Young Stefani Germanotta, a.k.a. Lady Gaga, has catapulted up the charts in the last year through a savvy combination of confection-like pop songs (such as the chart-topping “Just Dance”) and a unique aesthetic that mostly involves going pantsless in public and affixing giant bows made of hair atop her head. Gaga’s sugary dance tracks meld perfectly with her Karen O-style conceptual dress, creating an image that’s too self-aware for her to be simply another pop tart. Her debut, The Fame, has already spawned several hits and a legion of Gagamaniacs, proving the onetime Lower East Side DJ/performance artist must have some serious chops for all of her 23 years.
Updated 11/11/2009