Lady Gaga’s producer RedOne opens up about working with the Poker Face singer when she was undiscovered and why he knew she was a star – as he launches new digital talent show
Legendary music producer RedOne skyrocketed to fame in the late 2000s as the hitmaker behind Lady Gaga’s debut album.
And now the songsmith, real name Nadir Khayat, has opened up about meeting Gaga for the first time back when she was still undiscovered and unsigned to a major record label.
Speaking to the Unpopular podcast, the 49-year-old admitted that he was hesitant to meet the young star at time because she was still an unknown artist.
Hitmaker: Producer RedOne has opened up about meeting Lady Gaga for the first time back when she was still undiscovered and unsigned to a major record label
‘At that time because I’d been struggling for so many years to get a break with big artists, so I told him [my manager] that I need to work with big stars,’ he explained.
His manager eventually convinced RedOne that Gaga was talented enough that it would be worth meeting her, so they met and hit it off instantly.
‘I already liked her aura, it was special,’ he said of seeing Gaga for the first time.
‘We started talking and I really liked her because you were talking to a musician, not just, “I wanna be a star! I wanna be a singer,” the usual. She’s the real deal, I felt something.’
X factor: ‘I already liked her aura, it was special,’ he said of seeing Gaga for the first time. (Pictured in 2009)
Once they hit the studio, creative sparks flew and they quickly produced hits like Just Dance and Poker Face together.
Outside of working with Gaga, RedOne has produced hits for Jennifer Lopez, Nicki Minaj, Enrique Iglesias, and Nicole Scherzinger.
The hitmaker, along with Boyzone founder Mark Walton and blockchain entrepreneur David Avital just announced the launch of their new joint venture, SpotStar.
Built on a blockchain, SpotStar is a digital global talent show that connects musical artists directly to their fans.
Timeless: Once they hit the studio, creative sparks flew and they quickly produced hits like Just Dance and Poker Face together, which ended up on Gaga’s debut album The Fame
In addition, it provides record labels of all sizes – from indies to large conglomerates – with an equal opportunity to discover and sign on their next revenue-generating artist.
‘Traditional talent competitions like American Idol and The Voice, as well as those that take place online or via social media platforms, are still extremely limited in terms of finding talent internationally,’ RedOne said in a statement.
‘Also, based on my experience, at the end of the day, it is the producers, hosts, sponsors, and advertisers that ultimately and disproportionately – compared to the artist – win ‘big’ financially,’ he continued.
‘SpotStar is here to solve a much-needed, decades-long, industry-wide problem with a democratized approach ensuring all parties, including fans, benefit financially.’
New venture: The hitmaker, along with Boyzone founder Mark Walton and blockchain entrepreneur David Avital just announced the launch of their new joint venture, SpotStar