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By Alvin Vuong

Mother Monster has done it again! Lady Gaga’s third studio album, Born This Way, was released May 23rd. Within three hours, Born This Way reached number 1 on U.S. iTunes charts! In just one week, Born This Way was confirmed to have sold 1.11 million copies in the United States.
There are 17 songs on Born This Way, including her top singles “The Edge of Glory,” “Judas,” and “Born This Way.”
Unlike Gaga’s first album, which was about being famous and popular, and her second album, which dealt with the darker side of fame, Born This Way features various topics such as sexuality and religion.

This album has shown how much Gaga has evolved as an artist. An artist should write what and how they feel, and Gaga has done that, for example, in the song ‘Americano’.

“There was a lot happening with immigration and the border issues, and she pushed,” said producer Fernando Garibay, talking to  MTV News. “She said she wanted to make this song really Mexican, with the struggle the Mexican people have gone through for freedom, for a better life, and so those ideas are directly implemented in the song.”

The lead single of Born This Way is “Born This Way,” a song Gaga wrote to encourage people to love themselves for who they are. The lyrics include such self-affirming statements as “Don’t hide yourself in regret/ Just love yourself and you’re set/ I’m on the right track baby/ I was born this way.” The song also addresses people of the LGBT community: “No matter gay, straight, or bi/ Lesbian, transgendered life/ I’m on the right track baby/ I was born to survive.”
One of the top songs from the album is “The Edge Of Glory,” which Gaga was inspired to write when her grandfather died late 2010. The song has an upbeat tempo and catchy lyrics. According to Gaga, “The edge of glory, in the song, is about your last moment on Earth; when you look life in the eye, and say ‘I won. I’m a champion.’”
One of her religiously themed songs from Born This Way is “Judas”–a song which uses the Biblical character Judas as a metaphor for being double crossed, and contemplating revenge but not actually doing it. This may represent returning to an ex-boyfriend or or ex-girlfriend even though she or he isn’t good for you.

While this song may have done well and topped iTunes charts in 10 different countries, the song is very controversial due to the Biblical references in which Gaga is in love with Judas, a man in the Bible who betrayed Jesus. Although a lot of religious nutcases may not like this song due to the use of Biblical characters, I like this song due to its catchy lyrics and the message it contains: it’s human to return to someone who’s bad for you.

Overall, I rate this album an A because of the catchy lyrics and the messages in the lyrics of each song. I would especially recommend this album to people who are fans of Gaga; however, you Little Monsters have probably heard it already.