Abracadabra: The Rise of a Disability Icon

When I was a teenager and in my early twenties I was obsessed with Lady Gaga and her music. I just thought she was so cool and different and her music was just so fun. Finding out she was queer was really validating for me when I was a baby gay, as well. It’s not that I ever stopped liking her, I still love her. I just found I listened to her music less when I got older. However, when I heard she released a new song during the Grammys I was intrigued. I listened to the song and found it very fun and reminiscent of her old stuff.

Then I was at a friend’s house and we were watching YouTube, and the music video popped up. Since neither of us had seen it yet, we decided to put it on and within seconds we were saying “Mother is back”. Then Gaga started her choreography… It wasn’t anything wild like she used to do, which I completely understand. However, when she started dancing sitting down or with a cane, I burst into tears. 

Lady Gaga revealed years ago in her documentary that she suffers from Fibromyalgia. I don’t really know what’s wrong with me. I’ve had chronic pain for ten years and a few years back my doctor threw the word Fibromyalgia around so I kind of assumed that was my problem. Last year I started suffering from pain and muscle weakness in my legs that we haven’t been able to figure out yet. It could be fibro, but it could also be something else. It’s frustrating and tiring and some days my saving grace is using a cane. 

Seeing an absolute icon sitting down and using a cane while still being a complete badass was so powerful and meaningful to me. It’s been hard to come to terms with my own disability, but seeing Gaga completely own it just made me feel so seen. 

We need more disabled artists being able to show off their mobility aids instead of hiding them. Representation matters and disability isn’t a bad word. I grew up with a disabled mother that people would give dirty looks to because she was in a wheelchair. Now I get to see people talking about how badass Lady Gaga is despite her disability. It’s important. 

You can watch the music video here.