Her new album is a work of self-citation, rummaging around in Gaga’s own past for inspiration. It’s also, somehow, the freshest collection of songs she has released in years.

Little Monsters everywhere are loving Lady Gaga ‘s latest album Mayhem, but in a new interview, Mother Monster revealed that one of the most talked-about songs on the record almost didn’t make it into the final product.

She dances on the line between clever self-referentiality and less inspired rehashing on her new LP, committing to the over-the-top excess that first made her a star.