Lady Gaga is a world-famous singer. She has six solo studio albums, two collaborative albums, and one soundtrack. Today I take a look at her best songs and rank them.
To make it more challenging (and fascinating at once), I chose two songs from each of the nine abovementioned albums. I will express my opinion of each rank, and also, there might be a short description of the meaning of the lyrics. After the song title, there will be an album title.
Lady Gaga is a versatile artist and these songs prove that. The only thing lacking here is the ability to see her live which is extraordinary. That said, here are her top 20 songs.
Ranking Lady Gag's best 20 songs
20. Plastic Doll (Chromatica)
It was hard to decide which two songs were the best since Chromatica is an excellent piece of art. I could not decide, and since I needed to fulfill the last spot, with the third best song on Chromatica. I would have it higher, but to be fair to my own (two songs per album) rule, "Plastic Doll" has to be seated in last place.
19. You're the Top (Love for Sale)
This may not be such a surprise to many Lady Gaga fans. With all respect to Tony Bennett, I am not a jazz music fan. The Chromatica was the most exciting, with six great songs for two (well, three) places. The Love for Sale was the opposite, and I had a big problem choosing two. The whole album is mostly in one rhythm, and to me, it sounds like one single with different lyrics.
18. Night and Day (Love for Sale)
"Night and Day" was the only song from Love for Sale I could stand, and I liked it quite a bit. I love the faster into, and when Tony sings: ”Like the drip, drip, drip,” I thought: Oh yes, Tony's got a drip.
17. They All Laughed (Cheek to Cheek)
We are (unsurprisingly) going to another collaborative album with Tony Bennett. This album is much better than Love for Sale, even with the terrible album cover, where both look like mannequins. "They All Laughed" is a nice little retrospective of history so that a younger audience can learn something new.
16. Goody Goody (Cheek to Cheek)
"Goody Goody" reminded me of the rap song Gucci Gucci by Lil Durk on the first listen. That may be why I consider it the best music on these two collab albums. Gaga's talking between Tony's signing was also excellent.
Lady Gaga's best songs - 15 through 11
15. Jewels N' Drugs (ARTPOP)
Another proof of her being great is a song called "Jewels N' Drugs". Rap music, with rappers featuring? No problem for Lady G, still delivering a piece of top-shelf music.
14. Aura (ARTPOP)
It seems I am grouping songs from the same album, but it is not on purpose. ARTPOP was experimental, with many elements of different music styles, mainly electro, and pop. The fanbase likes it as a whole project, but if you want to take out two singles and compare them with others, the ELECTROPOP is not working for me better than the others. But I like the title song the most, and with all its ups and downs, you may relate to it in different moods. I have "Aura" on my gym playlist, so you may consider adding it too.
13. Bloody Mary (Born This Way)
The song that flooded the internet at the turn of the year. Everybody saw Jenna Ortega dancing to "Bloody Mary". SPOILER ALERT! On Wednesday, she is dancing to a completely different song. I was shocked and disappointed. On the other hand, season two is coming up, so Netflix, make it happen!
12. Judas (Born This Way)
Surprise, surprise, another grouping. But let's be honest with ourselves, Born this way was left behind expectations. On the bright side, "Judas" is top quality and got a fantastic video.
11. I Like It Rough (The Fame)
Much of Lady Gaga's music has a deeper meaning than one might think. "I Like It Rough" is an excellent self-reflection song, where she is trying to find out why she likes (most probably) the sex rough. She opened her Chamber of Secrets, and this was one of the songs where she sang openly about her sex life. Later, she digs even more deeply, which we may see later on (or not).
Lady Gaga's best songs - 10 through 6
10. The Cure (non-album song)
The one-and-only non-album song on this list is "The Cure". This song can evolve different feelings. The main motive is unconditional love, but the background can make you sad. The song is reportedly a tribute to a friend of Gaga's who was battling cancer.
9. Fun Tonight (Chromatica)
"Fun Tonight" is about her internal conflicts, trouble-causing fame, and negative mindset. The chorus in this song is so likable, and the emotion from this self-reflecting song is so strong.
8. Alice (Chromatica)
The best song from Chromatica is "Alice", containing many excellent references to Lewis Carrolls's 1865 novel Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (although a film adaptation by Walt Disney mainly popularized the novel). The song's main idea is finding your identity and overcoming life obstacles.
7. Joanne (Joanne)
A lovely song dedicated to Gaga's aunt. There are a few different ways to understand the meaning behind the lyrics, and the beauty of music is that everybody can take what they need. So, in this case, I prefer not to write about what is hidden in the song. Just enjoy and find your meaning.
6. Monster ( The Fame Monster)
I mentioned we might get back to her sexual life. So here we are. "Monster" is based on Gaga's long-lasting troubles with being comfortable about the top of sex.
Lady Gaga's best songs - 5 through 1
5. Grigio Girls (Joanne)
"Grigio Girls" is an encouraging song (mainly). It is about women's cohesion and Girl Power. "Grigio Girls" refers to Gaga's group of friends joining her for the song's last chorus.
4. I'll Never Love Again (A Star Is Born)
Some might argue the soundtrack music should not be here, but I disagree. The Star Is Born soundtrack is an excellent piece of music, again proving a wide range of Gaga's musical talent. If you have not seen the film, stop right here and fix that error. The movie is excellent, the soundtrack is terrific, and I'll never love again is the second-best song from the compilation.
3. Shallow (A Star Is Born)
A massive hit at the time of the movie's release. I don't know someone who would not like this song, so the quality speaks for itself.
2. Bad Romance (The Fame Monster)
I suspect many of you, the readers, expected this song to earn the number one position. The third most streamed Gaga's song (after "Shallow" and "Always Remember Us This Way") landed in the second position. This song was released when she established herself, being marked as the new pop queen or the new Madonna. There is nothing wrong with the song, the video is also great, and the "Oh, oh, oh..." hook at the start of the song is pure geniality. Simply 10 out of 10.
1. Paparazzi
Gaga herself offered a few explanations for these lyrics, and again, in the end, it's on you what you want the lyrics to mean. Well, she has a few songs with deeper meanings, but for me, this will always be the peak of her music.