Bursting onto the scene in 2008, Lady Gaga wowed fans with her eye-catching outfits and her catchy pop tunes, with smash hits such as Poker Face and Bad Romance topping charts. Very quickly, Gaga made her mark within the music industry, and she soon became an unstoppable force who became admired by many.
Some of these admirers include her dedicated fan base of Little Monsters, who aren't shy to show their love and admiration towards the Poker Face singer. This dedicated army has given her the opportunity to tour all around the world, performing at countless locations as fans lap up her outlandish yet spectacular performances.
Since her spectacular rise to fame, Gaga has embarked on several world tours and grossed herself millions in revenue. Each show is ever-changing, with a wide variety of beautiful outfits and artistic details. It's safe to say that Gaga certainly knows how to put on a show. However, despite racking in so much money, how did the star end up bankrupt?
What Is Lady Gaga's Net Worth?
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Lady Gaga has a net worth of $320 million.
Much of her net worth has amassed from her hugely successful career as a singer and performer, having grossed a total of $692,385,412 dollars through all her tours combined, as well as achieving impressive record sales.
Her first studio album The Fame, combined with her EP The Fame Monster, sold approximately 15,000,000 copies worldwide.
She also has several other streams of revenue, including brand deals, a Netflix Deal, YouTube and streaming revenue, as well as having released perfumes in the past.
However, Gaga has also managed to build quite a successful acting career alongside her music. In 2015, she appeared in American Horror Story, landing her first major full-time acting role.
Since landing her first role, she has then gone on to star in A Star Is Born and House Of Gucci. She has also previously starred in Machete Kills in 2013.
For her higher profile roles in House Of Gucci and A Star Is Born, it is likely that she got paid considerably higher amounts compared to her earlier roles.
However, despite earning millions of dollars, the star still managed to land herself in muddy waters by going bankrupt in 2010. How was it possible?
The Real Reason Lady Gaga Once Went Bankrupt
So, why exactly did Gaga go bankrupt? While it may seem like a particularly difficult task as a celebrity, Gaga made it possible, for reasons that are however rather admirable in ways.
In an interview with the Financial Times, Gaga revealed how her Monsterball Tour, which spanned the period of 2009-2011, left her bankrupt.
It turns out that Gaga wanted to give her fans such a good show, that she ended up investing far too much money on the tour and its spectacular outfits, which she spent almost £2 million on.
When she was losing money, she didn't even realize what was happening until it was too late.
Soon, she realized that she was $3 million knee-deep in debt, sending her team into a wild and panicked frenzy. Nobody had even realized what was happening until that moment.
In the interview, she opened up about the unexpected turn of events: “I put everything in the show, and I actually went bankrupt after the first extension of The Monster Ball. And it was funny because I didn’t know! And I remember I called everybody and said, ‘Why is everyone saying I have no money? This is ridiculous, I have five No.1 singles‘.”
Despite going bankrupt, she managed to earn the money back eventually by adding some extra shows.
However, it was ultimately the fact that many of these extra shows were hosted at stadiums, which helped the singer bring in more revenue in comparison to if she performed at an arena venue.
On average, stadiums tend to seat around 70,000 to 80,000 people, in comparison to an arena, which can seat around 40,000.
Gaga Took Bankruptcy In Stride
Going bankrupt would send most people into a wild frenzy, however, it seems that Gaga was able to take it in her stride and bounce back.
While she eventually earned the money back, she has revealed in later interviews that 'earning money isn't her priority' and that she cares more about the experience that fans are getting from coming to her show.
She continued to tell the Financial Times in the same interview: “I’m not obsessed with material things and don’t care about the money and don’t care about the attention of the public, but only the love of my fans, so for me it’s about how much more devoted, how much better an artist can I become".
While it seems that Gaga doesn't care for material things, she has treated her family to some thoughtful gifts, including a Rolls Royce for her father.
Judging from her reaction in past interviews, it seems as though Gaga can reflect on her bankruptcy positively and has taken it as a learning curve for her future finances. But many fans think it's quite sweet that the singer cares so much about putting on a good show for her fans.