The Fame is the debut studio album by the American singer Lady Gaga. It was released on August 19, 2008, by Interscope Records. After joining KonLive Distribution and Cherrytree Records in 2008, Gaga began working on the album with different producers, primarily RedOne, Martin Kierszenbaum, and Rob Fusari. Musically, The Fame is an electropop, synth-pop, and dance-pop record that displays influences from 1980s music. Lyrically, it explores Gaga's interest in fame while also dealing with subjects such as love, sex, money, drugs, and sexual identity. The album was primarily promoted through The Fame Ball Tour and multiple television appearances, and was reissued as a deluxe edition with The Fame Monster on November 18, 2009.
On release, The Fame received generally favorable reviews from critics, who commended its lyrical content, Gaga's musicianship, and vocal ability. The first two singles from the album, "Just Dance" and "Poker Face", gained international success, topping the charts in several countries worldwide including the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. The subsequent singles, "LoveGame" and "Paparazzi", were commercial successes as well, charting within the top-ten of over ten countries worldwide. "Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)" had a limited single release in Australia, New Zealand, and select European countries, where it became a modest success, while "Beautiful, Dirty, Rich" served as a promotional single. The title track and "Starstruck" (featuring Space Cowboy and Flo Rida) also charted.
The Fame charted at number one in Austria, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Poland, Scotland, South Africa, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. In the United States, The Fame topped the Dance/Electronic Albums chart for 193 nonconsecutive weeks, the most time on top in history. It has been certified diamond in France and multi-platinum in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, the Philippines, Poland, Singapore, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The Fame became the fifth best-selling album of 2009, and has sold over 4.9 million copies in the United States as of January 2019. Worldwide, the album has sold over 15million copies, making it one of the best-selling albums of the 21st century.
The Fame has won multiple awards since its release. The album was nominated for a total of five Grammy Awards at the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year. It won Best Electronic/Dance Album and Best Dance Recording for its single "Poker Face", and also won Best International Album at the 2010 Brit Awards. The album helped kick-start the late-2000s and early-2010s era of recession pop, alongside artists such as Kesha and Katy Perry. In 2013 and 2022, Rolling Stone named The Fame as one of the "100 Greatest Debut Albums of All-Time". As of 2023, it is the 12th biggest album of all time on the US Billboard 200.
Background and development
While establishing herself as an artist and working her way up through the New York underground club scene, Lady Gaga released her debut studio album, The Fame. Speaking about the title and concept of the album, Gaga explained: "The Fame is about how anyone can feel famous. ... Pop culture is art. It doesn't make you cool to hate pop culture, so I embraced it and you hear it all over The Fame. But, it's a sharable fame. I want to invite you all to the party. I want people to feel a part of this lifestyle." Gaga stated in an interview with MTV UK that she had been working on the album for two and a half years and completed half of it during the first week of January 2008. In addition to writing the lyrics, Gaga worked on the melodies and synth work of the album, with record producer RedOne. According to Gaga, the first track "Just Dance" is a joyous, heart-themed song, which appeals to people going through tough times in their life. "LoveGame", the second track, was inspired by Gaga's sexual attraction to a stranger in a nightclub to whom she said, "I wanna ride on your disco stick". It was written in four minutes based on the disco stick hook. "Paparazzi" has been interpreted with different meanings. However, Gaga explained in an interview with About.com that the song was inspired by her struggles and hunger for fame and love. Essentially a love song, "Paparazzi" dealt with enticing the media and asked whether someone can have both fame and love.
"Poker Face" was inspired by Gaga's boyfriends who enjoyed gambling, and also dealt with her personal experience of bisexuality; her fantasies about women while having sex with men, thus representing her 'poker face'." "Boys Boys Boys" was inspired by the similarly titled Mötley Crüe song "Girls, Girls, Girls". Gaga explained that she wanted a female version of the song that rockers would like too. "Beautiful, Dirty, Rich" summed up her time of self-discovery, living on the Lower East Side and dabbling in drugs and the party scene. "Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)" was about breaking up with a boyfriend and finding someone new. "Brown Eyes" was inspired by the British rock band Queen and, according to Gaga, is the most vulnerable song on the album.
Gaga further clarified the ideas behind The Fame, and her inspirations and visions for the album. She believed that the most important thing missing from pop music at the time was the combination of the visual imagery of the artist with the music. Gaga incorporated theatrics in her live performances of the songs from the album. Hence she hoped that people would take notice of the performance art, which she was trying to bring back with the album and its music; according to her, the music put the lifestyle in front of it.
