Lady Gaga Says Family Members Were Unaware She Was Raped Until Oscar Performance


Lady Gaga’s tearful performance at the Oscars on Sunday was the first time several of her family members learned that the singer was a victim of sexual abuse.

During an interview with Howard Stern in 2014, Gaga famously admitted to having been raped at the young age of 19, saying she was a naive and vulnerable girl at the time who was taken advantage of by a much older man in the music industry.

While she chose not to mention the person by name, she reveals that her teenage years were ruined by such a horrific experience, which left her feeling powerless and weak. As a result, she felt embarrassed and ashamed to tell many of her closest family members about it, including her beloved grandmother and her aunt.

In a lengthy statement on Instagram, Lady Gaga reveals that her relatives weren’t aware of her rape ordeal until they watched her moving performance of “Til It Happens To You.” Gaga, who broke down in tears at the end of her set, shared the following on her official Instagram page.

“My grandmother (in the middle) and my Aunt Sheri (on the right) both called me the day after the Oscars because I never told them I was a survivor. I was too ashamed. Too afraid. And it took me a long time to even admit it to myself because I’m Catholic and I knew it was evil but I thought it was my fault.”

Lady Gaga continued by saying that her family was so incredibly proud of her brave decision in coming out and telling her story to the world, concluding her post with, “Something I have kept a secret for so long that I was more ashamed of than anything– became the thing the women in my life were the proudest of. And not just any women, the ones I look up to the most.”

Gaga, who was nominated for Best Original Song at this year’s Academy Awards, has been urging women to speak up, stressing that sexual abuse should no longer be looked down upon — especially for young and vulnerable girls in the field of entertainment.

Lady Gaga’s upright support for those who have been made victims comes just weeks after she publicly backed Kesha in her ongoing rape lawsuit against Dr. Luke. The 29-year-old was recently shut down in a court hearing after having made the request to leave Sony’s record label, which happens to be interlinked with Luke’s own signing.

This evidently means that if Kesha was to release any music in the future, Dr. Luke would still make a significant amount from the singer’s material, as he still holds the exclusive publishing and distribution rights to her entire discography, which Kesha is desperately wanting to change.

Lady Gaga has admitted on social media that she prays and hopes Kesha is released from her contract with Sony, publicly pleading with Sony to fire Dr. Luke and do the right thing. Gaga is one of the hundreds of celebrities who have backed the campaign to support Kesha in her ongoing situation with her music producer.

Was Lady Gaga wrong for keeping this secret for so long?

[Photo by Mike Windle/Getty Images]

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