Lady GaGa is a theatrical dance-pop singer/songwriter/pianist who created a buzz for herself in the New York underground before making her major-label debut with Interscope Records in 2008. Influenced by flamboyant glam rockers such as David Bowie and Queen, as well as '80s dance-pop like Madonna and Michael Jackson, Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta grew up in Manhattan, where she attended private school at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and later studied at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. At age 20 she began working as a songwriter for Interscope Records, where she penned songs for pop acts such as the Pussycat Dolls. She mounted a solo career several years later, releasing her chart-topping debut single, "Just Dance," in early 2008. Her debut album, The Fame, was issued in the United States later that year, and its Grammy-nominated success paved the way for a U.K. release in early 2009. ~ Jason Birchmeier, All Music Guide