Lady Gaga went from nearly unknown to pop superstar in less than a year. She now may make serious arguments for being the world's biggest pop star today. This is your guide to the music that has built that reputation. These are the top 10 songs of Lady Gaga.
1. "Born This Way" (2011)
Courtesy Interscope
"Born This Way" in its anthemic, glitter ball glory, is the culmination thus far of Lady Gaga's musical vision. She pulls us all to the dancefloor to celebrate simply being ourselves with exhilaratingly catchy hooks and powerful statements we can shout loud.
2. "Bad Romance" (2009)
Courtesy Interscope
"Bad Romance" is truly epic in sound and structure. It appeared as the lead single for Lady Gaga's second collection of songs The Fame Monster. It cemented her status as a durable pop star who could grow in artistic quality of her music. "Bad Romance" peaked at #2 on the pop singles chart in the US.
3. "Poker Face" (2008)
Courtesy Interscope
Lady Gaga landed her second consecutive #1 pop hit with "Poker Face." There is a slightly dark feel to the song, but it has a hook that just won't let go. Suddenly, Lady Gaga was no one hit wonder with two major hits under her belt in less than six months.
4. "Paparazzi" (2009)
Courtesy Interscope
The music video for "Paparazzi" took the image of Lady Gaga and ran with it to an artistic extreme as directed by Jonas Akerlund. The song has a deceptively complex dance groove that is stylistically independent of Lady Gaga's RedOne productions. "Paparazzi" landed at #6 on the pop chart.
5. "Just Dance" featuring Colby O'Donis (2008)
Courtesy Interscope
"Just Dance" is the song that introduced us to Lady Gaga when no one had a clue of the success that was to come. It is a paean to the club world. The groove remains irresistible and there is an engaging simplicity many of Lady Gaga's other artful works lack.
6. "Telephone" featuring Beyonce (2010)
Courtesy Interscope
Although it is as ultra-catchy as any others of Lady Gaga's hits, the song "Telephone" is overshadowed by its epic video. Jonas Akerlund roughly continued the story line of "Paparazzi" here in an explosion of bright colors, humor, and tributes to previous pop culture works. "Telephone" peaked at #3 on the pop singles chart.
7. "Dance In the Dark" (2009)
Courtesy Interscope
"Dance In the Dark" was once intended to be an official single, but the label opted for "Alejandro" instead. The song is about a girl who prefers to have sex with lights off because she is embarrassed about her body. "Dance In the Dark" is nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording.
8. "Alejandro" (2010)
Courtesy Interscope
"Alejandro" sounds like a broad tribute to the Swedish pop music of ABBA and Ace of Base. It was the third and final official single release from Lady Gaga's album The Fame Monster. It peaked at #5 on the pop singles chart.
9. "LoveGame" (2009)
Courtesy Interscope
"LoveGame" is light pop-disco. Lady Gaga has claimed that she wrote the song in about four minutes. The term "disco stick" figuring prominently in the song is a euphemism for penis. "LoveGame" peaked at #5 on the pop singles chart.
10. "Monster" (2009)
Courtesy Interscope
Lady Gaga says that "Monster" describes her fear of sex and relationships. Critics have remained divided on the song with some seeing it among her best, while others find it disappointing particularly in the lyrics. "Monster" was not released as an official single but did make brief appearances on the charts.
