Lady Gaga, one of music’s most recognized bottle blondes, is back to black. In a new video shared to her social media accounts, Gaga unveiled a new, edgy hairdo while teasing what seems to be an upcoming collaboration.
The snippet kicks off with Gaga seated a white grand piano. She begins playing a short selection of melodic chords before switching off her camera. The singer, who recently publicized her engagement to Michael Polansky at the Paris Olympics, rocked a jet black hair style. The cut finished off just below the singer’s shoulders and featured jagged, pin-straight layers. Fans were also quick to point out that Gaga’s outfit choice—a black mini skirt, sheer tights, and a Bruno Mars graphic t-shirt—might be an easter egg pertaining to her new music.
Rumors of a collaboration between Gaga and Mars—who also just followed each other on Instagram—picked up steam over the weekend, with claims that the singers are teaming up for a song called “Die With a Smile.” The specifics of the song’s release have yet to be publicized, but both are gearing up for major releases—Mars, his upcoming album supposedly out in September and Gaga, her long-awaited Chromatica follow-up, known only as “LG7.” It’s also possible, given the track’s supposed title, that the song will somehow make its way into the Joker: Folie à Deux soundtrack. Gaga’s turn as Harley Quinn opposite Jaoquin Phoenix will hit theaters in early October. Perhaps, the track will help her earn another Oscar for Best Original Song. She took home the top prize in 2022 for A Star Is Born’s “Shallow.”
Gaga has been teasing bits and pieces of LG7 since as early as January of this year. Snippets of the album, her first since 2020, are already drawing comparisons to Gaga’s more pop-focused records like The Fame and The Fame Monster. A blind item alleged that Gaga had been in the studio with The Weeknd. Rumored collaborations also include the buzzy DJ Peggy Gou, Caroline Polacheck, and Alison Goldfrapp—there’s talk that the latter two musicians are credited as writers on the album.
“I am in the studio every single day. I have written so many songs, I’ve been producing so many songs, and it’s nothing like anything that I’ve ever made before,” Gaga said of LG7 in May. “I love to break genre, and I love to explore music. There’s something really beautiful about knowing that you will be loved no matter what you do.”