Art review on “Bloody Mary” by Lady Gaga

In my opinion, Lady Gaga's song has a secular rhythm but carries sacred undertones in its lyrics. As the artist portrays herself as Mary Magdalene, she expresses her love for Jesus Christ in the song. Lady Gaga's defined lyrical arrangement asserts that people only love you when you are present, but forget about you when you're not around. Mary Magdalene proves to Jesus that among all the twelve disciples, she is the one with the most genuine love for him. She shows Jesus that even in the face of adversity, she is ready to stand with him. While Mary knows that Jesus was chosen by God to die for sinners on the cross and that has to be fulfilled, she is not happy about it.

The song's rhythm, tone, message, lyrical arrangement, and harmony all demonstrate a sacred theme but are played classically. The message of the song is straightforward and direct. Mary Magdalene is trying to be strong and resilient, but it is not easy for her. She is psychologically prepared for Jesus to be crucified, but afraid of it. Mary says that she will not cry for Jesus but instead rejoice by dancing as she sees Jesus fulfill God's promise to people.

Mary feels "betrayed" by Jesus by dying and leaving her alone, even though she was one of his greatest disciples. Nevertheless, she says she will not hold Jesus accountable for his actions and will continue to love him as she always has, even when he is not alive. Mary also adds that she will continue spreading love like Jesus did and will forever follow his guidelines to his disciples. Of course, Mary is divine and understands what Jesus was sent to do on earth, but she has some human feelings of not wanting to let Jesus go so easily. So even as she tries to focus on the mission that Jesus accomplished (dying for sinners), she remains with a heavy heart full of emotions of grief.

The tone of the song varies considerably. Lady Gaga expresses two controversial tones in the song. On the one hand, she expresses sadness on the fact that Mary will no longer see Jesus as often as before. This is seen when she tells Jesus that she will be by his side and ready to take stones with him when Pontius comes for him. Furthermore, adding that she will always tell people that her religion is him shows how much she loved Jesus, and she will never stop loving him, even when he is gone. On the other hand, she expresses happiness for Jesus having fulfilled God's promise to the people. This is shown when she chooses to focus on the purpose of Jesus rather than the cruel crucifixion she is witnessing. She adds that she will dance with her hands on her head and forgive Jesus that he is dead. At this point, Mary is trying to prove her divinity beyond humanity. Of course, she should rejoice, sing, and dance as the Son of God fulfills His Father's promise and go spreading the love and the teachings she learned from Jesus.

In general, Lady Gaga's depiction is that Mary is confused about what to do. She does not know whether to be happy for Jesus getting crucified for the fulfillment of God's promise or be sad that Jesus is leaving her and other disciples. In this regard, the artist expresses tolerance, resilience, and perseverance in the song, in mixed and controversial reactions of Mary Magdalene.

https://youtu.be/wJKY_Oun2wQ