ARTPOP has changed my life forever and holds a very special place in my heart. It means so much to me personally and it’s a musical journey, my utopia, and my favorite album of all time. I love ARTPOP so much, and I will forever be grateful for the 15 songs and the 58 minutes and 53 seconds they encompass. (total seconds: 3,533) Thank you Lady Gaga 🩷🔵 #ARTPOP
ARTPOP 🔵 Forever 🩷
ARTPOP was a creative, chaotic time in Lady Gaga’s life. I do feel it was ahead of its time. But in the end it become this electrical masterpiece. I love this album and always will. ARTPOP Forever! 🔵💜 #ARTPOP
Amazing song. Gaga's songwriting abilities at their finest!
In the first verse, art is singing to pop (“Come to me, with all your glamour and cruelty / Just do the thing that you do, and I’ll undress you” – referring to the sexual nature of pop stars and pop music today).
In the second verse, pop is singing to art (“Come to me, with all your subtext and fantasy / Just do the thing that you do, in a perverse hue” – making note of how contemporary art is widely misunderstood and even seen as “perverse” or stupid even though it's just the creator's "fantasy").
In the chorus, art and pop tell each other that they can belong together as one entity without separation or distinction. In other words, ARTPOP (one word). Not Art Pop, ArtPop, or Art-Pop.
The placement of the song is also noteworthy - since it is the title track, it would make sense if it was the first song on the album, or even the last. However, it’s precisely in the middle. I believe this is because the song is supposed to serve as a reminder that, like the chorus says over and over again, Gaga’s ARTPOP “could mean anything!” Placing this song right after songs like Aura, G.U.Y., Do What U Want, MANiCURE, but also before songs like Swine, Mary Jane Holland, and Applause is supposed to make you aware that each of these songs has at least TWO meanings. (Ex: Swine could be about dancing or it could be about rape, Do What U Want could be taken as a sexual love song or as an intelligently-written criticism on music critics, G.U.Y. could either be about Greek mythology or about gender roles in 21st century America, MANiCURE could be about a manicure or about being man-cured after a bad relationship). After all, “my ARTPOP could mean anything.”
I think this song is talking about art and how one uses it for liberation. She references her own artistry and how it affects those who connect with it. And that's the way art is, essentially. We take what we need to take from it, and that's why I think she says "My artpop could mean anything." Art is whatever you need it to be. The relationship between the audience and the piece is a powerful one because it creates a powerful union ( "We could belong together"). It's a brilliant song and one of my favorites on the album.
Furthermore, I love how the song explores the idea of art and how it inspires those moved by it:
Brushes with darknes won't help you create Your destiny of self but ARTPOP could mean anything, anything I try to sell myself but I am really laughing Because I just want the music, not the bling Music, not the bling
So, I pretty much take the song as Gaga talking about the power of art and how it helps the artist and the audience. Great tune.
