VMA 2024: remember the performance in which Lady Gaga “bled” at the awards ceremony

Singing about the perils of fame, being dragged under a fallen chandelier and then bleeding to death in front of a room full of celebrities: Lady Gaga didn’t hesitate when making her debut at the MTV Video Music Awards .

The year was 2009 — many will remember it as the year rapper Kanye West stormed onto a then-19-year-old Taylor Swift’s stage and suggested that her Best Female Video award should have gone to Beyoncé. But, never one to be outdone by anyone, Lady Gaga then 23 years old, made his own pop culture history that night .

Your interpretation of “Paparazzi” — lamenting both unrequited love and the sinister effects of hounding tabloids — has gone down in Gaga history, not least because the lack of high-quality footage means fans have to resort to grainy screen-recorded versions circulated on social media. Take a look back at other iconic performances from VMA history.

Even with limited pixels, Gaga can be seen at the beginning of the performance in an all-white ensemble: an asymmetrical, bejeweled lace jumpsuit and matching cape, thigh-high boots, a feathered hat by Keko Hainswheeler and strings of glittering pearls. At the song’s climax, as she staggered away from her piano, an audible gasp rippled through the room as thick blood appeared to begin gushing from her abdomen.

“I’m your biggest fan, I’ll follow you until you love me,” Gaga wailed desperately, her once-pristine costume now stained scarlet. She ended the performance suspended above the stage, “dead,” as more blood dripped from her eyes.

Watch Lady Gaga’s 2009 VMA performance below

“It gives me chills every time I see it,” Olivia Rodrigo told MTV in 2021. “I think Lady Gaga is the best performer of our generation.” The “Drivers License” singer seems to have taken notice. At this year’s Grammys, she began “bleeding” from her clenched hands while performing her hit “vampire,” smearing fake blood across her arms and neck as the song progressed.

Rodrigo wasn’t the only young artist inspired by Gaga’s blood: TikTok sensation turned pop star Addison Rae recreated the blood-soaked look for Halloween in 2022, while singers Madison Beer and Reneé Rapp cited “Paparazzi” as one of their most iconic VMA moments. “That was the most impactful performance of my youth,” Beer told MTV in 2021. “It changed the culture forever,” Rapp agreed in an interview two years later. “Nothing has been the same.”

Not everyone was convinced

In an article published shortly after the VMAs, the Daily Mail accused Gaga of “getting column space primarily for her fashion choices rather than her provocative pop music,” describing Gaga as “flamboyant,” “eccentric,” and her outfits as “bizarre.”

“She accepted her award for best new artist in a face-obscuring red gown that would have raised even Isabella Blow’s eyebrows,” wrote Jon Caramanica, a critic for The New York Times, equally skeptically.

Page Six was also not happy with Gaga’s “shoving madness in our faces,” her “Catholic artwork,” or her “lazy” singing, which combined made the critic “reach for the fast-forward button.”

A comment on fame

But Gaga’s blood-stained jumpsuit was more than a gimmick — it was a statement of autonomy and a critique of the very institution she was performing for.

“When they wanted me to be sexy, or they wanted me to be pop, I would always add some absurd touch to still feel in control,” she told studio musician Nick Movshon in “Gaga: Five Foot Two,” a 2017 documentary about the artist that she also co-produced.

“If I’m going to be sexy at the VMAs and sing about the paparazzi, I’m going to do it while I’m bleeding to death and reminding you of what fame did to Marilyn Monroe, and what it did to Anna Nicole Smith, and what it did to — yes, you know who.” (The film’s director, Chris Moukarbel, later confirmed that the “who” was Amy Winehouse.)

“Paparazzi” was Gaga’s response to the insidious demand from the press and fans to own — and inevitably discard — female stars.

Chappell Roan — who has long been compared to Gaga for her own theatrical music and fashion — rose to meteoric stardom this summer after her songs “HOT TO GO!” and “Good Luck, Babe!” went viral. Since then, however, she has also criticized the celebrity’s invasive nature after fans began asking for photos with her on the street and finding out where members of her family worked.

“People started being creepy,” she said on TikTok star Drew Afaulo’s podcast, “The Comment Section.” “I hit the brakes on, honestly, anything that would make me more known.” She also took to her Instagram and TikTok accounts to reiterate her point, stating, “I have the right to say ‘no’ to creepy behavior.”

Whether Roan — who is making her VMAs debut this year after being nominated for Best New Artist and Best PUSH Performance of the Year — will opt to make her own statement remains to be seen.

In addition to taking home the trophy for Best New Artist in 2009, Gaga won two more awards, for Best Visual Effects and Best Art Direction. In the 15 years since, she has provided countless jaw-dropping moments, including the infamous meat dress she wore the following year. But that night at the VMAs, Gaga cemented herself as a pop force to be reckoned with, and ironically gave the press everything they’ve ever wanted: a moment to talk about for years to come.

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This content was originally published in VMA 2024: remember the performance in which Lady Gaga “bled” at the awards ceremony on the CNN Brasil website.

Source: CNN Brasil