'Cheek To Cheek' Singer Lady Gaga Considered Quitting Music To Stay Sane?

If anyone ever considered quitting the music industry and surviving the fete to stay alive and remain relevant, chances are the name would be Lady Gaga. After a successful career in music, selling millions of records and recording duets with the legendary Tony Bennett, the Born This Way singer realizes that doing what she wants to do and how she wants to do it, is the key to sanity.

Lady Gaga told Billboard that being recognized as their Woman of the Year in 2015 is about being true to herself. She had an epiphany and says, "After Cheek to Cheek, everybody was like, 'Oh, you're Rod Stewart now.' I love Rod Stewart, but I would also argue that I'm not doing an adult contemporary jazz album later in my career and I'm not just doing it because I like standards. I am an Italian-American girl from New York who won state jazz competitions in high school for my abilities. I was born to sing with Tony and for him to be like, 'Yes, you were.' And so was Ella [Fitzgerald] and so was Judy [Garland] -- we could go on and on listing the amazing women he sang with. It's a party I'm thrilled to be invited to."

Fellow Bennett inspired Gaga to be authentic. She says,"There is nobody more badass than Tony Bennett. That man is a part of the history of music in a way tha t is extremely powerful, and he taught me to stay true to who I am, to not let anybody exploit me. He is responsible in so many ways for making me happy, and I can say the same for Elton [John]. When the whole industry turned their back on me during Artpop, they were the ones who said, 'Hey, this is a blip. It's going to go away.' On tour, I had people give me war medals and memorabilia just to thank me for exposing a younger generation to Tony Bennett because he changed their lives in such significant ways. I want to be a part of curating a culture where we don't give credence to anyone who is rude or crass or not good for the world."

In many so many ways, the PopArt singer has explored other options in entertainment. She reached out to American Horror Story: Hotel creator, Ryan Murphy about creating what she calls "dark art," with the role as the matriach vampire named, The Countess. But about surviving the music industry, it's simple for her. She states, "You can't sell your soul once you make it," she explains. "It's a big mistake to just go after the money to try to stay on top. I think that's what everyone wanted me to do. But I'm a different kind of girl, and when being different is not in style it's hard for me to function," reports Elle.

In the meantime, the nearly 30-year old will continue other endeavors to help others through philanthropic work. She's newly engaged now and finally living while continuing to explore acting and whatever else makes her happy.