Lady Gaga, Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta

Artistry
• Musical style and influences
Gaga has been mainly influenced by glam rock singers such as David Bowie and Freddie Mercury, as well as dance-pop artists such as Madonna and Michael Jackson. The Queen song "Radio Ga Ga" inspired her stage name, "Lady Gaga". She commented: "I adored Freddie Mercury and Queen had a hit called 'Radio Gaga'. That's why I love the name ... Freddie was unique—one of the biggest personalities in the whole of pop music." Gaga has also a lot of comparison to Madonna. She stated: "there is really no one that is a more adoring and loving Madonna fan than me. I am the hugest fan personally and professionally." Gaga's other musical inspirations include Whitney Houston, Britney Spears, Grace Jones and Blondie singer Debbie Harry. In an interview with Yahoo! Singapore, when she answered questions for the media, she stated that Cyndi Lauper is someone she admired, and she also stated the reason why her sophomore album, Born This Way, was more rock-supported. She stated that she wanted her album to be for her fans, as they reacted a stronger way for rock songs than pop, which influenced her rock elements in the album.
Gaga has the vocal range of a contralto. Her vocals have drawn frequent comparison to those of Madonna and Gwen Stefani, while the structure of her music is said to echo classic 1980s pop and 1990s Europop. While reviewing her debut album The Fame, The Sunday Times asserted "in combining music, fashion, art and technology, Gaga evokes Madonna, Gwen Stefani circa 'Hollaback Girl', Kylie Minogue 2001 or Grace Jones right now." Similarly, The Boston Globe critic Sarah Rodman commented that she draws "obvious inspirations from Madonna to Gwen Stefani... in her girlish but sturdy pipes and bubbly beats." Though her lyrics are said to lack intellectual stimulation, "she does manage to get you moving and grooving at an almost effortless pace." Music critic Simon Reynolds wrote that "Everything about Gaga came from electroclash, except the music, which wasn't particularly 1980s, just ruthlessly catchy naughties pop glazed with Auto-Tune and undergirded with R&B-ish beats.