Gaga surprised her "little monsters" with the unexpected release of her second single from her upcoming album "Born This Way." Earlier this year, she released the lead single, "Born This Way," from which the album takes its name. It received a lot of criticism for its similarity to Madonna's work (i.e. "Express Yourself") and its use of colorful language and racial slurs. However, it still managed to steal the number one spot in several countries, including the United States. With Gaga's follow-up, "Judas," Gaga goes from lightly tousling a few feathers, which she has done since the start of her career, to whipping out a hyper-powered hair dryer and blowing them clean off.
First and foremost, "Judas" is unsettling. It uses the image of one Judas Iscariot. Those familiar with the story will recognize the betrayer of Jesus Christ, the promised Messiah. In the Bible, Judas betrays Jesus to his death with a simple kiss on the cheek, singling him out for those seeking his head. The opening phrase, "I'm in love with Judas," will have most religious people immediately hitting stop on their music players (if the title didn't stop them before) and cursing the existence of the infidel, Gaga.
Me…not so much.
I've listened to the song multiple times. I've also looked into Gaga's reasoning behind the song. The song was written, first and foremost, to portray a bad relationship, one that the speaker (Gaga) can not release herself from:
"Jesus is my virtue,
Judas is the demon I cling to
I cling to" ("Judas", Lady Gaga, 2011)
In this way, if taken at surface value, the theme of the song is not that much different from that of "Bad Romance." It's almost a sequel. In "Bad Romance", Gaga tells of a bad relationship that she has sold herself to, one that she wants but doesn't want at the same time. The song is about wholly selling herself to that relationship, either with a human or, on a greater level, fame and the music industry. "Judas" revolves around the same content. The speaker tells of a man that is loved, but has completely betrayed her, a man that she cannot seem to let go of. This man could be a man….
...But, personally I believe the metaphor goes deeper.
Man is a fallen lot. Every human being clings to some vice, some "sin", that they want gone but can't seem to let go of. The song seems to be addressing the fact that everyone has that one thing - that evil that they want gone. I'm disappointed that the song doesn't exactly address how to dispel it but instead seems to say cleave to and accept it. The song, however presents an excellent metaphor, and it also gives the world a brilliant glimpse into the singer's mindset.
"Born This Way" shows that Gaga wants peace, or at least freedom, for those who are considered "unequal" or "underdogs." (Personally, I preferred P!nk's offering, "Raise Your Glass," but both have their merits.) In "Judas", Gaga seems to point out that she has those "vices", those sins/evils that she cannot seem to let go of. The man, Judas, in the song represents this vice.
Lady Gaga was raised Catholic, so her use of religious symbols is unsurprising - she's done it before. It's also not surprising that she would mix up all the New Testament stories into some twisted mess. In the song, Lady Gaga offers to "wash his feet with her hair" which in the Jesus' time was an act of respect. This fits with the theme of the song, but had nothing to do with Judas. The main biblical reference is a prostitute that Jesus allows to wash his feet, much to the disciple's displeasure, who seem to still be grasping the fact that Jesus came for all, that he was offering hope, not judgment.
Also, Gaga decides that Judas has betrayed her three times. This is a blending of Judas and Peter. Judas betrays the Christ once, in the garden, by planting a kiss upon his cheek and sealing his death. Peter denies Christ three times, and after repentance, he is forgiven. Judas commits suicide, dying in his shame, lost without hope.
Gaga, if looked at closely, has shown that she first and foremost is an artist. She wants to do what she wants to do because she can. She's also slightly out of her mind, and it's gotten worse as her career has progressed. But most artists are. In today's world, she has the artistic freedom to do whatever she wants, which is not always a good thing, but has provided the world with some excellent commentaries. Her exploration of vices began with her second album/EP. Gaga's first release, "The Fame", was an album about partying. In it, that is what Gaga does. She parties. There's not much one can glean from it other than, Money, Sex and Fame are all that matters.
After Gaga's spring into super-stardom, however, she released an extension of "The Fame" entitled, "The Fame Monster". In this she explored the downside of fame, something that before, she had never really seemed to consider much. Gaga's newest album, "Born This Way," has yet to hit the masses, but once it does, I expect that it will create a title wave of thought. Her first two offerings, raunchy and provocative in content, have already stirred the masses - what comes next may create an all out war.
I enjoy Lady Gaga's music for the most part. It's excellent dance music. The thing that bugs me, however, is that the songs are fully loaded thought processes and, no one seems to be stopping and looking into the meaning of the words. It's that way with all modern music. People like Ke$ha, not so much, her message is clear, party; party hard and wake up sick. But the singers out there who are like Gaga are putting out true literature, and it's scary. There's not many people out there who stop and look into the artist's intent or thoughts about their works. What they see is the surface coating, or basic message (most often about bad relationships), and good dance beats.
The masses seem to have divided into two camps: Those who are fans of the party hard music, and those who ban Gaga with a vengeance and paint her as the Anti-Christ incarnate. I prefer the middle ground. I view Gaga as a woman who, at heart, is an extremely talented artist, but I believe that she has begun to lose herself in her persona. Stefani Germonatta, Gaga before she was Gaga, has begun to lose the war between Lady Gaga's two personas. Gaga's public image has cascaded down into a slightly crazed supporter of all things weird.
I hope that Gaga doesn't lose herself because she has a lot to offer the world. Her recent offerings were okay, but the lyrics are confusing, nearly impossible to follow at times, and simply strange. There comes a point when artists who are aiming at provocative, forget that there are lines. Gaga has gotten there. She has the freedom to do what she wants with whatever she can think of, which is dangerous. She has no one double checking her - she's in charge. I cannot wait to hear some of the other tracks from her upcoming album because it's bound to be interesting, but sometimes there are lines that shouldn't be crossed and others that shouldn't be drawn. I hope Gaga takes some time to recoup before her wild ride goes to far.
Peace.
