Paparazzi (Lady Gaga song)

"Paparazzi"
Song

"Paparazzi" is a song written by Lady Gaga and Rob Fusari who is also the producer of the track for Lady Gaga's debut album, The Fame. The song will serve as the album's third single in the United Kingdom. It is Gaga's fifth single overall.

Writing and inspiration

In an interview with About.com, Gaga was told that there were different interpretations of the single. She responded by stating:

Well I'm so glad there are a few different interpretations, that was the idea. The song is about a few different things – it's about my struggles, do I want fame or do I want love? It's also about wooing the paparazzi to fall in love with me. It's about the media whoring, if you will, watching ersatzes make fools of themselves to their station. It's a love song for the cameras, but it's also a love song about fame or love – can you have both, or can you only have one?

Release

Initially, "LoveGame" had been planned to be released in the United Kingdom, but it was decided that "Paparazzi" would be released instead because of the potentially controversial lyrics and video of "LoveGame".

Critical reception

Ben Norman of About.com said "My favorite tracks on the album are 'Paparazzi,' 'Paper Gangsta,' and 'Brown Eyes.' I'd like to take a moment to talk about 'Paparazzi,' though, and how its message is muddled and confuses me." He also went on to define the term Paparazzi and its significance claiming it to be about stalking:

"The dictionary (www.dictionary.com) defines paparazzi as a freelance photographer, esp. one who takes candid pictures of celebrities for publication. Now focus on the lyrics to Gaga's "Paparazzi"; "I'm your biggest fan/I'll follow you until you love me/Papa-paparazzi/There's no other superstar/You know that I'll be your/Papa-paparazzi." The verses do talk some about pictures and whatnot, but this chorus sounds like a stalker case to me! Regardless of what was written, this song is amazing."

The Times felt that "[e]ven the trio of songs that provides the core of the album's celebrity theme ('Paparazzi', 'Beautiful Dirty Rich' and the title track) don't ruminate on the addictive inanity of fame, choosing instead to observe passively."

Chart performance

The song made its debut on the UK Singles Chart at number ninety-nine in February 2009 due to digital downloads after the release of The Fame. The following week, "Paparazzi" managed to climb to number ninety-five before dropping out of the chart.

Music video

The music video was filmed in London on April 13, 2009 and was directed by Jonas Akerlund, who has previously worked with Madonna, Christina Aguilera, Marcus Wallis & Kell Johnson, Pink and Rolling Stones.

Live performance

Gaga performed "Paparazzi" live on UK programme The Album Chart Show on February 14, 2009 as promotion for The Fame. On March 20, 2009, the song was also performed live at the AOL Sessions along with Gaga's other singles such as Just Dance, LoveGame, Beautiful, Dirty, Rich and an acoustic version of Poker Face.Gaga performed the song at Capital FM, where she used an acoustic version, similar to Poker Face.

Charts

Chart (2009)	Peak position
UK Singles Chart	95