Ever since Lady Gaga came out with her "Express Yourself"-sounding single, the comparisons to Madonna have run rampant. And at times, Gaga and her team have come off pretty defensive about the whole thing.
But in an interview with Stephen Fry for the Financial Times, Gaga said she is flattered and honored by any of the comparisons to Madonna and she freely admitted that Madonna influenced her latest album, Born This Way.
"[The Madonna comparison] does not annoy me at all. You know what does annoy me? When journalists try to make it look like it annoys me. I genuinely love her so much. I think she is so amazing, she could never be replicated.
She's wonderful and inspiring and liberating. And she certainly inspired my album, as did David Bowie, as did Prince, as did Michael Jackson, as did Grace Jones. So there's my mission statement. If anything, thank you from the bottom of my heart for comparing me to these legendary people."
And there you have it. Gaga has paid sufficient homage and she's cited all of her influences. Can the "Lady Gaga just steals from XYZ artist" complainers have a seat now?
The fact that Gaga is still paying homage to Grace Jones, despite Grace's numerous public attacks on her is also a classy move on Gaga's part. Kill 'em with kindness, as they say.
