Lady Gaga addresses viral rumor she’s secretly a man in new interview

Lady Gaga has shared her thoughts on one of the most persistent lies that dogged her in the early years of her career.

The 38-year-old singer-songwriter opened up about her reaction to rumors that she was secretly a man during her recent appearance on Netflix’s new series What’s Next? The Future With Bill Gates.

She appeared in episode two of the series opposite the 68-year-old tech founder, billionaire and philanthropist.

According to Gaga, who premiered her new Joker sequel in Venice earlier this month, she wasn’t worried about the rumors about her gender because she was “used to lies being published about her.”

She also said that she ultimately felt the questions were minor compared to the bullying and abuse that other people without her fame have faced because of their gender and sexuality.

She discussed the rumors and her desire not to dispute them during an appearance in episode two of Netflix’s new series What’s Next? The Future With Bill Gates

“When I was in my early 20s, there was a rumor that I was a man,” Gaga told Gates.

“I was traveling all over the world. I was traveling on tour and to promote my records and almost every interview I was in they said — there was some footage on the internet that was manipulated — they said, ‘There’s rumors that you’re a man. What do you have to say about that?'” she said.

But Gaga – real name Stefani Germanotta – decided to largely ignore the wrong questions, saying they didn’t put her well-being at risk.

“The reason I didn’t answer the question is because that lie didn’t make me feel like a victim. I thought, ‘What am I going to do if a child is accused of this? He doesn’t think a public figure like me would be ashamed of it?'” she explained.

“I’ve been in situations where dispelling a rumor wasn’t in the best interest of other people’s well-being,” she continued. “In that case, I tried to disrupt and think differently. I tried to use the misinformation to create another disruptive point.”

Gaga said that over the years of being fed misinformation, she’s developed a thick skin for similar questions.

“I’ve been used to lies being printed about me since I was 20 years old. I’m a performer. I find it funny,” she added.

Gaga responded with humorous annoyance during a 2011 interview with Anderson Cooper, in which he asked her about the “rumor” that she had “a male appendage” or was a “hermaphrodite.”

“Maybe,” Gaga teased him as she suggestively sucked on what looked like a diamond.

“When I was in my early 20s, there was a rumor that I was a man,” Gaga shared with Gates; photographed in 2015 in Las Vegas

“The reason I didn’t answer the question is because I didn’t feel like a victim in that lie,” she admitted. She was more concerned about “a child being accused of that and thinking that a public figure like me would be embarrassed”; pictured in 2017 in College Station, Texas

Although Gaga teased Anderson Cooper when he asked about her alleged “male appendage” in 2011, she said that “resolving a rumor is not always” “in the best interest of other people’s well-being”; pictured in Las Vegas in 2021

Gaga’s appearance on Gates’ series comes as she prepares for the release of her film Joker: Folie à Deux, in which she stars opposite Joaquin Phoenix. It premiered at the Venice Film Festival earlier this month; pictured on September 4 in Venice

When he asked her why she was “having fun with” the rumors, instead of immediately debunking them in a press release, as he thought other celebrities would do, she shot back: “Why on earth am I going to waste my time and put out a press release about whether or not I have a penis?

“My fans don’t care, and neither do I,” she added.

Gaga’s appearance on Gates’ series comes as she prepares for the release of her film Joker: Folie à Deux, in which she stars opposite Joaquin Phoenix.

Earlier this month, she showed off her platinum blonde locks and chic look at the premiere of the supervillain sequel at the Venice Film Festival.