Lady Gaga is a musician, artist and performer. Born into an Italian family living in New York, she learned to play the piano at the age of four and wrote her first piano ballad at thirteen. Her advanced talents gained her early admission at seventeen to the Tisch School of the Arts, NYU. Before graduating, Gaga decided to leave NYU and embark on a career in the music industry, writing songs and performing in clubs and at burlesque shows.

At the age of twenty, she began working with Interscope Records as a songwriter and proceeded to write for several artists signed to Akon's label, Kon Live Distribution. Gaga was soon signed to the label herself in a joint deal with Interscope Records. Her debut album, The Fame, was released in 2008, which catalysed Gaga's rise to worldwide fame. 

Gaga is also widely known for her outlandish fashion sense and self-professed exhibitionist character. The singer's first world tour, The Monster Ball, began in November 2009.