How Lady Gaga overcame the most difficult years of her life to come back better than ever in a star is born

"It's an interesting time in my life, it's a transition, of course, it's been 10 years."

It's hard to believe Lady Gaga The first release of "Just Dance" in the summer of 2008 made a splash on the pop culture scene with her hair combed and made the world discover a "disco stick". Oh, how far she is.

Gaga, whose real name Stefani Germanotta, has accomplished more during these 10 years than many of them during their career. But tomorrow, the 32-year-old pop icon is embarking on a whole new chapter in her already impressive career, which may well be the most successful and ambitious yet.

Forget a star, a New Lady Gaga is about to be born.

"There has been a multitude of changes," Gaga said recently. vogue of his life in the last 10 years. "I would just say it's a nonstop swirl, and when I'm in an imaginative or creative fashion, it takes me like a sled with a thousand horses and keeps me away and I do not stop to work." Another pause. "You … make friends, you lose friends, you build closer bonds with people you've known all your life, but there's a lot of emotional pain and you can not really understand what all this is. means before ten years "past."

Gaga's 10-year trip to Hollywood could end with her stage presence, accepting an Oscar for her work in A star is born, the third remake of the 1937 film of the same name. But her potential march towards this podium was fraught with obstacles and setbacks … and she almost did not have the role of Ally, the young woman who almost abandoned her dream of becoming a singer until she meets Jackson Maine. , an alcoholic country singer played by an Oscar nominee Bradley Cooper.

The way to go A star is born was a long time – both for his director / director and his main wife. Cooper, who debuted as a director with ASIB, worked hard for years to prove that he was ready to go from the role of actor to the realization of an important film. He co-wrote it. He learned to play piano and guitar. He dropped his voice an octave working with a vocal coach for over a year. He had to convince Warner Bros. this was the film that he had to do as a director for the first time.

(Ironically enough, in Clint EastwoodThe previous attempt to make the film a few years ago, Beyonce, for whom Lady Gaga took over when she had to cancel her 2017 Coachella set because of her pregnancy, was attached to the limelight.)

After seeing Gaga play "La Vie en Rose" at a fundraising event in 2016, Cooper thought he had found his ally. "My mind was stunned," he says The New York Times.

The studio, however, was not convinced and needed auditions even though she had won a Golden Globe for her turn. American horror story and is one of the biggest stars in the world. But would it really be Lady Gaga's story if she did not have to fight for it?

"It was the studio – it was not Bradley or the producers, but a former Warner Bros. executive who was not convinced that Gaga should play the role," Bill Gerber, one of the producers of the film, said The LA Times. "So we convinced them, Bradley believed in her, and Warner was generous enough to plan a good test on the screen, it was not unanimous until we did the test, and when they did Have seen, it took them a few seconds to say yes. "

Although it may be surprising to hear that studio executives must be convinced that their star is Gaga, she understood this well, telling the paper that some people "do not really know what I look like". (In addition, she stops proving that people are wrong: "I'm exactly that girl like," Bring her in. I'll show you. "")

And yes, the legions of fans (and probably skeptics) who will be coming to the theater this weekend will not see the Gaga to which they have become accustomed to seeing extravagant outfits, delirious wigs and a face of battle makeup; they will see a stripped ally.

Cooper and Gaga developed a true partnership and a "beautiful friendship" in the making of the film, Gaga helping his director become a musician (both often composed songs together during filming) and Cooper helping him become vulnerable.

"In many ways, I have the impression that Bradley unveiled me," she told E! New. "It was his idea to undress, to find my natural hair and that it was the character of Ally." In a now infamous story, he himself used a wipe to remove makeup during their first screen test together, wishing that it be "completely open". He had to be sure.

"What I knew very well from the beginning, and that I cherish until now, is how much we both had in play because it was a first for both of us," he said. said Cooper to E! New. "We knew that to get there, we really had to count one on the other, because it's scary to get to that point."

It had been almost a decade since Gaga had done so, that she dared not look at her on the red carpet while wearing the iconic meat dress or making political statements during the Super Bowl show.

It's easy to see Gaga's outfits and theatricality as a kind of armor, a protective shield against harsh criticism that people like to pitch on social media.

"I'm not very sure of myself, I like to preach, but I do not always practice what I preach," she said. L.A. Times.

Cooper quickly praised his star when he spoke to E! News tells us: "She is a very hard working and dedicated person, you know, she is very busy and she gave up everything for this movie."

After spending the end of summer and the beginning of autumn to promote A star is born, Gaga will soon be busy on the rewards circuit for the film, which is preparing to be a contender in almost all major categories. Oh, and she is preparing a big comeback on December 28th, when she will start her residency in Las Vegas.

His first major film. His first residence in Las Vegas. It is hard to believe that Gaga was living one of the biggest rifts of her life, struggling against the shame of the body and forced to cancel concerts a little over a year ago.

In July 2016, E! News reported that Gaga and Taylor Kinney had canceled their engagement after five years of dating after they met on the set of Gaga's "Yoü and I" video. The Chicago Fire actor had proposed Valentine's Day 2015.

