Gaga and Identity

After Thanksgiving, and before the food coma hit, my family was watching TV. Specifically, we were watching the Muppets Holiday Spectacular, which was hosted by Lady Gaga this year. I'm not really sure how the show qualified as a "Holiday Spectacular," since most of the music was from Gaga's newest album. It was pretty great marketing for her, though.

The song that stuck out to me the most is called "Gypsy," and is in the video above. Obviously, this is not the first time that Gaga has made a controversial decision, but this one really bothered me. In the song, Gaga sings, "I don't wanna be alone forever / But I love gypsy life." This casual claim on gypsy, or Roma, culture is inherently appropriative. As for as I know, Gaga does not have any Roma heritage, and to say that she loves "Gypsy life" is to ignore the continued oppression of the Roma people in Europe and across the world. Gaga is obviously not the first artist to romanticize the Roma, but the image that persists in pop culture of the Roma is only detrimental. As a wealthy, American woman, Gaga can sing this song, but never actually experience the discrimination that is part and parcel of everyday life for the Roma people. When Gaga, who is known for her liberal politics and acceptance of all people, can get away with this kind of cultural appropriation, that makes it more acceptable for other artists to use this stereotype