Hello, Welcome to Seven Songs a Week
Today, we have another Lady Gaga song. This song is the one that made me become a lifetime fan over because of the dread the song and video give off, Today I am reviewing Paparazzi. This song reached the Top ten on the Billboard Hot 100 and is a top five pop song in my opinion. I remember watching this video the day it came out and being so shocked by the amount of death in the video and the VMA performance that came before it. I remember watching the performance and being so shocked by the beginning with Gaga speaking "Amidst all of these flashing lights, I pray the fame won't take my life" and I instantly understood that she was speaking on fame and how it treats its stars. This idea would go on to become a sort of thesis statement for Gaga's career. I would also like to issue a content warning. The following article contains mention of blood, abuse, death and suicide.
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| One of the Single Covers for "Paparazzi" |
In an interview, Gaga described "Paparazzi" "[a struggle of] balance [in] success and love." Gaga begins the song by describing herself as the paparazzi or "crowd" and she's "c-comin' out" out a relationship. With the new relationship Gaga continues the paparazzi metaphors stating how she "got [her] flash on..." and how she "[needs] that picture of you..." with "you" being the new lover. The relationship should be "...magical..." and "...fantastical..." like a picture from the paparazzi should be. Gaga then mentions "leather and jeans" which would become an iconic look for her and she would call it "garage glamorous" but she's "not sure what it means. Gaga once again describes herself as a paparazzi with the way she follows her lover "...until [her lover] loves [her]..." and this isn't the best way to describe a relationship as the relationship between paparazzi and celebrities are very toxic. Gaga loves her "...boy..." and "...[promise she'll] be kind." and won't stop until he is her's, not unlike a paparazzi trying to get the shot. Gaga then compares herself as a groupie with "I'll be your girl backstage at your show...'cause you're my rock star." The relationship seems to go sour with the "...shadow..." being "...burnt..." which references a used piece of film and Gaga's "purple teardrops" which could either be joy or sadness. The lyric "Loving you is cherry pie" has become a sort of double entendre for Lady Gaga fans. The lyric means that loving her man is easy but she needs to be careful because the mess pie can make, Gaga fans believe that Lady Gaga has an allergy to cherries which makes the relationship toxic. The lyric would be excellent if not for the fact that there is no source claiming that Gaga is allergic to cherries, all I can find is a tweet from a Lady Gaga fan twitter. Gaga and her man dance during the bridge and even though the relationship is fake or "plastic," they "still have fun"
The video from "Paparazzi" begins Gaga's short films as videos and is one of my personal favorites. We begin outside viewing a beautiful mansion and it’s garden. Eventually, we are in the mansion viewing it’s flowers and architecture. Gaga is in a room speaking French with her lover, played by Alexander Skarsgård. It is a very passionate and gawdy scene as Gaga is surrounded by luxury items. The action moves to the balcony where we see someone taking pictures of Gaga and Skarsgård. Gaga becomes frightened and asks Skarsgård to let her go and he does, off of the balcony. We then get some glamour shots of Gaga as she becomes farther and farther in front of a spiral, referencing "Vertigo" by Alfred Hitchcock. before reaching the bottom in a bloody mess surrounded by paparazzi trying to get the shot. We then transition by newspaper as we see Gaga coming out of a limousine needing a wheelchair. The song begins as her servants help her. Cut between the entire video are shots of Gaga on a couch singing the song. Also between the scenes are flashing images of dead models in glamorous crime scenes , following the very glamorous and gawdy nature of the video. Gaga begins to walk using a brace in a golden metallic bodysuit while more servants and dead models appear. Suddenly, a group of people, known as, Snake of Eden, appear on the couch with Gaga and they begin to make out as we see more models. The next scene is Gaga dancing with dancers in a ballroom as she wears a ruffled bodysuit.
During the bridge we find Gaga in front of flashing lights with with dogs who were prominent in this era of her career as we see more models. The chorus comes back and so does Gaga and Skarsgård. A maid offers refreshments to the unhappy couple. Once the maid leaves, Gaga goes to pour her and Skarsgård a drink, poisoning him in the process. He notices and dies, Gaga makes a sarcastic shocked face at the camera before leaving her glasses on Skarsgård and a confession to the police. Time passes and the police arrives. The following scene shows Gaga being escorted by the police while the paparazzi continue to follow her, she wavea goodbye and the video ends with Gaga’s snooty mugshot. The video actually has a sequel in the form of the “Telephone” music video.
I've already explained how much I love this song and the video but I don't think enough could be said about either. I do find it a bit strange that Gaga glamorizes and appropriates disability however.
I give "Paparazzi" 5 tragic celebrity stories out of 5
I hope you enjoyed my review. How do you feel about "Paparazzi"? Leave a comment and a request for Saturday down below.
I listed my sources below in case you are interested in reading more.
Take Care,
Jonathan
Lady Gaga - 2009 VMA Performance from UVPHACTORY on Vimeo.
Fun fact: The “Loving you is cherry pie” line in Paparazzi is a metaphor for sickening love because Lady Gaga is allergic to cherries 🍒
— Gaga Daily (@gagadaily) April 3, 2015
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