Next came what some consider to be the pinnacle of Mother Monster's outsider look with the release of 2011's Born This Way. As Lady Gaga and her Little Monsters embraced her narrative that monsters — that is, people who are different — are beautiful in their own way, the pop star's outfits blazed the trails and became her edgiest yet ... quite literally.
The short film corresponding to the album's title song, "Born This Way," features Gaga embodying several different humanoid creatures. She has facial prosthetics that make her cheekbones blade sharp and give her a more prominent forehead, as well as shoulder prosthetics that give her an alien look. The intensity of her nail claws are heightened and extended here, and, off camera, she was prone to wearing heel-less platform shoes that seemed to defy gravity. Gaga even appeared at the 2011 Grammy Awards in a huge plastic egg, only to hatch on stage later. The performance completed the narrative that Gaga and her Little Monsters are distinctly not from "here." Rather, they are otherworldly creatures who don't just look different: they are different.
The video and song certainly resonated with people — even Elton John, who termed the tune as "the new gay anthem." He clarified to Entertainment Weekly, "Actually, it's not a gay anthem — it can apply to anybody."
