Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, known professionally as Lady Gaga, (bor… Read Full Bio ↴Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, known professionally as Lady Gaga, (born March 28, 1986 in New York, NY) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenager, singing at open mic nights and acting in school plays. She studied at Collaborative Arts Project 21, through the New York University Tisch School of the Arts, before dropping out to pursue a career in music. After Def Jam Recordings canceled her contract, she worked as a songwriter for Sony/ATV Music Publishing, where she signed a joint deal with Interscope Records and KonLive Distribution, in 2007. Gaga had her breakthrough the following year with her debut studio album, The Fame, and its chart-topping singles "Just Dance" and "Poker Face". The album was later reissued to include the EP The Fame Monster (2009), which yielded the successful singles "Bad Romance", "Telephone" and "Alejandro".

Gaga's five succeeding studio albums all debuted atop the US Billboard 200. Her second full-length album, Born This Way (2011), explored electronic rock and techno-pop and sold more than one million copies in its first week. The title track became the fastest-selling song on the iTunes Store, with over one million downloads in less than a week. Following her EDM-influenced third album, Artpop (2013), and its lead single "Applause", Gaga released the jazz album Cheek to Cheek (2014) with Tony Bennett, and the soft rock album Joanne (2016). She ventured into acting, winning awards for her leading roles in the miniseries American Horror Story: Hotel (2015–2016) and the musical film A Star Is Born (2018). Her contributions to the latter's soundtrack, which spawned the chart-topping single "Shallow", made her the first woman to win an Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Golden Globe Award and Grammy Award in one year. Gaga returned to dance-pop with her sixth studio album, Chromatica (2020), which yielded the number-one single "Rain on Me". She followed this with her second collaborative album with Bennett, Love for Sale, and a starring role in the biopic House of Gucci, both in 2021.

Having sold an estimated 170 million records, Gaga is one of the world's best-selling music artists and the only female artist to achieve four singles that each sold at least 10 million copies globally. Her accolades include 13 Grammy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, 18 MTV Video Music Awards, awards from the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Council of Fashion Designers of America, and recognition as Billboard's Artist of the Year (2010) and Woman of the Year (2015). She has also been included in several Forbes' power rankings and ranked fourth on VH1's Greatest Women in Music (2012). Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2010 and 2019 and placed her on their All-Time 100 Fashion Icons list. Her philanthropy and activism focus on mental health awareness and LGBTQ+ rights; she has her own non-profit organization, the Born This Way Foundation, which supports the wellness of young people. Gaga's business ventures include Haus Labs, a vegan cosmetics brand launched in 2019.

Paper Gangsta
Lady GaGa Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Midnight rush, with a pen in my hand
Inkin' Lincoln, sanskrit with a fan
Rememberin' me, before we began
Sometimes I felt so Def in the Jam
But the ones who loved me, told me to stop
Like, "Homegirl can't catch shit if it drop"
A superwoman chick, you know that I am
Some shit don't fly by me in a man

'Cause I do not accept any less
Than someone just as real, as fabulous

Don't want no paper gangsta
Won't sign away my life to
Someone who's got the flavor
But don't have no follow through
Don't want no paper gangsta
Won't sign no monkey papers
I don't do funny business
Not interested in fakers

Don't want any paper gangsta
Oh-oh
Don't want no paper gangsta
Oh-oh
Don't want no paper gangsta
Don't want no paper gangsta

Got something really shiny to start
Want me to sign there on your Range Rover heart
I've heard it before
Yeah, the dinners were nice
'Til your diamond words melted into some ice

You shoulda been rappin' to the beat of my song
Mr. Californ-ia, paper ganster-a
I'm lookin' for love, not an empty page
Full of stuff that means nothin' but "you've been played"

'Cause I do not accept any less
Than someone just as real, as fabulous

Don't want no paper gangsta
Won't sign away my life to
Someone who's got the flavor
But have no follow through
Don't want no paper gangsta
Won't sign no monkey papers
I don't do funny business
Not interested in fakers

Don't want no paper gangsta
Oh-oh
Don't want no paper gangsta
Oh-oh
Don't want no paper gangsta (gangsta, gangsta)
Don't want no paper gangsta (gangsta, gangsta, gangsta)

