Gaga in dodo over disabilities song lyrics?
Gaga ’14 aphrodite-in-nyc
As promised, I’ll provide some information about Gaga’s beleaguered “Born This Way” Foundation (BTWF) and her mother who cofounded it with her. But first, a few words about the “Born this Way” song, which stirred controversy when she released it. Besides the expected negativity from those who hate gay-friendly lyrics, several people have accused Gaga of plagiarism. Here’s one such accusation:
“The Prophet Blog is claiming that the pop phenom may have plagiarized the not-yet-released “coming out” song which the singer claims she wrote alone. But peep this, the lyrics to “Born This Way” have some pretty close similarities to “I Was Born This Way” by Motown artist Carl Bean, released back in 1975. We’ll let you be the judge.’
The gentler critics suggest, for example, that Gaga’s anthem serves as a modern update of Madonna’s 1989 hit “Express Yourself”, which was itself an (uncredited) homage to The Staple Singers’ 1971 smash “Respect Yourself”. This song, as Rolling Stone points out, also bears similarities to Patrick Hernandez’s 1978 disco tune “Born To Be Alive”
Definitely in dodo over BTW Foundation.
Despite Gaga and her mom’s goodwill regarding BTWF and her big anti-bullying ralies in March and April of 2012, they find themselves on the defensive re BTWF of late. According to a Guardian report, Lady Gaga denies claims regarding the misuse of Born This Way Foundation funds.
“‘We do not raise money and allocate the funds to other charities for them to do the work.”
The Guardian further reports, “With documents showing the charity allegedly dispensed only $5,000 (£3,000) to outside organizations,” there is trouble in River City
According to the Guardian, Gaga defended herself thusly:
“We do the work,” Gaga wrote on her Little Monsters website. “We do not raise money and allocate the funds to other charities for them to do the work.”These arguments were expanded upon by Cynthia Germanotta, the singer’s mother, who co-founded Born This Way in 2011. In an editorial published by the Huffington Post, Germanotta hit back against Roger Friedman’s recent report for Showbiz 411, which claimed Born This Way “spends more on lawyers, publicity and consultants than on charity”.
“A clear understanding of the differences between a grant-making organization and one that carries out its work directly would have made this a non-story,” Germanotta wrote. “We are not a grant-maker that funds the work of other charities, and were never intended to be … [But] we are having a profound impact in just a very short period of time.”
Friedman’s original article alleged that Gaga’s foundation finances were as follows: $2.1m in net assets, with $2.6m in donations. According to their federal tax report, Born This Way reportedly spent $300,000 on “strategic consulting (web, digital)“, $50,000 on “social media”, $406,552 on “legal”, $150,000 on “philanthropic consulting”, $58,768 on “publicity fees” and $808,661 on “other.” “It’s unclear that anyone was really helped by the Born this Way Foundation other than lawyers, consultants, publicists and travel agents,” he wrote. “I like Lady Gaga and her parents. But celebrities probably shouldn’t start charitable foundations.”
According to its website, the Born This Way Foundation is “dedicated to creating a safe community that helps connect young people with the skills and opportunities… to build a kinder, braver world”. Their three main goals are to create a “safe, useful” online community for young people; to teach “the skills, tools and resources you need to feel empowered”; and to identify “solutions” that will “impact local communities.”
Closer to home.
As an aside, Gaga’has become “the new face of drought awareness. ” According to the LA Times, “In exchange for receiving authorization to shoot a music video at the iconic Hearst Castle, Gaga agreed not only to pay more than $250,000, but to shoot a public service announcement for home water conservation. State governor Jerry Brown issued a statement personally thanking Gaga for her “aid and assistance” to the state.
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