In the wild, unpredictable land of the 2010s, a pop sensation named Lady Gaga burst onto the scene wearing dresses made of meat and sunglasses bigger than her entire career. Naturally, the world said, “This is normal.” But then, as it happens in the age of the internet, rumors popped up that she was hiding something other than a poker face. Yes, the internet decided that Lady Gaga, with all her glitter and glamour, must actually be…a man. Cue dramatic gasp.
Now, if you’re wondering how on Earth this theory was born, let me enlighten you: some genius with too much Photoshop skill and too little common sense decided to circulate photos that, shall we say, enhanced certain parts of her anatomy. And boom, the rumor mill went into overdrive. “Lady Gaga’s packing more than talent!” whispered the internet trolls, and the rest of us just sat there like, “Wait, what?”
Fast forward to a recent chat on What’s Next? The Future With Bill Gates (because, of course, when you need to talk about deeply existential questions like ‘Am I secretly a man?’ you go to Bill Gates). Gaga decided to spill the tea on the whole ordeal.
“Look, I went everywhere—world tours, press junkets, grocery store runs—and every time, someone would slide into the conversation like, ‘So…there’s this highly convincing (and by convincing, we mean ridiculous) image on the internet that says you’re a dude. Care to comment?’” Gaga recounted, probably while sipping on some overpriced latte, as we all do in interviews with billionaires.
So why didn’t she clap back at the time, you ask? Well, Lady Gaga is a genius and, apparently, a philosopher in disguise. She didn’t feel like indulging the rumor because, as she explained, “I didn’t feel like a victim of that lie. I mean, let’s be real, if being accused of being a man is the worst thing happening to you, you’re doing alright.”
But here’s the kicker: Gaga didn’t just shrug it off for herself—she was thinking of the little monsters. No, not the ones in her music videos. The real ones. “What about a kid,” she said, “who’s being accused of the same thing and would see me, a public figure, feeling ashamed about it? What kind of message would that send?” (Answer: Not a great one.)
So instead of freaking out, Gaga took a different approach. “I’ve been used to people saying wild things about me since I was 20. Honestly, at this point, it’s just Tuesday. I’m a performer; drama is part of the job description. And frankly? I think it’s kind of hilarious.”
Lady Gaga has reached a level of zen where internet gossip is just background noise, and honestly, we should all strive for that kind of peace. After all, if Lady Gaga can laugh off one of the most absurd rumors in pop culture history, surely we can all survive the next embarrassing thing the internet throws at us.
