Seven weeks after it was intended to be released, Lady Gaga‘s sixth studio album Chromatica has seen the light of day.
After being delayed as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the highly anticipated record dropped, via Interscope Records, on Friday (May 29).
The 43-minute effort consists of 16 brand new tracks from Gaga and is split into three separate “acts”: Chromatica I, II and III, as detailed by the iconic pop singer in an interview with Beats 1‘s Zane Lowe last week.
Chromatica comes a whopping 43 months after Gaga’s last studio album Joanne (2016) — making it the longest wait between any of her releases to date.
Not only does Chromatica feature lead single Stupid Love, the much-beloved Ariana Grande duet Rain on Me, and the unexpected Blackpink collaboration Sour Candy, but it also includes an emotional and powerful dance track which features Elton John. It’s called Sine From Above.
Chromatica also includes contributions from a plethora of different producers, including Axwell, Burns, Benjamin Rice and White Sea, however, the majority of the record was completed by Bloodpop (or Michael Tucker).
When speaking with Lowe, Gaga, 34, commended Bloodpop for his overall efforts to create collaborative “conversations” around particular production and songwriting decisions in order to help maximize the quality of the music.
The Bad Romance singer described the first act of the album as “the beginning of her journey to healing.”
“It’s what I would hope to be an inspiration for people in need of healing through happiness and dance,” she said. “It’s what I would call radical acceptance.”
Lady Gaga performs onstage during her ‘ArtRave: The Artpop Ball’ at Consol Energy Center on May 8, 2014 in Pittsburgh, Penn.
Kevin Mazur/WireImage
Expanding on that “radical acceptance,” Gaga revealed that Chromatica is one of her most personal albums to date and delves into more taboo subjects like her continuous battle with mental health issues and her struggles with always being out in “public.”
“I know that I have mental issues,” she said, “and I know that they can sometimes render me non-functional as a human, but I can radically accept that this is real.”
Delving deeper into her bouts of depression, Gaga expanded on the song 911. She revealed that it’s “about an anti-psychotic” that she was prescribed.
“I can’t always control things that my brain does,” she told Lowe, before admitting that she’s “flirted with the idea of sobreity” and coming off of that medication.
The 11-time Grammy Award winner re-iterated that Chromatica I — the beginning of the album — ultimately “sets the stage for a more cinematic experience with how (she) make sense of things.”
Additionally, Gaga revealed the final track, Babylon, is a “song about gossip,” which she described as something that used to “run (her) life.”
On collaborating with Grande, 26, was effusive.
“That woman has been through some really tough, hard and life-testing stuff,” she said, praising the Thank U, Next singer.
Upon its release, a mass wave of diehard Gaga fans, or “Little Monsters,” flocked to Twitter to express their love and gratitude for the dance-pop album.
“Oh my God,” wrote on fan on Twitter. “I can’t express how stunning this album is. It’s concept is clear, it’s range is incredible. I love it. Lady Gaga, you are so f–king talented. Thank you for this incredible story,” they concluded.
Here’s what some other fans had to say:
“We love you Lady Gaga, thank you for this incredible album,” tweeted another fan. “It feels like the entire world is dancing together right now.
Chromatica is now available through all major streaming platforms.
Full Chromatica tracklist:
1. Chromatica I
2. Alice
3. Stupid Love
4. Rain On Me (ft. Ariana Grande)
5. Free Woman
6. Fun Tonight
7. Chromatica II
8. 911
9. Plastic Doll
10. Sour Candy’(ft. Blackpink)
11. Enigma
12. Replay
13. Chromatica III
14. Sine From Above (ft. Elton John)
15. 1,000 Doves
16. Babylon
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