PREP: Lady Gaga

February 11, 2011 by Scott Sands 0 Comments

Lady Gaga performing on the Fame Ball tour in ...

Image via Wikipedia

I just heard the new Lady Gaga single “Born This Way,” and I’m somewhat embarrassed to admit that I kind of like it. Of course, I think I liked the same songs when I heard Madonna do it twenty-five years ago. Musical styles are definitely cyclical, and there are numerous other comparisons which could be made between Gaga & Madonna. But, I’m not writing tonight as a music critic … I’m writing to point out the way Lady Gaga’s management and Interscope Records have chosen to market the CD’s release – exclusively through Target stores.

Target began offering fans the opportunity to pre-order the CD, Born This Way, exclusively from their website at 8:00am this morning – through midnight February 26. Everyone who buys the CD pre-order from Target online will immediately have access to download the first release, title track “Born This Way.” Troy Carter, her manager, says, “The partnership provides us with an opportunity to really engage the fans early and widen our reach on the album promotion.” Target’s edition of the CD also includes three additional studio tracks and five remixes. Interscope will make the CD available for wide release to retail on May 23.

We’re seeing Target more aggressively pursue music releases from major artists like Taylor Swift and Pearl Jam as a way to capture more album sales from online competition. Besides, we all know that you can’t go into Target and just buy only one thing … walk in for a CD and walk out $100 lighter. Smart thinking! And, good for the artists who will benefit from millions of dollars in marketing from the big box store.

By the way, radio has quickly embraced the new single, with some stations playing it every hour since 4am this morning. As of 5:00pm ET, more than 250 different Mediabase-monitored stations have played “Born This Way” more than twice.