Academy Award and 13-time GRAMMY-winner Lady Gaga and 15-time GRAMMY Award-winner Bruno Mars have joined forces for “Die With A Smile.”
It has been a year since we’ve heard from Gaga, and nearly three since Mars’ last release. This anthemic love ballad, co-produced by the pair along with D’Mile and Andrew Watt, is a showcase and a reminder of the power in this unlikely duo as vocalists and storytellers.
Although a surprise to fans, this epic duet had been in the works for a while. Gaga shared, “Bruno and I have a lot of mutual respect for each other and were talking about collaborating.”
However, one fateful night brought it to fruition. “I was finishing up my own album in Malibu, and one night after a long day, he asked me to come to his studio to hear something he was working on. It was around midnight when I got there, and I was blown away when I heard what he had started making. We stayed up all night and finished writing and recording the song. Bruno’s talent is beyond explanation. His musicianship and vision are next level. There’s no one like him,” Gaga said.
The admiration is mutual, as Bruno Mars added, “Getting to work with Gaga has been an honor. She’s an icon, and she makes this song magical.”
The magic extends to the official music video co-directed by Bruno Mars and Daniel Ramos. The visual leans into the song’s nostalgic sound with its empty soundstage set evocative of a 60s variety show. Dressed in western wear, Gaga channels Dolly Parton with her big hair, and Mars captures the essence of Parton’s frequent collaborator, the late Porter Wagoner. Through the veil of smoke from the lit cigarette hanging from Gaga’s lips, the pair profess their love in front of an audience of mannequins, crooning, “If the party was over, and our time on Earth was through, I’d wanna hold you just for a while, and die with a smile. If the world was ending, I’d wanna be next to you.” Their two voices meld with such ease.
Gaga recently pulled inspiration from the 60s for her opening performance at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. In a cabaret-esque performance, Gaga performed “Mon Truc en Plume” (“My Thing With Feathers”). “This song was sung by Zizi Jeanmaire, born in Paris, a French ballerina. She famously sang “Mon Truc en Plumes” in 1961,” Gaga explained in an Instagram post on the honor.
Although it’s still unclear when Lady Gaga’s forthcoming album “LG7” will be releases, she did tease at the LA premiere for her “Gaga Chromatica Ball” film, “I am in the studio every single day. I have written so many songs, I’ve been producing so many songs, and it’s nothing like anything that I’ve ever made before…I love to break genre, and I love to explore music. There’s something really beautiful about knowing that you will be loved no matter what you do.”