# Gaga's new 'Telephone' video- "I told you she didn't have a dick." **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 12, 2010, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292 "2010-03-12T20:44:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/121 "2010-03-17T22:59:59Z")
> [@Manduck](#): > > Yes they do. True, but then my argument isn’t as strong. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/122 "2010-03-17T23:00:15Z")
Did anyone else see at 2.37 in the clip, that the blond Gaga is talking to herself (a cameo of Gaga with her natural brown hair and just a little make-up) ? ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/123 "2010-03-17T23:04:35Z")
> [@Maastricht](#): > > Did anyone else see at 2.37 in the clip, that the blond Gaga is talking to herself (a cameo of Gaga with her natural brown hair and just a little make-up) ? Lady Gaga Encyclopedia pg. 1172, paragraph 3, line 9: That’s her sister. ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/124 "2010-03-17T23:13:52Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > Lady Gaga Encyclopedia pg. 1172, paragraph 3, line 9: > > That’s her sister. Indeed it is. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/125 "2010-03-17T23:33:47Z")
I _thought_ she looked an awful lot like Gaga. Cool. ---
**Author:** ![Lakai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de0a6/32.png) [@Lakai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lakai)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/126 "2010-03-18T03:39:54Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > Is your point that her music is indeed low brow? Otherwise I don’t get it. There is absolutely nothing high brow about that, not even remotely. All pop music is considered low brow, but her music isn’t. She defies the low brow classification. That doesn’t mean that her music doesn’t have catchy sounds and lyrics. Catchy sounds and lyrics is what makes pop music pop music. Her music isn’t low brow despite being pop music. A lot of people consider all music with catchy sounds and lyrics to be low brow. That is the conception the Lady Gaga challenges with her art. In essence, she is saying that isn’t the case and is trying her best to prove it. Her songs often have hidden meanings in them despite looking like superficial pop songs on the surface. And if you view them within the context of Gaga herself and her music videos, then they are a commentary on fame that can rival some of the best high brow works of art. > [@](#): > > I get that this girl is doing something a little more special than Mandy Moore or Jessica Simpson, but some of you guys are going overboard on her. The _best_ she can hope for (and I think she has a good chance of acheiving it) is to carry Madonna’s torch. She’s not the anachronistic love-child of Jorge Luis Borges and Beethoven, come to open our eyes and save us all from meaningless, recycled culture, and her farts do not cure cancer. Bad Romance is layered with enough meaning that it can be viewed in three different ways - a bad romance, sex trafficking, or corporate exploitation of music artists. Can you name a Madonna song that is that subtle and complex? ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/127 "2010-03-18T04:47:19Z")
> [@Lakai](#): > > All pop music is considered low brow, but her music isn’t. She defies the low brow classification. That doesn’t mean that her music doesn’t have catchy sounds and lyrics. Catchy sounds and lyrics is what makes pop music pop music. Her music isn’t low brow despite being pop music. Yes it is. > [@Lakai](#): > > A lot of people consider all music with catchy sounds and lyrics to be low brow. That is the conception the Lady Gaga challenges with her art. In essence, she is saying that isn’t the case and is trying her best to prove it. Her songs often have hidden meanings in them despite looking like superficial pop songs on the surface. And if you view them within the context of Gaga herself and her music videos, then they are a commentary on fame that can rival some of the best high brow works of art. > > Bad Romance is layered with enough meaning that it can be viewed in three different ways - a bad romance, sex trafficking, or corporate exploitation of music artists. Can you name a Madonna song that is that subtle and complex? Lol. Really? I’m seriously trying to figure out if you’re joking or not. This is making me chuckle. Really, buddy, her fecal matter is not the cure for AIDS. Trust me on that. I never do this in online discussions but, IF you’re serious, I’ve got to put this in some kind of context: how old are you? I’m dying to know. You don’t have to give your exact age if you don’t want. Just say over/under 22. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/128 "2010-03-18T04:55:47Z")
I can just imagine following Lakai’s advice and doing these comparisons. I look left and there’s a half-naked girl with a lampshade on her head. I hear **Stop callin stop callin I don’t wanna talk anymore!** I look right and see Michelangelo’s _David_. I look left **Just dance! It’ll be ok! Doo-doo-doon-dootundootun!** I look right and hear one of Beethoven’s late string quartets. I look left **I love this record baby but I can’t see straight anymore!** I look right and see a copy of _Absalom, Absalom!_ I look left **Lala rah rah rah, ramalama ooh gaga!** ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/129 "2010-03-18T05:21:15Z")
If you’re going to use that as your standard than you can’t judge her music until 500, 200, and 70 years years have passed. ---