Don't want no paper gangsta
Won't sign away my life to
Someone who's got the flavor
But don't have no follow through
Don't want no paper gangsta
Won't sign no monkey papers
I don't do funny business
Not interested in fakers

Don't want no paper gangsta
Won't sign away my life to
Someone who's got the flavor
But don't have no follow through
Don't want no paper gangsta
Won't sign no monkey papers
I don't do funny business
Not interested in fakers

Don't want no paper gangsta
Oh-oh
Don't want no paper gangsta
Oh-oh
Don't want no paper gangsta
Don't want no paper gangsta

Don't want no paper gangsta
Don't want no paper gangsta

Overall Meaning

In Lady Gaga's song "Paper Gangsta," she opens with "Midnight rush, with a pen in my hand." The opening verse begins with her writing lyrics down and telling the story about her life before the fame. She reminisces about a time before her fame when she used to feel like an outsider and couldn't catch a break. However, she acknowledges that her loved ones supported her and told her to keep going. Gaga mentions her strong and independent nature in the lyrics, stating that she won't accept anything less than someone who is real and fabulous, as opposed to the "paper gangstas" who may talk but have no follow-through. Gaga highlights her refusal to be taken advantage of by signing "monkey papers," which refers to contracts that may not be in her best interests. She stresses that she wants love and not just superficial things, and the song serves as a warning to potential suitors that she is not willing to give up her independence and sign away her life to anyone.

Line by Line Meaning

Midnight rush, with a pen in my hand Inkin' Lincoln, sanskrit with a fan Rememberin' me, before we began Sometimes I felt so Def in the Jam
I'm working hard at night with a pen in my hand, writing like Lincoln with the help of a fan. Remembering my past before I started, sometimes I felt out of place like I couldn't keep up with the beat.

But the ones who loved me, told me to stop Like, "Homegirl can't catch shit if it drop" A superwoman chick, you know that I am Some shit don't fly by me in a man
My loved ones told me to slow down and not let myself get too caught up in everything. They know I'm a strong woman who won't let things fly by me easily.

'Cause I do not accept any less Than someone just as real, as fabulous
I won't settle for anything less than someone who is just as real and fabulous as I am.

Don't want no paper gangsta Won't sign away my life to Someone who's got the flavor But don't have no follow through Don't want no paper gangsta Won't sign no monkey papers I don't do funny business Not interested in fakers
I won't be with someone who talks a big game but can't follow through with their promises. I won't sign any contracts that they want me to sign either, no matter how flavorful they make it sound. I don't want to do any shady business with fakers.

Got something really shiny to start Want me to sign there on your Range Rover heart I've heard it before Yeah, the dinners were nice 'Til your diamond words melted into some ice
You're trying to impress me with your shiny things and want me to commit to you, but I've heard this before. You wooed me with nice dinners until your sweet words turned cold and melted away like ice.

You shoulda been rappin' to the beat of my song Mr. Californ-ia, paper ganster-a I'm lookin' for love, not an empty page Full of stuff that means nothin' but "you've been played"
You should have been more focused on showing me your love instead of being an imaginary gangster from California. I'm searching for something real, not an empty promise filled with lies.

Don't want no paper gangsta Won't sign away my life to Someone who's got the flavor But have no follow through Don't want no paper gangsta Won't sign no monkey papers I don't do funny business Not interested in fakers
I won't be with someone who talks a big game but can't follow through with their promises. I won't sign any contracts that they want me to sign either, no matter how flavorful they make it sound. I don't want to do any shady business with fakers.

Don't want no paper gangsta Oh-oh Don't want no paper gangsta Oh-oh Don't want no paper gangsta Don't want no paper gangsta
I keep repeating that I don't want any paper gangsters because I'm tired of people trying to deceive me with their promises and fake personas.

Don't want no paper gangsta Oh-oh Don't want no paper gangsta Oh-oh Don't want no paper gangsta Don't want no paper gangsta Don't want no paper gangsta Don't want no paper gangsta
I keep repeating that I don't want any paper gangsters because I'm tired of people trying to deceive me with their promises and fake personas.

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Nadir Khayat, Stefani Germanotta

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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