With her stripped-down new album Joanne, Lady Gaga has come to the ultimate conclusion that weirder does not always equal better, putting the closest thing fans have seen to her real self on display. And there is no better place to peel back the artifice than in the passenger seat of James Corden’s car.
Yes, The Late Late Show’s Carpool Karaoke is where Adele showed off her rarely seen rap skills and Britney Spears famously swore off men. And now it is the place where Lady Gaga, wearing a sparkly gold pussy bow blouse, danced in her seat as she sang hits like “Bad Romance” and the new track “Perfect Illusion” with Corden.
But before that, she filled in for Corden during the opening monologue and sat in with the band for the entire show. “Donald Trump is launching a nightly news show on Facebook, which will stream Trump’s rallies,” she began. “It’ll be kinda like airing my concerts except, instead of Little Monsters, there’s actual monsters. According to the show’s creators, the programming is expected to really grab viewers by the pussy.”
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Displaying her newly acquired acting skills, she reenacted the phone call during which the National Football League offered her next year’s Super Bowl halftime show. They even did some meme-worthy vocal exercises about Benedict Cumberbatch.
Later, after a rousing edition of “Born This Way,” which she said took her 10 minutes to write, Gaga told Corden that she owns “at least 400 pieces” of Michael Jackson’s clothing, including his Thriller jacket and one of his gloves. For the record, they do not smell.
Unfortunately, Gaga did not break out any of Jackson’s concert costumes for this ride. It was left to Corden to rock a variety of elaborate Gaga-inspired costumes. “Not ideal for driving, but I do feel alive,” he told her.
