So Are We Getting a Sequel to ‘Telephone’ or What?
It all started at the Super Bowl. Between cuts to the Taylor Swift memorial VIP box and play-by-play commentary from Spongebob, Lady Gaga was posting. The “Telephone” and “Video Phone” singer posted a peace sign to her IG. Or did she? Was that, in fact, a …2? The post gained additional context after Beyoncé announced act 2 of her Renaissance project via Verizon commercial. “Did Gaga know?” fans wondered. “And furthermore, did she know because she’s featured on the album?” Ever since the video for “Telephone” ended with a “To Be Continued…” fans have been waiting. Technologically, we’ve moved beyond the telephone, beyond the video phone even. The time has come for a new song about romantic miscummunication on Apple Watches or AR headsets or that neural implant Elon Musk wants us all to get. Here’s all the evidence that Cowboy Carter will include a new installment in the adventures of Gaga and Honeybee.
A peace sign, or a 2?
Or flipping the bird, England-style? We are not yet ready to solve the puzzle, Pat.
Is that a Pussy Wagon I see before me?
The taxi being driven in the Cowboy Carter teaser is evocative of the Pussy Wagon from “Telephone.” Both yellow, both have fuzzy dice. But there’s a guy in the teaser styled like Harry Dean Stanton, and no one’s claiming Bey is about to drop Paris, Two-xas.
The Country Connection
Shortly after Beyoncé announced her new album, Lady Gaga started posting process pics of making new music. One in which she clutches an acoustic guitar is captioned “No I’m not making a rock album.” Maybe it’s country? Or maybe it’s not her album. Gaga has made gestures towards the country and/or western genres, with Joanne and “Yoü and I” off Born This Way.
The Cowboy Carter tracklist
Fans suspect that if Gaga is featured on Cowboy Carter, it’ll be on “II Most Wanted,” in homage to how Gaga and Honeybee elude the authorities at the end of the “Telephone” music video. We’ll know for sure when the album drops March 29.