Lady Gaga opened up about being raped as a teenager and how her life changed after the assault.
The 29-year-old musician was given the privilege to record a song for the campus rape documentary "The Hunting Ground." The singer then opened up about the backstory of her song "'Till It Happens to You."
Time Magazine reported that Gaga admitted she was raped as a teenager and had kept the secret for seven years. Not knowing how to deal with it or how to accept it, the recording artist said that the rape incident has changed who she was completely.
"It changed who I was completely. It changed my body, it changed my thoughts," the "Poker Face" singer said. "When you go through a trauma like that, it doesn't just have the immediate physical ramifications."
After the incident, Gaga made sure that the horrific experience does not define her. Although she admitted that she went through patterns of physical distress as a result of the trauma, she refused to back down.
"I'm gonna take responsibility for all my pain looking beautiful and all the things I've made out of my strife. I did that."
Her bravery has been proven true with all the struggles she dealt with to be the artist that she is today. So when the pop singer accepted Billboard's Woman of the Year award in a New York luncheon on Friday, the singer tearfully described what it was like to be a female in an industry where male primarily dominates.
According to an article by USA Today, Gaga admitted how difficult it is to be a woman in the music industry. She described it as a "boys club" where women find it hard to get into. After candidly apologizing to her grandmother for some expletive words she uttered, the "Bad Romance" songstress said that she tried for a long time to be taken seriously as a musical artist rather than be objectified in the entertainment business.
"I just really wanted to be taken seriously as a musician: for my intelligence, more than my body, in this business. To be here today means I'm recognized for my legacy and my songwriting, which means a lot because you don't always feel when you're working that people believe that you have a musical background and that you understand what you're doing, because you're a female," the "Born This Way" singer said.
Gaga talked further about the importance of events such as the Billboard's Women in Music where female artists and executives are recognized. Some other personalities who were honoured included Missy Elliott, Demi Lovato, Selena Gomez and Lana Del Rey.