Lady Gaga or the pain of a diva

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They say Art is born of pain. Joanne was 19 years old when she died of a strangely named disease, lupus. She was Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta's paternal aunt –Lady Gaga's real name– and even though they never met –the artist was born 12 years later– the weight of her loss has always marked the American singer. Such was the presence of Joanne's death among her family, that she herself has stated that her aunt is one of the most important people in her life, a resounding inspiration for her career. She has a tattoo on her arm with her birth date.

The album "Joanne" has given the blonde artist a somewhat more serene look. She has left behind her most scandalous, furious, delirious out-fits, like when she dressed as a steak or loaded with stuffed animals or with outlandish masks with which she seemed to see nothing. In the promotion of "Joanne" pale pink takes on prominent importance –the wide-brimmed hat as the main image of the album, the jacket suit with a dizzying neckline upon her arrival at El Prat airport– "Joanne" is a tribute project, full of love, to loss, to death, to pain.

Lady Gaga's suffering is not only emotional. For years she has suffered intense physical pain of difficult diagnosis –the enigmatic fibromyalgia– which must have reached an unsustainable point last September when she was forced to suspend her world tour from Rio de Janeiro. In the highly recommended Netflix documentary "Five Foot Two" –a measurement corresponding to her height, 1m 57 cm– she testifies with credible sincerity to her most vulnerable moments, the severe attacks of pain, the crying, the anguish that the pop diva goes through. Perhaps her particular way of dealing with weakness is part of her success. Lady Gaga meets the essential requirements to be a great diva: She is an excellent vocalist –her piano solos, emulating Frank Sinatra at the gala for the centenary of his birth, her wonderful duets with Tony Benet–; she is pure show, a perfectionist and tireless worker who masters the art of spectacle. All these qualities are found in other divas who also top the rankings of best-selling singles or perform terrifyingly at the Super Bowl. But we all know that Gaga is something else.

That pain she suffers and needs to convert into artistic material –that pain that many of us have felt to a greater or lesser degree, that pain that changes moods and lives– grants Mrs. Gaga something transcendent.

Thank you, Lady, for showing us without shame or rest how to make weakness your strength.

"I LOVE YOU, BARCELONA"

In a spectacular production at the Palau Sant Jordi –with floating side bridges and mobile platforms that brought the diva closer to the spectators–, Lady Gaga left her fans, the so-called "little monsters," ecstatic.

In a vibrant show, the artist alternated her usual hits with new songs. Brilliant, charming, overwhelming. A more mature Gaga who remains dedicated to the staging.