14 DAY TRIAL // In one of her interviews from last year, Lady Gaga revealed that she’d been raped by a music producer when she was 19 and still an undiscovered talent. The experience inspired the song “Swine” but it also made Gaga more determined to use her star power to highlight the issue of sexual abuse, especially on college campuses.
Her first release of the year 2015 is the song “Til It Happens to You,” which was included in the documentary “The Hunting Ground,” released in January.
The song was written with help from legend Diane Warren, after she saw footage from the film, and comes with a music video directed by Catherine Hardwicke. Hardwicke is mostly known for directing the first “Twilight” movie.
Speaking of “Twilight,” one of the victims is played by Nikki Reed, who played vegan vampire Rosalie in the film franchise.
“Til It Happens to You” aims to raise awareness on the issue of abuse and it does so in no subtle manner, i.e. by offering viewers artistic interpretation of several acts of this kind. Unsurprisingly, it starts off with a warning that it might include images that could offend, but hey, this is the world we’re actually living in. Welcome to reality.
“1 in 5 college women will be sexually assaulted this year unless something changes,” reads the final message displayed in the video, which also includes links to other websites that might prove useful.
We hope u feel our love&solidarity through the song & perhaps find some peace in knowing u r not alone through this film #TilItHappensToYou
— Lady Gaga (@ladygaga) September 18, 2015
.@diane_warren & I made "Til It Happens To You" for people all over the world who suffer from painful life experiences. #TheHuntingGround
— Lady Gaga (@ladygaga) September 18, 2015