Today we are interviewing a magnificent Little Monster with a huge collection of Lady Gaga. He is here to talk about his life as a monster and collecting. This interview took place back in June.
GGV: Hello, thank you for doing this with us today! How are you doing?
L: Thank you for thinking of me for it, I honestly didn't see it coming haha. I'm good, I'm nervously waiting for The Chromatica Ball to start!
GGV: Oooh! Are you going to the show?
L: Yes! I'm lucky enough to go to Düsseldorf, Paris and both London dates!
GGV: Oh wow! That's so exciting! Have you ever been to a Lady Gaga concert before?
L: Absolutely, I went to the Born This Way Ball in Paris and 4 artRAVE. (Paris x3 and Barcelona x1)
GGV: Lucky you! I saw you have a huge Gaga collection, when did you start collecting?
L: I got The Fame Monster and Born This Way when they came out, but I didn't start my collection until July 2014. My boyfriend who is a way bigger collector than I am, introduced me to that world and I caved in when we visited an independent record store while in vacation. They had many Gaga items, lots of them not that expensive, so I thought "fuck it, I'm doing it!"
GGV: Which era do you think you have the most things from?
L: Good question... I'd say probably Born This Way, but I'm not too sure honestly. I'll have to check later. It's definitely the era I like collecting things from the most though!
GGV: Would you say Born This Way is your favorite album?
L: 100%. To this day I still can't believe how amazing that era was. I still remember staying up until like 5 am to catch every performance on the US TV. I still do it, obviously, but that was when I went from a casual fan to a Little Monster. Before Gaga I wasn't really a fan of pop music. I was more of a rock/metal kind of guy. So obviously the visuals and looks of that era really spoke to me! She truly changed the game back then.
GGV: That just shows the power Gaga always had over everyone! Do you have a particular way of organizing/storing your collection?
L: Yep, I'm borderline psychotic when it comes to organizing collections haha. I store every artists by alphabetical order (my Gaga stuff is mixed with all the other stuff I'm listening to) and within artist everything is sorted by date, from older to newest. And of course, every vinyl and CD has a protective sleeve. It's quite an expensive hobby, but I really don't want them to get damaged in time.
GGV: We collect as well and it can get pretty out of hand! I have to ask, do you listen to your cds/vinyls or do you just collect them?
L: I absolutely listen to them! Not as much as I'd want to, listening to physical releases is quite complicated compared to streaming, especially vinyl, but I really do love it. CD were my first love, even if I wasn't a proper collector I always had a lot in my room, from a very young age, so I'll always like listening to them.
GGV: CDs are easier to collect in my opinion, so that's I started out with them and slowly shifted towards other things as well. Is there currently an item you're looking for or have your eyes on?
L: At a time I was dying to get my hands on the Born This Way Picture Discs boxset, but I made peace with the fact that I'll never have it. I love collecting, but I'm not okay with spending THAT much on a single item, but right now I'd love to get my hands on a few more French promo singles, I have Perfect Illusion, The Cure, I'll Never Love Again and the super rare Stupid Love, but I'm missing a lot of them!
GGV: If you had to evacuate from your because The Fame Monster is about to destroy it, what items would you bring with yourself to safety!
L: Oh god!! Don't do this to me, I have way too many stuff haha, but I'd probably grab the items we talked about before we started the intweview (spoiler alert!) as well as my Cheek To Cheek and ASIB vinyl boxsets. These two are maybe not my favorite items or albums, but they both were gifts from my amazing boyfriend. So sorry Fame Monster, you'll have to eat something else!
GGV: Great picks! What's your go-to shop where you buy Gaga stuff from? Do you buy more online or in person?
L: I used to LOVE Lucky Records in Paris, the two owners were adorable and while it being mainly a Madonna shop, they had a great Gaga selection, at a very decent price, but they retired last year, and the new owners changed the prices for the worst... So I'm not really going there anymore. Now I'd say that I'm more of an online buyer (You can find amazing deals on Discogs with a lot of patience and luck)
GGV: Last but not least, prior to the interview I've asked you to pick out a new items from your collection that you hold dear to your heart. Tell me about them!
L: Absolutely! The first one is my favorite item in my whole collection : The Singles boxset. It took me a few years to get that one, and I had to pay more than I was comfortable with, but I'm really happy that I did. I don't know if it's the idea of having all the singles in a cute box, or the fact that it's a Japan-only item, but I ADORE it! I wish they kept doing them for the next eras!
L: The second was the The Edge of Glory single. It was my very first Gaga CD single ever bought (at that independent record store I mentioned earlier) so even if it's not necessarily my favorite single, it'll always have a soft spot in my heart.
L: The third and fourth are not musical releases, but my past Gaga concerts tickets. As I said, I'm a compulsive collector, I keep EVERYTHING, so I will definitively cherish those forever. I might not like everything Gaga does, but no matter what, I'm always happier when I see her live, there's NOTHING like it.
L: That's also why I included my Joanne World Tour collector ticket for Paris. I was supposed to see her four times; two in Barcelona, and two in Paris. Due to various reasons, I had to sell my tickets for Barcelona, thinking "oh well, there's still Paris". But we all know how that turned out… That's why I'm going all out with the Chromatica Ball, I need to replace that sour memory with awesome new ones!!
GGV: Thank you for telling us about your life as a Little Monster and your collection. Have fun at your Chromatica Ball shows and be safe!! I just know she'll come back with a banger after 4 years without touring!
L: Of course, thanks again for thinking of me for this, and I just can't wait to dip into the GagaVerse!
All images are by Leo!
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