BY: ALLIE  DAUGHERTY, managing editor and
CARMEN  SPLANE, staff writer

For some, Lady Gaga is more about hype and reputation than a performing artist. After years of wildly outrageous outfits, it’s sometimes hard to look past the clothes and appreciate the singer underneath.
This impression was stripped away after watching one of her live shows. True, she still wears outlandish costumes and she still sings all her played half-to-death, chart-topping singles. But the shock-and-awe that made her so well known in the beginning of her career can still be read from the openmouthed, screaming faces of her legion of fans.
But on March 29th at Viejas Arena, Lady Gaga made sure her fans, whom she calls “Little Monsters,” knew she wasn’t just another manufactured image.
Opening with a remixed version of CeCe Peniston’s ‘90s hit “Finally,” Lady Gaga teased her loyal subjects with a larger-than-life image of herself on a jumbotron, counting down to her entrance. Finally, fame in its purest form.
Her influence among fans became obvious when she appeared in the flesh, causing a torrent of deafening screams to erupt from the audience. The response from her Little Monsters solidified her position as the queen of not only pop music, but media culture at large.
Her mission was clear from the start. “I’m here to set you free!” she exclaimed, and the show became a mix of both catharsis and bonding between Lady Gaga and her fans. The music and the backdrop set the stage for the treacherous journey she and her dancers face while trying to reach the biggest party on the planet: The Monster Ball.
When Lady Gaga sings, she means it. Her pitch during her Monster Ball San Diego show was almost perfect, and despite consistently jumping up and down, dancing or running around the stage, she never sounded winded or let a note falter from exhaustion.
Nothing short of a dazzling spectacle, the Monster Ball was replete with visual delights and Lady Gaga’s energy never faltered. She offered herself wholly to her fans, dripping with sacrificial blood throughout most of the show. Her musical talents were put on full display in every song, even while she played the guitar with the heel of her black, high-heeled, lace-up boots.
Not only is her singing genuine, but her music is performed by a fully staffed band of musicians and back-up singers as well, proving to all the skeptics Lady Gaga is a legitimate performer.
“I never lip-sync and you will never pay your hard-earned money to watch some b—— be lazy for two hours,” she exclaimed.
The set list included all the usual suspects expected at a Lady Gaga concert. Fans were even treated to a new song, “You And I,” which sounded like the lovechild of a sweeping Elton John ballad and arena rock. Her songs have enjoyed quite the lifespan on the radio, but they are definitely best served live. With the bass stretching across the entire arena and the sound of live piano, guitars and background singers saturating the air, the eclectic range of her songs assured fans that this was more than just pop music.
Throughout the show her mood wavered back and forth between extreme confidence and fleeting insecurity. She told her audience she is like Tinkerbell in the sense that if they didn’t clap for her, she would die.
“Do you want me to die? Then scream for me!” she yelled, and the crowd screamed as if their lives depended on it.
The ending of the show brought the story full circle and found Lady Gaga and two of her dancers lost in the dark, trying to find their way to the ball. Uncertain whether they wanted to join Lady Gaga at the ball, and with a huge blowup “Fame Monster” hovering behind them, one of the dancers exclaimed, “I love you but, you’re going too far Gaga.”
Left to face the Fame Monster alone, Lady Gaga exclaimed, “You can’t leave me out here by myself. It’s too dark and I can’t see.” She then pleaded with her fans to help her fight it by taking its picture. She disappeared and re-emerged, flaming bosoms and all, fashioning the most cleverly designed metaphor ever created for a music tour. Together, Lady Gaga and her Little Monsters had successfully killed the Fame Monster.
Throughout the wild set, the young starlet was sure to remind those in attendance of her stance on LGBT rights. Midway through her set she called a member of the audience — for every answered call on the tour, Virgin Mobile donates $20,000 to her favorite charity for young gays and lesbians forced into homelessness by their parents. Lady Gaga even dedicated a song to all the San Diego gays.
Most important to her, however, was reminding her fans how much she loves them. Humbly, the queen of pop declared her appreciation and gratitude frequently throughout the night, acknowledging the effect of her fans’ support has on her career. In return, Lady Gaga assured her Little Monsters that when life is tough, she will always be there rooting for them.
This blond diva crushed any speculation that her career is based on crazy propaganda and proved that, instead, it is based on talent. It will be no surprise if the House of Gaga continues to grow and her career lasts for years to come.