14 DAY TRIAL // Lady Gaga was notably absent at the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards but, oddly enough, that doesn’t mean she wasn’t there. The singer’s creative director Laurieann Gibson says staying in the character of Jo Calderone for the entire night is proof that Gaga is a true artist.
As we also informed you a couple of days ago, Gaga chose to attend de VMAs as Jo Calderone, her alter ego who is a mechanic from Italy dabbling into modeling.
While some believed that Gaga “ripped off” Annie Lennox by going to the awards show as a man, Gibson tells MTV it’s proof of Gaga’s artistry.
The idea for Jo Calderone came from the singer, as also did that of staying in character for the duration of the awards show, her creative director reveals.
It stands as proof that Gaga is a performance artist for whom the performance never ends – not even when she’s not on the stage, singing and dancing for her fans.
“[It’s] the first time I’ve experienced this with an artist. I love it. That’s something that is specific to her, and the whole night was the performance, and it was important that Jo was a part of the whole night,” Gibson says for MTV.
“I hope that the Monsters and the music industry [connect to] the idea that as long as you execute to the highest level of your ability, that you make a statement, that you push your creative ability to the max, and it doesn’t mean one thing or another,” she adds.
Doing something that is so open to interpretation is also something that Gaga does well, and it speaks of her versatility as an artist.
“It is about who's the artist; it belongs to the artist, so in that one moment you have to take it and give all you can. And so I hope people take the fearlessness away [and] the creative notion that we constantly push boundaries, that we’re not followers,” Gibson says.
Gaga’s critics say that, with the Calderone routine, she’s not following: she’s stealing. Her fans, however, insist that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.