A Look Back: Lady Gaga’s Candid Reflections on the Challenges of Fame and Expressing Dislike for Being in the Spotlight
Trigger Warning: This article contains references to suicide
Let’s take a trip down memory lane to that time when Lady Gaga, the queen of pop and all things avant-garde, got real about the dark side of fame. In a super candid interview with CBS Sunday Morning’s Lee Cowan, Gaga spilled the tea on how being a star took a massive toll on her mental health.
She also revealed how she even ended up hating being a star at one point in her life. This was around the time she was promoting her album Chromatica, which, is a raw and emotional rollercoaster.
Gaga, who’s always been open about her struggles with depression and PTSD, didn’t hold back. She revealed that her biggest enemy was, well, herself. “My biggest enemy is ‘Lady Gaga‘, that’s what I was thinking. My biggest enemy is her,” she said, echoing the lyrics of her deeply personal single 911.
Imagine not being able to go to the grocery store or have a quiet dinner with your family without someone shoving a phone in your face. That’s the kind of pressure she was under.
“You can’t go to the grocery store now. If you go to dinner with your family somebody comes to the table, you can’t have dinner with your family without it being about you, it’s always about you. All the time it’s about you.”
The lyric “pop a 911” from her song is actually a reference to the medication she had to take to manage her panic attacks. The Joker 2 star went on to explain how she often experienced panic attack whenever she was at a grocery store and someone placed their phone on her face to take pictures.
She shared that such incidents left her afraid and with full-body pain. “It’s like I’m an object, I’m not a person,” the songstress mentioned. Gaga didn’t sugarcoat her feelings about fame.
She confessed that she hated being famous and being a star and “felt exhausted and used up.” It’s tough enough dealing with mental health issues, but having to do it in the public eye? That’s a whole other level.
The pop star also revealed that she used to self-harm as a way to show her pain because she felt like no one could see her suffering. At her lowest, Gaga even questioned why she should even stick around.
“I didn’t really understand why I should live other than to be there for my family,” she shared. “That was an actual real thought and feeling, why should I stick around?” She even lived in a house where people watched her for a couple of years to make sure she was safe.
But here’s the silver lining: music. Despite everything, music was her refuge. The singer finally revealed that she does not hate Lady Gaga anymore. “Now I look at this piano and I go, ‘Ugh, my god, my piano, my piano that I love so much. My piano, that lets me speak, my piano that lets me make poetry. My piano that’s mine.'”
Gaga’s fans have also shared how her music has helped them overcome their own mental struggles. So, her impact goes beyond just making music that’s good on the ears. It has helped many understand that it’s okay to not be okay.
Disclaimer: If you know someone who is having suicidal thoughts, anxiety, going through depression, or is suffering from a serious mental illness, reach out to a nearby doctor, mental health expert, or an NGO for immediate help. There are several helplines available for the same.
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