**Author:** ![Lakai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de0a6/32.png) [@Lakai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lakai)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/130 "2010-03-18T05:56:46Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > Yes it is. > > Lol. Really? I’m seriously trying to figure out if you’re joking or not. This is making me chuckle. Really, buddy, her fecal matter is not the cure for AIDS. Trust me on that. I never do this in online discussions but, IF you’re serious, I’ve got to put this in some kind of context: how old are you? I’m dying to know. You don’t have to give your exact age if you don’t want. Just say over/under 22. I’m serious, are you? Is “yes it is” and then asking for my age a serious counter argument? I’m 24 BTW. You posted Gaga’s lyrics side by side with some great works of art. If this discussion is going to go anywhere we’re going to need an objective standard for what is considered great art. Otherwise we’ll just be arguing our own subjective tastes. So name your standard for great art. Something that works like Michelangelo’s David or Beethoven’s late string quartets can satisfy. And then I’ll explain why Lady Gaga is a great artist. Not as great as Beethoven, but at least hovering way above all your current pop starlets. ---
**Author:** ![ekweizn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7c8e57/32.png) [@ekweizn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekweizn)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/131 "2010-03-18T06:30:33Z")
> [@statsman1982](#): > > Beyonce added nothing to the song, and come to think of it, the whole guest-appearance trope in contemporary music is starting to get annoying. There’s no reason to have a second voice on this song. I suspect Beyonce’s appearance in Lady Gaga’s “Telephone” has something to do with [Lady Gaga’s appearance in Beyonce’s “Video Phone”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGkvXp0vdng). ---
**Author:** ![Claude\_Remains](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/898d66/32.png) [@Claude\_Remains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Claude_Remains)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 8:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/132 "2010-03-18T08:29:12Z")
> [@zweisamkeit](#): > > Did you ignore the part of my post where I said she’s actually rather meta? She’s _making fun of pop music in her pop music_. Quite frankly, I’m completely shocked she’s been able to do what she’s done without getting a smackdown by “corporations” for the obvious mocking she does. Cause “Lady Gaga” is Jon Stewart in drag. ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 9:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/133 "2010-03-18T09:59:08Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > At this point, I’d give Gaga an award from every genre related to entertainment. She’s playing the game beyond brilliantly. No kidding. It’s like Oscar Wilde, Beau Brummel, Elton John and Madonna all had a baby and GaGa is the result. ---
**Author:** ![Rrose\_Selavy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bcef8e/32.png) [@Rrose\_Selavy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rrose_Selavy)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/134 "2010-03-18T12:38:35Z")
> [@Lakai](#): > > All pop music is considered low brow, but her music isn’t. She defies the low brow classification. That doesn’t mean that her music doesn’t have catchy sounds and lyrics. Catchy sounds and lyrics is what makes pop music pop music. Her music isn’t low brow despite being pop music. > > A lot of people consider all music with catchy sounds and lyrics to be low brow. That is the conception the Lady Gaga challenges with her art. In essence, she is saying that isn’t the case and is trying her best to prove it. Her songs often have hidden meanings in them despite looking like superficial pop songs on the surface. And if you view them within the context of Gaga herself and her music videos, then they are a commentary on fame that can rival some of the best high brow works of art. C’mon lets get some prespective here. I think Pokerface is a fine piece of pop and she can be very entertaining but what she say she does and what she actually does are two different things. You’re a fan I can understand you wanting to defend her but to say what she does is in any profound way , other than any other self referencing songs etc about “fame” or “celebrity” is just an exaggeration. Eg: Getting your video “banned” but not really banned is just the most obvious way to “enrage” certain reactionary parts of the media and others. It’s not new and its not that clever. Very few avante garde artists make the charts but Laurie Anderson (with a one off hit of O Superman) comes to mind. Early Roxy Music with Eno and the art school trained Brian Ferry made a pretty good go at deliberately making tuneful fine art inspired pop music. ## I’ve nothing against low brow but but to use the “she does profound art not low brow pop music” argument to make her out to be anything else than an entertaining performer who wrotes her own stuff. Good for her but I suspect the fine art world doesn’t rate her either in that respect. With a few exceptions what she does is mostly pretty conventional in form and content. Entertaining sometimes, but in reality , she challenges the status quo very little. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/135 "2010-03-18T13:54:17Z")
> [@Shirley\_Ujest](#): > > No kidding. > > It’s like Oscar Wilde, Beau Brummel, Elton John and Madonna all had a baby and GaGa is the result. What, no Andy Kaufman? ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2010, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/136 "2010-03-19T20:54:12Z")
