Days after Super Bowl 51, people can’t still stop talking about Lady Gaga’s halftime show, with many marveling over the singer’s acrobatic set, which also delivered her message of inclusion. However, many people are unaware that the “Born This Way” singer came close to ending her career after feeling the effects of career burnout.
Speaking with Billboard, the singer, whose real name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, said that at the end of 2014, her stylist asked her if she still wants to be a pop star.
“I look at him and I go, ‘You know, if I could just stop this train right now, today, I would. I just can’t. [But] I need to get off now because I’m going to die,’” said Lady Gaga.
In a personal letter posted by Lady Gaga on the Born This Way Foundation website, the singer revealed that she was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and that her needs and requests for some time to rest were being ignored.
“I was overworked and not taken seriously when I shared my pain and concern that something was wrong,” she said. She ultimately ended up injured on the “Born This Way” Ball in early 2013.
Lady Gaga sought help to treat her PTSD and admitted to undergoing psychotherapy. She was also under medication prescribed by her psychiatrist for a period of time.
In 2015, Lady Gaga appeared to have recovered and seemed to be having the best year ever as not only did she get engaged to longtime boyfriend Taylor Kinney, but she also gave a stunning performance at the 87th Academy Awards. Moreover, she nabbed the role of a vampire in “American Horror Story,” and Lady Gaga won a Golden Globe for Best Actress- Miniseries or Television film for her role.
Her career continued to soar in 2016, singing the US national anthem at the 50th Super Bowl. However, Lady Gaga’s personal life took a turn when she called off her engagement to Kinney back in July.
But on Sunday, Feb. 5, Lady Gaga reminded everyone that she was the ultimate performer as she delivered an on-point performance that had people in the stands of the NRG Stadium and across the globe on their feet. According to USA Today, Lady Gaga’s music sales and streaming stats skyrocketed after her Super Bowl performance, with 125,000 song downloads and album sales of 23,000 units over the weekend.
As fans want more of Lady Gaga, it is expected that tickets for the U.S. leg of her “Joanne” world tour will be selling like hotcakes as the singer continues to rise and rise after all the hardships and heartache that she endured in the past.
Despite her success, the “Bad Romance” hitmaker said that she often looks back and that she continues to believe in the girl that she was before becoming Lady Gaga.
“I was that girl who got made fun of, that nerdy girl,” she told Billboard. “I believe in that girl. I believe in the integrity and power of people like her, and I want to ignite it.”
For more, check out Jobs & Hire’s report on the Super Bowl ad that people are praising for promoting gender pay equality.
