Words by Caroline Gault
In the weeks leading up to our interview, I listened to—and fell in love with—Gaga’s debut album, The Fame. I couldn’t get “Just Dance,” “Paparazzi,” “Poker Face,” or “Brown Eyes” out of my head. And although I’d read her biography online, and watched all the Gaga-Vision webisodes on youtube, nothing could prepare me for her outlandish stories and emanating self-confidence.
With a twelve-person Parlour entourage, I entered Edmonton's Rexall Place through the back doors, past the New Kids On The Block tour buses and the thirty-year-old fans who had glued themselves against the wire fencing with NKOTB love-posters. We were met by one of Gaga's agents, a man who was shocked that our Editor-in-Chief, Shelly Solarz, had brought so many people along to interview the opening act. She shrugged off their questioning eyes and said, "We're doing a photo shoot; we need all of these people!"
Indeed, our large team included Shelly, three designers, one makeup artist, two hair-stylists, two photographers, two interns, and me—the writer. It may have been excessive, but why skimp on an opportunity for Edmonton’s best to interact with one of the fastest rising pop stars of the next generation? As stressed as her managerial staff seemed to be about all the eager Parlour faces, Gaga handled the situation like a pro.
After she returned from the “little Gaga room,” (Stars: they’re just like us!), I emerged from my catatonic shell while Gaga mused about her European face (she’s Italian) and explained why she’d moved from New York to LA. Although the gorgeous Gaga had no makeup on yet, and her white-blonde weave was tousled, she was completely at ease with her physicality, simply informing us, “I’m really cute with make-up on.” While this kind of relaxed demeanor gave the impression she’d been famous for decades, it also hit me that she was just a 22 year-old woman like me. [Photo credit above: Annaliza Toledo of venzillavintage.com]When our Editor-in-Chief handed her the Fall 2008 issue of Parlour, Gaga was genuinely interested in our little indie magazine, and stoked for the afternoon ahead; when she heard we'd brought some local designer clothing for the photo shoot (like the cover’s graffiti corset from Sweet Carousel Corsetry), she couldn't wait to see what we’d packed into the tickle-trunk; and when our makeup artist briefly mentioned her son, Gaga chatted animatedly about her favourite baby names—like Jacque Pierre: "that's a sexy name," she said.
One of Gaga’s more shocking stories was about stripping down in Amsterdam’s Red Light District to interview a beautiful prostitute. Here’s an excerpt from our transcript:Lady Gaga: “When I went to the Red Light District, I tried first sewing my camera into my sleeve, but it didn’t really work. So then I went in with Space Cowboy and D. Dark, and noticed that this one prostitute was looking at me, and I didn’t know if she thought I was hot. So I go in and I’m like, ‘Listen, I don’t want to fuck you and I don’t want to do anything like have sex, but I want to talk to you and I want to film it.’
And I had to go to like ten different women’s windows before I didn’t get shut down. But she was the only one I found that didn’t have like, a pimp, you know?
So I told her that I would take off my clothes too, so that she wouldn’t be worried that I would use the footage. So in the video it’s like me and her in our bra and underwear talking about dick, like two chicks in a bar.So I’m like, ‘how many guys in a night?’
And she’s like, [in accent] ‘Sometimes four, sometimes five, you know.’
And I said, ‘Do you like it?’
And she’s like ‘Yeah. You don’t like this job? Maybe you try, you like?’
And I told her, ‘I’m so intimidated by you.’ Like, as someone that considers themselves a strong sexual woman, I don’t even understand how these women do it. They fuck every guy that walks by, and they fight over it—you can tell.’
yearning for knowledge—sometimes sourced from the most unusual places—implies that this evolving performer plans to stick around for a while, and she’ll get whatever bizarre material she needs to make it happen. She’s tactful about her alter-ego and knows what it takes to sculpt an image that will achieve longevity in an industry plagued with Warhol’s fifteen minutes of fame.
balanced her managers and the Parlour shoot with five minute, interruptive interviews on 91.7 The Bounce, Global and CityTV.
One particularly unique shot showed Gaga dressed in a colourful bodysuit, positioned upside-down on a leopard-print chair, gazing at the camera over square sunglasses. As her legs spread apart, she slid her hand in between her legs—and we all stopped breathing. Yes, Gaga’s openly bisexual, and she continually sings about sex (think “disco-stick!”) in her music, but this girl walks the walk. Her self-promotion as a sexual being is not just performed, it’s who she is.
As our afternoon came to a close, Gaga hugged each of us goodbye, took a few of our designer clothes along with her, and the entire Parlour crew left Rexall Place with beaming smiles and a sense of purpose. We planned to regroup at Empire Ballroom that night, as Gaga put Parlour on the list for her second show of the evening. I, personally, felt high as a kite, but had to force myself to run home and type away at my laptop to give my thoughts some permanence before the show. (And for all of you NKOTB fans out there, no, we didn’t get to see the boy-band from the 90’s. But two of our interns—one of them pregnant—munched away on the band’s catered lunch before they even got to it.)
Although Gaga's Parlour Magazine encounter is just one of many photo shoots and interviews she'll do throughout her career, the experience has been of immeasurable value to me. Taking the time to acknowledge and work with the little guys shows that Lady Gaga's got an understanding for what real art and creativity means, and that it’s not always attained through a big corporation.Gaga may not remember me, and she’ll go on to do great things at an international level, but by appearing in Parlour, she's given herself the opportunity to reach an indie-audience that would have otherwise avoided mainstream pop culture. Through her interactions with Parlour Magazine, the brilliant, avante-garde Lady Gaga has given our city a taste of The Fame.
VIEW THE LATEST PARLOUR ISSUE AND MY ARTICLE FEATURING LADY GAGA BELOW
*See the videos I've uploaded below for Lady Gaga's performance of "Just Dance" at Empire Ballroom. I apologize that the footage is so shakey; I just had to... dance.