Composition
Musically, the album combines electropop, synth-pop, and dance-pop, while drawing influences from 1980s music. Songs like "Poker Face", "Just Dance" and "LoveGame" are uptempo dance songs, with "Poker Face" carrying a dark sound with clear vocals on the chorus and a pop hook. "Just Dance" is synth-based, while "LoveGame" has a more dance-oriented beat, and "Money Honey" has a moderate techno groove. All of them combine clipped marching beats, sawing electronics, and restrained R&B-infused beats. "Paparazzi" carries a sultry beat while "Summerboy" draws influence from the music of Blondie. Both "Starstruck" and "Paper Gangsta" feature auto-tuned vocals by Gaga. The former is a bass-heavy R&B track, while the latter is hip-hop and showcases Gaga blending half-rap and half-sung verses. The title track, "The Fame", showcases guitar riffs reminiscent of David Bowie's style. "Disco Heaven" is "disco pastiche", "Again Again" is "bluesy piano-rock", while "Retro, Dance, Freak" is a Prince-inspired track. "Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)" is a slower tempo, bubblegum-pop track with a 1980s synth-pop feel to it. "Brown Eyes" is a piano ballad that was compared to music by Bowie and Queen.
Lyrically, many of the songs on The Fame talk about being famous and achieving popularity. The title track has been described as a "tongue-in-cheek ode to hedonism", and "a mission statement and declaration of self for early Gaga". "LoveGame" portrays a message about love, fame and sexuality. "Paparazzi" portrays a stalker who is following somebody being their biggest fan. The lyrics also portray the desire to capture the attention of the camera as well as achieving fame. Gaga explained that,
"Just Dance" talks about being intoxicated at a party, with lyrics like "What's going on on the floor? / I love this record, baby but I can't see straight anymore". "Poker Face" is about sexual innuendo and teasing. Gaga explained to the Daily Star that the lyrics carry a bit of an undertone of confusion about love and sex. According to the BBC, the "Mum-mum-mum-mah" hook used in the song is sampled from Boney M.'s 1977 hit "Ma Baker". "I Like it Rough" was described as "kink bop". The album's "Brown Eyes" is a breakup song where, instead of expressing tenderness, Gaga delivers the lyrics with a raw, almost defiant tone, even calling it "just a silly song about you". In "Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)", Gaga gently parts ways with a former lover.
Promotion Singles
"Just Dance" was released as the album's lead single worldwide on June 17, 2008, through digital distribution. The song was critically acclaimed with reviewers praising its club-anthem quality and the synth-pop associated with it. It achieved commercial success by topping charts in the United States, Australia, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, as well as reaching the top 10 in 16 other countries. The song received a Grammy nomination in the Best Dance Recording category but lost to electronic duo Daft Punk for their song "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger".
"Poker Face" was released as the second single from the album. It was also well received by critics, most of whom praised the robotic hook and the chorus. The single achieved greater success than "Just Dance" by topping the charts in nearly every country where it was released. "Poker Face" became Gaga's second consecutive number one on the Hot 100. On December 2, 2009, "Poker Face" received three Grammy nominations in the categories of Song of the Year, Record of the Year, and won for Best Dance Recording.
"Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)" was the album's third single in Australia, New Zealand, Sweden and Denmark and fourth in France. The song received mixed reviews. Some critics compared it to nineties Europop while others criticized it for bringing the party-like nature of the album to a halt. It failed to match the success of the previous singles in Australia and New Zealand by reaching 15 and nine, respectively. It peaked at two in Sweden and at seven in France.
"LoveGame" was released as the third single in the United States, Canada and some European nations. It was the fourth single in Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. The song was critically appreciated for its catchy tune and the "I wanna take a ride on your disco stick" hook. The song has reached the top 10 in countries such as the United States, Australia and Canada and the top 20 in others.
"Paparazzi" was announced as the third single in the United Kingdom and Ireland with a release date of July 6, 2009, the fourth single in the United States, and the fifth single overall. The song reached the top five in Australia, Canada, Ireland and the United Kingdom. It also reached the top 10 in the United States. The song received critical acclaim for its playful, club-friendly style and is deemed the most memorable and telling song from the album. The associated music video for the song was shot as a mini-movie with Gaga starring as a doomed starlet who is almost killed by her boyfriend, but in the end takes her revenge and reclaims her fame and popularity.
"Beautiful, Dirty, Rich" was initially announced as Gaga's second single. However, "Poker Face" was chosen instead, and the song was released as a promotional single only. The song charted on the UK Singles Chart from digital downloads and spent three weeks on the charts, peaking at number 83. To celebrate the launch of the show Dirty Sexy Money, ABC created a music video of Gaga's song "Beautiful, Dirty, Rich", directed by Melina Matsoukas. There were two videos released for the song – the first version, which was composed of clips from the show and the second version, being the official music video. In 2010, during a live performance of "Speechless", Gaga revealed that her label discouraged her from writing an immediate follow-up to The Fame in 2009, and instead wanted her to prolong the album's success by releasing "Boys Boys Boys" as a single. She refused and stated her belief in her new material, which eventually became The Fame Monster (2009). Live performances and media appearances