The Enigma, Lady Gaga

Like Madonna in the 80s, Stefani Germanotta aka Lady Gaga builds her stage image on being outlandish, flamboyant and controversial. She performs with elaborate props, dresses outrageously - her hats and sunglasses would fit right in at Royal Ascot - drops a little profanity here and there, and chides people for being comformists. Taken with a pinch of salt, all this can be pretty funny. She is after all an entertainer. But after watching her live in Singapore and do her stuff on stage, at her age - she is better than Madonna in one respect. Lady Gaga can sing, and she can perform live. Mother Monster Lady Gaga, was gifted with a voice. She dropped out of school at the age of 19, in the second semester of her sophomore year, to make a daring pitch to launch her musical career. Her father agreed to pay her rent for a year, on the condition that she re-enrolled if unsuccessful. She took the usual path in the underground music scene before she caught a series of breaks, which led her to be spotted by Akon, and the launch of her first album, the Fame, which became a commercial success all over the world - very early in her quest. A Lady Gaga Monsters Ball is top class. But watching Lady Gaga on stage is unique for one other aspect - she speaks a lot. And through this she cleverly connects with the audience and builds up her image as an underdog - an ordinary girl who dared to be different and got lucky, as someone who is exceptionally grateful for where she is now, as someone who loves her fans deeply, as someone who will tell others that they do not need to apologise for who they are, and that they have a right to choose to be whoever they want to be, completely free - simple messages that connect with the young. And at the end, she waves goodbye to the crowd with the unbeatable tag line, "Remember, you were born this way. God makes no mistakes." Lady Gaga's concert, the best for a long time.