Ever wonder what it's like to perform without anyone knowing your name? That has been the reality for many celebrities in today's generation. Bruno Mars' is a perfect example of a performer who uses a stage name and has a real name many fans did not expect. Lady Gaga is no different. She grew up being known as one name but when she decided to take her music career to the next level she chose a stage name instead.
Lady Gaga has taken the music industry by storm surprising fans when she changed up her sound from heavy pop to a more soulful sound. She even dabbled as an actress starring as the notable role of Ally Maine in the 2018 film A Star Is Born. She also starred in the 2021 film House Of Gucci playing the role of Patrizia Reggiani and has recently expressed her real feelings about the film.
It is no question that Lady Gaga contributed much to the music industry and to the LGBTQ+ communities. She has proven how talented she is and that she can do it all; act, sing, perform, and be an activist. What many fans still do not know about Lady Gaga is how her stage name came to be and why she created it in the first place.
How 'Lady Gaga' Chose Her Stage Name
Lady Gaga’s full name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta or Stefani Germanotta for short. In the early years, before she became a household name, Lady Gaga did go by her real name. The secret behind how Lady Gaga got her stage name is it came from a nickname she had growing up. It started when she was dating music producer Robert Fusari. Lady Gaga reminded Robert of the Queen song 'Radio Ga Ga. This is when the nickname 'Ga Ga' came to be, it started with Robert but soon all her friends were calling her by the nickname.
Growing up, Lady Gaga was bullied by many haters and never fit in with those around her. She was left out in many school activities and sports teams. She felt she could never be her true authentic self and struggled to make friends. Lady Gaga tried to embrace that into her music, but she never felt comfortable enough doing so. This is when she decided she wanted to reinvent herself and go by a stage name instead of her real name. She felt 'Gaga' brought a lot of edge and craziness to the persona she wanted to portray. She felt adding 'Lady' ahead of 'Gaga' adding some solid connotations to the name. And just like that Lady Gaga was born.
The stage name 'Lady Gaga' resembles a lot about what she had to go through during her childhood years. Unfortunately, the bullying did not stop completely for Lady Gaga as she did face plenty of insults from another star that fans forget about. Whenever she steps on a stage a Lady Gaga, it brings her great confidence to be able to be her true self name. Yet, it is very well possible Lady Gaga lied about how her name came to be, and it would have costed her millions of dollars.
Robert Fusari Fought Lady Gaga About Her Stage Name
After Lady Gaga shared her story in 2010, Robert Fusari did not hesitate to go against her. According to Robert, Lady Gaga did not tell the full true story. In fact, he claims he had a bigger role towards her stage name being invented then she led fans on to believe. Robert says the stage name came to be over a simple autocorrect. Robert admitted Lady Gaga was right that he gave her the nickname 'Ga Ga' based on the Queen song. However, she lied about adding 'Lady' to create connotations to her stage name. Robert stated he was texting her 'Radio Gaga' but his phone accidentally autocorrected to Lady Gaga.
Robert had sued for $30 million for not only creating her name but for also discovering her talent. He also believed he was entitled to royalties from Lady Gaga’s success. The case never did get picked up, so we may never know who did tell the truth in the 'she said, he said' arguments. However, we can not deny that Lady Gaga has made quite the impact over the years and deserves the Pop icon and Gay Icon titles. As for her music royalties, Robert may have discovered Lady Gaga's talent and if he is the reason her stage name came to be, hopefully they can work out a deal. Only time will tell.