Has the world gone gaga?

With fashion inspiration taken from cartoon characters, space and military weapons, the 24 year old pop icon Lady Gaga is always sure to be seen dressed in something outrageous. With outfits designed by top designers like Armani and the late Alexander McQueen, and a wardrobe full of fashion surprises is Gaga a fashion icon or an eccentric member of pop culture?

In the fame monsters invasion her fashion and style are arguably her number one weapons of world domination. With her Haus of Gaga design team behind her these are weapons that appear to be working, as Forbes Magazine recently ranks Gaga number four in their list of the richest and most powerful celebrities for 2010 which is a long way up from last year where Gaga’s name was missing from the list. The model agency/fashion industry and music industries however have never been too far apart and the trends from one all too often trickle into the other and Gaga’s influence in fashion can be seen on catwalks and fashion weeks worldwide, as leotards and lace become big summer 2010 looks on catwalks and in high street stores alike. However, Gaga is not the first musician to have made a splash in the world of fashion and many celebrities like Madonna, are famous for their iconic sense of style and daring ensembles.

Dressed in machine guns on the cover of Rolling Stone, lace at the MTV awards or red latex to meet the Queen, Lady Gaga's fantasy inspired fashion sense has been described as "huge and polarizing", giving women the permission to try things they were intimidated by and making them think “I can do anything” by some of her fans including Barneys New York, Creative Director, Simon Doonan. But not everyone thinks Gaga is a fashion icon, some use examples like her fall in Heathrow Airport to demonstrate the absurdity of her costumes, while others like the legendary Grace Jones comment in newspapers about Gaga's unoriginality.

Whether she’s a Fame Monster, Fashionista, Caricature or just Gaga, Lady Gaga has used fashion to market herself and her music, catapulting herself into international stardom and the camera lenses of the waiting papa- paparazzi! An eccentric member of popular culture with the potential to become a fashion icon, Gaga is just as daring and bold as some other members of popular culture who in their time left their marks on the world of fashion and style.

Written by Dinita Moore