Gaga或许最终被证明只是个昙花一现的流星，不过许多资深的业内人士却认为她有真材实料，而且她在这个充满挑战的行业所表现出来的野心和能力或许能让她成为一颗长盛不衰的明星。本名斯蒂芬尼•吉玛洛塔的Gaga毕业于曼哈顿的圣心女中，后来她为了追寻自己的音乐梦想而离开了纽约大学的音乐学系。她曾与唱片公司Def Jam签约后又解约，后来与一个顾问团队开始了合作。当迈克尔•杰克逊的去世让我们意识到如今能够超越狭隘音乐类型的新星已经少之又少的时候，Gaga便在一年的时间内横扫各大媒体。
Gaga may turn out to be yet another fleeting pop novelty, but many other industry veterans see her as the real deal, and her ambitions and skill at navigating the turbulent industry may make her a durable star. Born Stefani Germanotta, she graduated from Manhattan's Convent of the Sacred Heart school, then left a music program at New York University to chase a music career. She was signed and dropped from one label, Def Jam, before uniting with a core team of advisers. She then stormed the media in a year when Michael Jackson's death reminded us how few new music stars transcend narrow genres anymore.
　　
我们在Gaga乱蓬蓬的假发之下看到的是一个有关如何在时下的音乐行业取得成功的案例分析。23岁的Gaga聪明地运用了新的数字平台，而同时仍借助着一家大唱片公司的影响力──DIY文化的众多支持者认为这种做法已经过时。她是一种新型唱片合约的产品，这种合约已经不仅仅涵盖唱片销售，而是从巡演到商品， 甚至是包括造型合约在内的各项事务。尽管Gaga自己创作歌曲，但她对于视觉上的舞台效果、流行时尚和全球号召力也投入了和对音乐一样多的精力。
Underneath Gaga's haystack wigs is a case study of what it takes to succeed in the music business today. Gaga, 23 years old, has made shrewd use of new digital platforms, while still leveraging the clout of a major label, an institution deemed obsolete by many proponents of DIY culture. She is a product of a new kind of recording contract which goes beyond just selling records to encompass everything from touring, merchandise--even her make-up deal. Though she writes her own material, she is as focused on visual theatrics, fashion, and global appeal as she is on the music.
　　
媒体的镜头在今年将继续对准Gaga。她将挑战自己在MTV音乐录像大奖上换装六次的战绩。从她的着装来预测时尚风潮是白费工夫。不过，以下是Gaga可以告诉我们的有关当今音乐行业如何运作的三件事。
This year, expect the cameras to hover around Gaga, who will be challenged to top the six different costumes she donned at the MTV Video Music Awards. Divining fashion trends from her outfits would be fruitless. Instead, here are three things Gaga can tell us about how the music industry works now.
　　
她是个数字现象
She's a digital phenomenon