Lady Gaga has transformed her singing voice to embody Harley Quinn in the upcoming film Joker: Folie à Deux, a musical sequel where she stars alongside Joaquin Phoenix.
In an interview with Empire magazine, Gaga revealed that her vocal style for the film is markedly different from her previous work. “People know me as Lady Gaga, the performer, but that’s not the essence of this movie,” she said. “I’m playing a character, so I had to alter how I sang to come from Lee, rather than from me as a performer.”
She emphasized the need for the music to integrate seamlessly with the dialogue. “How do you make music an extension of the dialogue, rather than just breaking into song without a clear reason?” Gaga questioned. “It was a completely new experience for me.”
This approach led Gaga to explore a new dimension of her performance that her audience has not seen before. “There are actually a lot of bum notes from Lee,” she said with a laugh. “I’m a trained singer, so even my breathing was different when singing as Lee. Onstage, I have a controlled technique to stay on pitch and maintain rhythm, but Lee wouldn’t have that knowledge. It was about stripping away the technical aspects and fully immersing myself in her character.”
Joker: Folie à Deux, a sequel to the 2019 Academy Award-winning Joker, continues the story of Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix), a struggling comedian who finds love with Harley Quinn (Lady Gaga) while being held at Arkham State Hospital. The film follows their tragic and doomed romantic journey.
Director Todd Phillips also noted that Lady Gaga’s portrayal of Harley Quinn brings a fresh and distinctive take on the iconic character, differing from previous versions.
Joker: Folie à Deux is set to release on October 4.
