Premiere of Lady Gaga's new video today

[BigB08822]

Again, Madonna took Express Yourself from the Staples Sisters song Respect Yourself. So her trailblazing was thanks to those that came before her as is true for everyone.

[olympic]

Sorry for the misleading initial post. I thought a video was coming out.

I've listened to it twice

I guess I need my eyes opened. How is this 'Express Yourself'? It sounds more like rock n roll - guitar riffs, etc.

Express Yourself was more electronic, softer, less edgy than this

And I was a teen during the Madonna years and annoyed my parents with my allegiance to her,

so I guess I know nuthin' 'bout music because I liked it.

ETA : http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/...71B0BK20110212

Reuters is giving it the thumbs up

[tarotx]

http://new.music.yahoo.com/blogs/amp...ogue-yourself/

[Rhianna]

Alejandro always reminded me distinctly of La Isla Bonita.

[olympic]

.........and b) Britney's new song was waaaaay better.

'Hold it against me' ? She can't even sing anymore.

[phoenixflamezzz]

meh. big old meh. maybe it was hyped too much (by everyone else and also by her own pr camp)

the sentiment behind the song is nice, but someone posted this quote on another board, and it kind of makes sense.

Below are the lyrics to Lady Gaga's "Born This Way," the anthem she has written for all the LGBT teens out there, her beloved "little monsters." I hate it already. A gay anthem, whether it's "I Will Survive" or "The Man That Got Away" or "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going," BECOMES a gay anthem because we find ourselves empathizing with the singer's passion or pain or exuberance. It's the realization that their pain is our pain too, that their joy is our joy etc. It's that our commonality has brought us together. It's ALMOST NEVER because it was written FOR GAY MEN TO HELP GAY MEN DEAL WITH BEING GAY MEN. That's just cynical and obvious. It's like bit like Susan Sontag's explanation of "pure camp" being something that strives for greatness but fails spectacularly, while "contrived camp" is something that intentionally sets out to be bad and cannot, therefore, be as satisfying. Gaga here isn't allowing us the choice of deciding whether or not this song will be a gay anthem (like "Bad Romance"), she's TELLING US that it is, and that makes it somehow less pure and less satisfying.

and yeah, poor choice in using "chola" and orient".

[BigB08822]

Alejandro always reminded me distinctly of La Isla Bonita.

Alejandro had an eery similarity to Ace of Base's "Don't Turn Around" I am sure there are videos on youtube comparing them.

Here is one showing the comparison of BTW to Express Yourself:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5eKAVVe1rXQ

Here is one comparing Alejandro and DTA:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g--BGM9ty6c

The second is less obvious and more about the beat, but the first is just hard to not notice but I don't think it is a matter of theft like some want to play it up to be.

[tarotx]

I guess people would say it was thief because so much of Gaga is similar to Madonna.

My take is that this is what happens when you have an idea of what you want to create and you allow the idea to rule instead of allowing it to be natural.

[orbitz]

Again, Madonna took Express Yourself from the Staples Sisters song Respect Yourself. So her trailblazing was thanks to those that came before her as is true for everyone.

But Madonna's song was/is good. Gaga's song is instantly forgettable.

[BigB08822]

But Madonna's song was/is good. Gaga's song is instantly forgettable.

That's your opinion.

[michiruwater]

'Hold it against me' ? She can't even sing anymore.

She never could. The song's still way better though

[olympic]

Since Madonna is being brought up here frequently, I have to mention that she hit the charts when I was a teen. I truly liked her, but we all should not forget the critics at the time [80s] were dismissing her as:

1. a Cyndi Lauper rip-off [at least for her first album and accompanying image]
2. Vocally, she was 'Minnie Mouse on Helium'
3. It was only about the money and image w/ her.
4. Her songs/lyrics were considered vapid according to the 'serious' stars of the 60s and 70s. [Mick Jagger said there was 'a central dumbness to her music.']
5. Her image was blatantly copied from Marilyn Monroe ['True Blue' phase], and Marlene Dietrich ['Blonde Ambition']

She seems much more respected now, but a lot of the stuff leveled at Lady Gaga sounds eerily familiar to someone who's old enough to firsthand remember both

[olympic]

She never could. The song's still way better though

You're certainly entitled to your opinion, just like me, but when I see/hear Britney Spears, it's the same thing - sexy blonde singing about sexy things, whispering into the mike, nothing edgy, a little slutty but nothing really eye-catching, not even a good voice

[mmscfdcsu]

You're certainly entitled to your opinion, just like me, but when I see/hear Britney Spears, it's the same thing - sexy blonde singing about sexy things, whispering into the mike, nothing edgy, a little slutty but nothing really eye-catching, not even a good voice

They are all kids musicians. If you were a kid when you first heard Madonna, you thought she was great. As an adult you may hang on to some fondness for the music. Lady Gaga is just the current one for the latest batch of 10-17 year old kids.

