Lady Gaga: Snapshot
- Name
- Lady Gaga
- Date of Birth
- March 28, 1986
- Birth Place
- Yonkers, N.Y.
Before burning up the charts with hits from her debut album The Fame, Stefani "Gaga" Germanotta was a college dropout who performed in Manhattan burlesque clubs and wrote songs for Britney Spears and New Kids on the Block. But thanks to three mega-hits and countless bedazzled leotards, the disco queen will join forces with Kanye West on their co-headlining tour in 2009.
People Hot List - Which Stars Have the Most Buzz?
- Heidi Klum
nochange - Miley Cyrus
nochange - Taylor Lautner
nochange - Robert Pattinson
nochange - Kristen Stewart
up
The Hot List shows the most buzzed about celebs of the moment as measured by reader activity on People.com
Lady Gaga: Five Fun Facts
- Lady Gaga's stage name is a tribute to the Queen song "Radio Ga Ga."
- Lady Gaga often carries a purple teacup and saucer in public. "I drank tea with my mom, [so teacups] make me feel at home," she told PEOPLE.
- Chicago cops cited Lady Gaga for indecent exposure for wearing hot pants in public.
- Lady Gaga dyed her dark hair blonde after an interviewer confused her with Amy Winehouse. "I want to be known for my own look," she told PEOPLE.
- Lady Gaga graduated from the posh Manhattan high school Convent of the Sacred Heart, Nicky and Paris Hilton's alma mater.
Lady Gaga: Biography 
- Early 2000s
Prep School Days
Born Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, the New York native quickly develops a passion for music, learning to play the piano by ear at 4 and composing her own ballads by 13. Working with Christina Aguilera's vocal coach, Gaga studies classical piano and sings in a classic-rock high school band at Manhattan private school Convent of the Sacred Heart.
- 2005
Gaga Does Go-Go
At 19, Gaga drops out of New York University after her freshman year to pursue music full time. "I thought I could teach myself about art better than the school could," she tells Elle. Working as a waitress and designing her own stage outfits by day, Gaga begins to make a name for herself by dancing in Lower East Side burlesque clubs and singing in dive bars.
- 2008
First Taste of Fame
After being signed and quickly dropped from Island Def Jam records, Gaga lands a deal with Interscope on her 20th birthday. The singer, who writes all of her own tracks, makes her debut with the electro-pop single "Just Dance." "I write about what I know: sex, pornography, art, fame obsession, drugs, and alcohol," Gaga tells Elle. The single burns up the charts, landing at No. 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 list.
Photo Credits
Top Left: Aaron Fallon
BIOGRAPHY (top to bottom): Splash News Online; Adam Bielawski/PR Photos; amazon.com
Lady Gaga: Photos
