14-time GRAMMY, Oscar and Emmy Award winner Lady Gaga today released the music video for her new single “The Dead Dance,” which she debuted last night. The project marks her first creative collaboration with visionary director Tim Burton, who brought the story to life on location at Isla de las Muñecas—Mexico’s infamous Island of the Dolls. The cinematic video shifts between stark black-and-white and bursts of vivid color, weaving eerie imagery of dolls with Gaga’s commanding performance. The video was produced by Gaga and Michael Polansky, alongside Burton and Natalie Testa. Costumes were designed by Colleen Atwood, with choreography from Parris Goebel and featured choreography from Corey Baker.
Produced by Gaga alongside Andrew Watt and Cirkut, Gaga debuted “The Dead Dance” last night while it was simultaneously featured in Netflix’s Wednesday Season 2 (Part 2), where she makes a cameo as the mysterious Rosaline Rotwood. Gaga shared “the inspiration for ‘The Dead Dance’ was a breakup, and it was all about the way that we sometimes feel when it’s over; how a relationship ending can kill our ability to feel hopeful about love. It’s got this really cool, funky beat underneath it. And that is when the song becomes not just about the relationship; it becomes about having fun with your friends when you’ve been through something tough and amazing. I can’t wait for people to listen to it.”
Early reactions have praised “The Dead Dance” as both “haunting” and an “electro pop banger,” with “a bouncy 1980s electro pop vibe, propelled by funhouse keyboards and bright drum machine beats” (BILLBOARD). ROLLING STONE called it a “soaring pop track” with a “serious dance-ready beat, while NME highlighted the spooky, funky energy, pointing to its “infectious bassline, ‘Thriller’-esque synths and licks of electric guitar.”
The release follows news of Gaga’s return to the MTV VMAs on September 9, where she will perform live from Madison Square Garden. An 18-time VMA winner and this year’s top nominee, she is up for 12 awards including Best Album for MAYHEM and Video of the Year for her Grammy-winning collaboration, “Die With a Smile.”
Gaga is also in the midst of her sold-out The MAYHEM Ball World Tour, supporting her acclaimed eighth studio album, MAYHEM. Critics have been unanimous in their praise: The NEW YORK TIMES hailed it as a “deliciously campy extravaganza” and declared Gaga “operating at the peak of her powers.” ROLLING STONE highlighted Gaga’s creative evolution, writing that she “didn’t just revisit [Coachella]—she expanded it, sharpened it, sprinkled in some nostalgia, and fully realized the gothic dream she had only just introduced.” VARIETY called the show a “breathless, finely-tuned spectacular,” and “a welcome reminder of her many, many talents,” while BILLBOARD hailed the show as “a theatrical, electric and delicious live affair,” emphasizing the charged performances of MAYHEM’s standout tracks and past dancefloor staples.
The MAYHEM Ball features a setlist that blends album standouts with fan favorites spanning Gaga’s career, including “Abracadabra,” “Killah,” “Vanish Into You,” “LoveDrug,” “Summerboy,” “Just Dance,” “Judas,” “Born This Way,” “Shallow,” and more. Produced by Gaga and Michael Polansky, the show expands on the conceptual world introduced at Coachella, with direction by Ben Dalgleish (Human Person), creative direction by Gaga, Polansky, Goebel and Human Person, choreography by Goebel, and costumes styled by Hunter Clem, Gaga’s sister Natali Germanotta (Topo Studio) and HARDSTYLE.
MAYHEM debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200—Gaga’s seventh consecutive No. 1 solo album—and remained a dominant global force, topping the Dance/Electronic Albums chart for 17 weeks, spending 12 weeks in the Top 20, and holding a Top 10 spot on the Pop Albums chart for 15 consecutive weeks. The album has since been Certified Platinum by the RIAA.
Her record-breaking collaboration with Bruno Mars, “Die With a Smile,” further cemented the album’s impact. It spent 18 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200, hit No. 1 on the Hot 100 for five weeks, and broke Spotify records as the fastest song to surpass both 1 billion (96 days) and 2 billion (200 days) streams.
The MAYHEM Ball follows Gaga’s headlining performances at Coachella and a landmark series of international shows, including stadium dates in Mexico City and Singapore. In Rio de Janeiro, her free show at Copacabana Beach drew an estimated 2.5 million fans—setting a new record for the highest attended concert by a female artist in history.