Wow. The video was interesting. The music was about as welcome in my ears as a bad rash. I don’t care that she was accepted into Julliard at 11, I don’t care that she’s deliberately crafting dumbed down, irritating music as some sort of satirical point. I listened to it once, which is once more than I would wish. Then I heard it on the background music at the stationary store about an hour later. I made the mistake of concentrating hard enough to confirm it really was that song - once I had confirmation, I got out of there immediately! I cringe at the notion of getting THAT as an earworm. It’s okay, I’ve never really understood the fuss about Madonna or Mitsou, either. Nor do I get why no one seems to be talking about Adele, who has infinitely more interesting songs, in my opinion. ---
**Author:** ![Zephyurs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/dfb087/32.png) [@Zephyurs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zephyurs)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2010, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/137 "2010-03-20T13:24:19Z")
> [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](#): > > Nor do I get why no one seems to be talking about Adele, who has infinitely more interesting songs, in my opinion. I think that’s why people don’t get Gaga. Lady Gaga could easily do interesting, subtle songs that showcase her pure artistic talent, and you end up with people trumpeting this unknown Stefani Germanotta as the next Melody Gardot. She could even poppy songs that have a modicum of depth to them and end up being yet another female performer with a great voice and some skills. That’s not her goal, though. Her point is to build a brand and to give the American people exactly what they want. And lo and behold, that’s what she’s done. A charitable interpretation is to view her career itself as the performance piece, not any particular song–this is what all the meta comments are getting at. Of course, in some subcultures we simply call this “selling out.” (I’ve got nothing against Gaga or her music, ftr–she’s the best in pop right now, and when her music comes on in the club, it’s always a high point of the night. But it’s silly to compare her to Beethoven-meet-Eliot-meet-Shakespeare-meet-Roth. Or whatever array of artists you want to list.) ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2010, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/138 "2010-03-20T13:54:54Z")
> [@Rrose\_Selavy](#): > > Very few avante garde artists make the charts but Laurie Anderson (with a one off hit of O Superman) comes to mind. > Early Roxy Music with Eno and the art school trained Brian Ferry made a pretty good go at deliberately making tuneful fine art inspired pop music. _cough_ Talking Heads. _cough_ > [@](#): > > With a few exceptions what she does is mostly pretty conventional in form and content. Entertaining sometimes, but in reality , she challenges the status quo very little. I’m wit-cha on that. OTOH, she’s only put out, what, two albums? I’ll wait a bit longer to see whether she can put out anything but lightweight, disposable fluff. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2010, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/139 "2010-03-20T19:15:49Z")
> [@Zephyurs](#): > > I think that’s why people don’t get Gaga. > > Lady Gaga could easily do interesting, subtle songs that showcase her pure artistic talent, and you end up with people trumpeting this unknown Stefani Germanotta as the next Melody Gardot. She could even poppy songs that have a modicum of depth to them and end up being yet another female performer with a great voice and some skills. > > That’s not her goal, though. Her point is to build a brand and to give the American people exactly what they want. And lo and behold, that’s what she’s done. A charitable interpretation is to view her career itself as the performance piece, not any particular song–this is what all the meta comments are getting at. > > Of course, in some subcultures we simply call this “selling out.” > > (I’ve got nothing against Gaga or her music, ftr–she’s the best in pop right now, and when her music comes on in the club, it’s always a high point of the night. But it’s silly to compare her to Beethoven-meet-Eliot-meet-Shakespeare-meet-Roth. Or whatever array of artists you want to list.) I don’t really not get her as much as I just don’t like over produced music. I don’t like that airy, mechanical, low-quality MP3 sound with a bunch of fake reverb. It’s just annoying. I feel like I’m back in the 80s where everyone had to use synth instruments and listened to music on tapes with track noise. Furthermore, I think it all sounds the same. It’s kinda like cilantro with some people. It doesn’t matter what great ingredients you put in something, the cilantro will completely overwhelm it and make it unpalatable. And, like those cilantro people, I can’t comprehend how you can like it. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2010, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292/140 "2010-03-20T21:29:16Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > Lady Gaga Encyclopedia pg. 1172, paragraph 3, line 9: > That’s her sister. Cool, thanks! I already thought that if it was her twice in that same shot, it was really well done. I’ve been watching this clip ten times now and there are so many cool little details! For instance, the palmless gloves. Gaga wears black ones leaving the jail, and red ones in her stars 'n stripes dance. I wouln’t be surprised if those started a trend. The way she clacks her teeth in a sort of dancing grin in the scene in the diner’s kitchen. I have never ever seen anything like it in a clip. Funny, weird, unnerving. And the way they’ve given a nod to KillBill’s character of the Nurse, the Darryl Hannah character. Only here it is Gaga, and she’s a cook, and she’s got a yellow telephone of hair attached to her head, and yet she manages to be every bit as alien vapid sexy omninous as the Nurse. And the thing with the vinger ring around the eyes, referring to the nurses one eye! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gagas-new-telephone-video-i-told-you-she-didnt-have-a-dick/532292.md?page=8)