and together they helped
establish two of Gaga’s primary visual characters: the fashion-forward and campy sex robot, and the softer,
sweeter party girl. The former may have eventually overshadowed the latter in the greater scheme of things,
but “Eh Eh” is pure confectionary art.
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