…and you feel it’s important to recognize Lady Gaga. Artists only get one first album, and you haven’t danced the way you dance to “Poker Face” since the Clinton Administration. She writes her own material… maybe she’s not as revolutionary as she or her fans claim, but you don’t think she’s famous just for being famous (even if she did name her album The Fame).
But—you tell yourself in quiet moments, between tracks—she hasn’t really done anything, not compared with, say, Bono. People will say you’re rewarding her for just being Lady Gaga. Why not wait until she has years of career achievement? But what if she doesn’t fulfill her early promise? What if in four or eight years her reputation is tarnished by singles that misfired, or the press turning against her? What if this is the moment, and you miss it? Are you brave enough to honor how she’s transforming pop music and making it safe for people who prefer to be seen wearing masks?
Or do you go with an obvious choice, someone who’s now so taken for granted, so last year that no one even notices how he’s changed the entire geopolitical landscape and the tone of international relations? Do you give the prize to Barack Obama?
