A STAR IS BORN - Lady Gaga (feat. Bradley Cooper)(Eng-Spn)

Song Information

• Shallow: The title of the song.
• (feat. Bradley Cooper): "Feat." is short for featuring, meaning "with the participation of" or "in collaboration with." It indicates that actor Bradley Cooper sings on the track alongside her.
• Lady Gaga: The lead artist of the song.

It is the hit theme song from the movie A Star Is Born (2018), performed as a duet by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper; it won the Oscar for Best Original Song.

The song "Shallow" was composed by a team of four songwriters:

Lady Gaga

Mark Ronson (famous producer and songwriter)

Anthony Rossomando

Andrew Wyatt

Lady Gaga and Mark Ronson created the initial idea and the main structure of the track, while Rossomando and Wyatt helped shape its final form through arrangements for the film A Star Is Born.

My Interpretation

"Shallow"—as the translation implies—speaks to the concept of the "shallow" versus the deep. From the moment I first heard it, I loved the power and emotion infused into the lyrics. I don't speak English, but it didn't take much insight to realize the song reflected the human quest for self-improvement and the desire to break through the barriers of the impossible. I understood right away that this was one of those songs that confronts you with the reality of life and compels you to make decisions. It was because of this song that I decided to watch the excellent film starring Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper; I was even more excited by the fact that they were the lead actors.

At first, I thought it was a biographical film about the famous singer Lady Gaga; however, I learned that wasn't the case. While the movie's story is fictional, the song's lyrics are a masterpiece reflecting life itself and the challenges we constantly face.

Song Analysis

The song begins with a question; we can glimpse a sort of dialogue between two people establishing a connection by asking about their innermost desires:

Tell me something, girl. Are you happy in this modern world? Or do you need something more? Is there something else you're searching for?

We can see the nature of these questions—they are filled with the anguish that arises when we seek something beyond the ordinary and harbor a latent sense of dissatisfaction. We want to reach for something that was perhaps denied to us, something we hope to obtain but find elusive.

The answers to these questions are equally distressing. We notice this when one of them says, "I'm falling"; they are unsatisfied with their current state and desire a change of course—a new awakening. They yearn for the good but fear the bad, as if that darkness defines them and causes their downfall; they fear themselves during their darkest moments.

I'm falling. In all the good moments, I find myself longing for a change. And in the bad moments, I fear myself.

One of them asks the other:

Tell me something, boy. Aren't you tired of trying to fill that void? Or do you need more? Isn't it hard keeping up such a tough act?

It is as if they want to confront the demands of society; while trying to satisfy everyone else, they are left feeling empty. They please others, yet lack what they truly want within themselves; they try to fill the void through others and for others, but their life remains empty.

In the next verse, one of them notes that they have reached the depths—they have fallen and are no longer on the surface. They dared to take the plunge. There, far away from everyone, they feel safe. They claim they will never hit rock bottom; having broken through the surface, they are beyond the reach of others—the people up above—who can no longer hurt them. It is a feeling of safety, an escape from the world, from the things that overwhelm and harm them. I’m in the deep end; watch me dive in. I’ll never hit bottom. I break through the surface, Where they can’t hurt us. We’re far from the surface now.

After watching the movie, I pieced together the meaning of the lyrics. Throughout the story, we see the characters—played by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper—struggling: she finally achieves her goals and rises to fame after taking the plunge into the deep end, while he tries to stop pleasing others and fill his inner void. We see him swimming away from the safety of the shore, only to eventually give up the fight and return to the surface. They are polar opposites: she finally attains her dreams, while he sinks deeper into the void.

The movie is undoubtedly brilliant, with a superbly directed plot, but I would venture to say that this excellent piece of music is what truly gave it that magnificent touch.