"I really can not imagine being with anyone other than the one I am with right now," said the Golden Globe winner. Howard Stern in an interview with SiriusXM in December 2014. "He's the good guy.I have that feeling, I just know it."

While their breakup took place in the media, Gaga was promoting her new album. Joanne, her most emotional and vulnerable release to date, with her called "a very painful time".

"It's hard enough when love does not work the way you want, and you have to walk down the street and ask someone to say, 'Are you okay?', Admitted Gaga in an interview. for sitdown with Beats radio 1 host Zane Lowe.

And Gaga went deeper on his level of tearing on the split in his documentary Netflix Gaga: five feet two, documenting her time working on Joanne and getting ready for her show at the Super Bowl.

"It's a sad day when I participate in the Super Bowl and I'm very happy to do it, but I can not help but realize that when I sold 10 million records, I lost Matt.I am selling 30 million, I'm losing Luc.You know? I understand the movement, I'm losing Taylor.It's like a turnaround ,? said an emotional Gaga. "It's the third time my heart is broken like that, I'm alone … every night, and all these people will leave, okay, they'll leave, and then I'll be alone." everyone to touch me all day and talk to me all day in total silence. "

In February 2017, Gaga presented one of the best shows of the mid-Super Bowl of recent history, offering a 13-minute electric performance including the pop star jumping from the stadium roof, a statement subtle policy, equipment changes and so much more. There was no need for special guests; she was more than enough.

"I've been planning this since I was 4, so I know exactly what I'm going to do," the singer said in an advertisement. behind the scenes video for the show. "For me, it's about giving to fans and bringing people together who do not meet normally, the fact is that it's such a big world scene in terms of the number of people who see it and it's been done so many times."

But after one of the most important milestones of his career, Gaga was forced to react to the castrerie a few days after his performance at the Super Bowl.

"I've heard that my body was a topic of conversation, so I wanted to say: I'm proud of my body and you should be too of yours, no matter who you are or what you do. I could give you a million reasons for you do not need to satisfy anybody or anything to succeed, "she wrote on Instagram. "Be you and be implacable, that's the kind of champion."

Gaga told E! News in 2014 that she "battled a eating disorder for more than 10 years".

After his Instagram post, Gaga continued to Ryan Seacrestradio program KIIS-FM subscribed to explain why she felt the need to address critics: "I could not ignore the fact that I saw my fans talking about it and that it upset them. other people may be as normal girls and boys who have either their own body image problem or do not think it's a good thing to say [were hurt]. I just thought that I would communicate some of my positive attitude about it, so that they feel like they had someone who was strong on their side. "

But Gaga was fighting a much bigger and more painful battle in private during this time, she finally revealed. Gaga: five feet two, which was released on Netflix in September 2017 and recently won the Best Documentary Award at the 2018 MTV Movie & TV Awards.

The star had to face the pain of a hip fracture during the Born This Way tour in 2013, with Gaga revealing that she was suffering from fibromyalgia, a disease that affects the nervous system and causes symptoms. pains throughout the body. And the fans had an unfiltered look at his intense fight against the debilitating disease in the documentary.

"I'm just thinking of other people who may have something like that who have a hard time understanding what it is and who do not have the money for that to happen. One helps them, "she said in the film. "Like, I do not know what I would do if I did not have everyone here to help me.What would I do? … Do I? I look pathetic, I'm so embarrassed. "

In the same month Five feet two was released, Gaga was hospitalized because of "severe pain" and had to postpone the European leg of Joanne World Tour. Gaga was "devastated", but determined to get better so he could continue the tour early 2018.

But in February, Gaga had to cancel the last 10 dates of the European tour because she was suffering from "sharp pains having a significant impact on her ability to perform live."

In her vogue On the cover, Gaga spoke about her fight against fibromyalgia and people who question her illness.

"I'm so irritated by people who do not believe that fibromyalgia is real," she told the magazine. "For me, and for many others, it's really a cyclone of anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress, trauma and panic disorder, which lock up the nervous system and cause nerve pain."

She continued, "People need to be more compassionate, chronic pain is not a joke, and every day you wake up without knowing what you are going to feel."

But today? Well, Gaga feels pretty good. And has a million reasons for it.

"It improves every day," she said. vogue of her fibromyalgia, "because I now have fantastic doctors who take care of me and prepare me for the show."

Gaga is started out talent agent Christian Carino in February 2017, and the couple seems happier than ever. The star who has always dreamed of being an actress but never thought it would happen deserves rave reviews for her turn A star is born and is a projected Oscar nominee. She is about to start a two-year residency in Las Vegas.

"I've always hated the stigma around Las Vegas, it's that's where you go when you're at the last stage of your career," Gaga said. "Being a Las Vegas girl is an absolute dream for me – it's really what I've always wanted to do."

And it seems that Gaga knows a little more about the realization of her dreams.

A star is born in theaters on Friday 5 October.