[michiruwater]

And I was a kid when Britney came out

Really, I just love the dubstep-inspired breakdown, which is definitely at least somewhat pushing the boundaries now, which Gaga is not doing in anything but her fashion sense. And Brit is the star of my workout playlist.

I don't entirely agree that only kids like their music though. There are some great Madonna tracks, certainly some great Gaga tracks (Bad Romance is just awesome, no way around that) and some great Britney tracks as well.

And I must admit, Britney's story makes me happy. There was a long time there where I really thought she was done for, that the obvious undiagnosed mental illness would ruin her, and to see her back on track making music and looking healthy and having survived all the manipulation and other issues from her childhood intact still surprises and elates me a little.

[orbitz]

Since Madonna is being brought up here frequently, I have to mention that she hit the charts when I was a teen. I truly liked her, but we all should not forget the critics at the time [80s] were dismissing her as:

1. a Cyndi Lauper rip-off [at least for her first album and accompanying image]
2. Vocally, she was 'Minnie Mouse on Helium'
3. It was only about the money and image w/ her.
4. Her songs/lyrics were considered vapid according to the 'serious' stars of the 60s and 70s. [Mick Jagger said there was 'a central dumbness to her music.']
5. Her image was blatantly copied from Marilyn Monroe ['True Blue' phase], and Marlene Dietrich ['Blonde Ambition']

She seems much more respected now, but a lot of the stuff leveled at Lady Gaga sounds eerily familiar to someone who's old enough to firsthand remember both

Madonna's music began to earn critical respect when her "Like A Prayer" album came out. It was her third album, and it was a marked departure from the high-voiced singer of her first two albums. It was considered her best work up to that point.

Madonna had a sucession of stronger and stronger hit singles. I think Gaga had one good, extremely catchy song in Bad Romance, but every song after that was mainly dependent on her bloated videos to keep the public interest. Telephone and Aljenrao were mediocre songs at best. Of course only time will tell what kind of staying power she has, but she has yet to demonstrate that her music has grown or change.

[Zokko!]

Who is Lady Gaga btw.? Just another attention whore which elevator muzak we've had the "pleasure" to "enjoy" 1000 times before, anyway!

[IceJunkie]

I like Gaga and I like the song, but its not my favorite. I think the message is awesome, and I'm glad there are so many songs out right now (Pink's Perfect, Katy Perry's Firework) that are encouraging and motivating - and not just about partying, hooking up or relationships.

It does sound like Express Yourself, but Gaga has made a career out of emulating Madonna. It's not a huge deal. What I've always liked about Gaga is that she seems to truly love her fans, and you don't see that a lot. I went to Round Up, a hole in the wall gay club in Dallas with a few friends after her concert last summer and she made an appearance. She got her start performing in small clubs around the country, and she repaid the club by showing up. She could have gone to some swanky upscale club, but she didn't. She opted to hang out in a small, no-VIP-area bar for a couple hours instead.

As for Britney, I've always liked her. Yeah, never a great singer - she had a really good voice as a kid - but she had amazing stage presence and catchy tunes. You don't see that anymore in her shows for whatever reason. I don't know if she isn't motivated to dance well anymore, injuries, over-medicated...who knows. She also seemed like a genuinely sweet person before she got sick. There was a point in 2007 where I seriously thought she was going to die, so it's been great that she's been able to get some margin of stability back in her life.

[Sally1214]

Say it sounds like "Express Yourself" all you want. But, I think Lady Gaga has another HIT on her hands.

[orbitz]

Say it sounds like "Express Yourself" all you want. But, I think Lady Gaga has another HIT on her hands.

It's currently no. 1 on itunes. I'm sure it'll be a hit, because she's the IT girl at the moment.