The Essential... Lady Gaga explores the many talents of one of the world's most interesting and innovative artists. Beyond her success as a talented musician and songwriter, Lady Gaga is a consummate actor, a generous philanthropist and a long-time friend to the LGBTQ+ community.

Unafraid to take risks, she is genre-defying, as adept performing jazz in Vegas, as she is rocking the stage with Metallica, or singing tribute to Julie Andrews. Her unconventional style and outlandish outfits attract awe and controversy in equal measure, but ultimately complement the edgy and theatrical performances for which she is best known.

The Essential... Lady Gaga is the complete story of her ever-evolving and often unpredictable career. A must-read for Little Monsters!

The Essential...

Celebrating the world's best-loved popular icons and cultural luminaries, The Essential series is packed with facts, quotes, photos, and stories.

Annie Zaleski is an award-winning journalist and author based in Cleveland, Ohio. She has contributed to publications such as Rolling Stone, NPRMusic, the Guardian, The A.V. Club, Salon, Billboard and Classic Pop. She's the author of Taylor Swift - The Stories Behind the Songs, a detailed lookat the superstar's catalogue; a book on Duran Duran's Rio in the prestigious 33 1/3 book series; the illustrated biographies Lady Gaga: Applause, Pink: Raise Your Glass, and Harry Styles: A Sign of the Times; and the music history book This is Christmas, Song by Song. Zaleski has also contributed essays to multiple books, including the NPR-based How Women Made Music: A Revolutionary History, along with liner notes to the 2016 reissue of R.E.M.'s Out of Time and the 2023 deluxe edition of Jason Mraz's We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things. She was commissioned by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame to write induction essays for Duran Duran and George Michael.