Lady Gaga’s mother, Cynthia Germanotta had the honor of presenting the Woman of the Year award to her daughter. She gave a moving speech about her daughter upon giving it to her.
The speech was definitely a moving one. Check it out below.
Twenty-nine years ago, two very important things happened in our family. Our first daughter was born and my mother-in-law, Angelina Germanotta who is here with us today, called my husband Joe and asked if he wanted his childhood piano. Our daughter was not even 1 year old. And we thought it would be wonderful to have a piano in the house since we all love music so much. That family piano was the beginning of and a catalyst for a curious, creative, compassionate and self-driven baby girl. She learned to walk by grabbing on to the leg of that piano and pulling herself up and in the process, managed to reach the keys. She heard the sound and thereafter, day after day, she would go to the piano and press those black and white keys.
Four years later, she was playing by ear, and we asked if she wanted to take piano lessons at school. She didn’t understand why because she said, ‘Mommy, I hear music in my head.’ But she decided to study piano and music theory. At the age of 6, she wrote her first song called ‘Dollar Bills,’ which we found out many years later was inspired by Pink Floyd’s song “Money.” We played a lot of music at home, from Pink Floyd to our dear friend Mr. Tony Bennett, who is here with us today.
By the age of 10, she was a pretty accomplished classical pianist. But piano was one of many art forms that she loved and appreciated, including acting. At the age of 11, she asked to attend acting school. So we went to visit the Lee Strasberg Institute. At the time, they said they didn’t admit students her age, and I said, ‘Would you please just talk to her?’ They did, and for her, they made an exception.
At the age of 13, she wanted to study vocal lessons. She found her teacher on her own and booked her audition. After the audition, he looked at me and said, ‘I think we have something to work with.’ And he accepted her as his student. She still studies with our dear Don Lawrence and has forged a never-ending bond. About a year later, Don asked her if she ever considered writing music. And I don’t have to tell you what happened from there. Though I will tell you she started a cover band at the age of 13 called Mackin Pulsifer, and they were great.
At the age of 19, a year into her studies at the Tisch School for Performing Arts, her father and I took her to dinner for her birthday. Early in the meal, she said she was leaving school to pursue her music. After choking a little, we finally had a rational conversation, and we arrived at, ‘OK, but on two conditions. One, we have to use your school monies to fund this and two, we will give you one year to get a record deal, or you’re going back to school.’ She moved to the Lower East Side of New York City and incessantly wrote and performed while working several jobs, including being a tape girl at Famous Music. Some of the others, I won’t tell you what those jobs were. And yes, she posed as her own manager to book her gigs. Within a year, she had a record deal. That deal was lost. But it didn’t stop her from persevering and signing to Interscope Records.
My husband, our amazing daughter Natalie, and our entire family have been there through the good times and the bad, and her tenacity and good old-fashioned hard work have never wavered. She remained true to herself. Today, she’s even stronger and in many ways only just beginning.
This is not an easy path, and now as a grown woman, she is compelled to share her stories and help others everyday. What we hope you see by hearing some of her story is a woman who paved her own way because of her passion and true love for music, art, and humanity. She remains committed and true to herself and is very committed to this industry. And those are just a few of the reasons why my daughter is the Woman of the Year. I’m honored to present Billboard’s 2015 Woman of the Year to my daughter Stephanie who I admire and adore — Lady Gaga.
Congrats to Lady Gaga on her accomplishment.
Source: Billboard
