October 22, 2017 — If you had the money of your favorite rock star, your favorite musician, your favorite girlie, as I call these female performers I like, what would you do? How would you spend it? And it’s not just performers of this kind. My favorite sports figure, ever, and also a girlie, the name-sake of my beloved African Grey parrot, the one and only Sasha Cohen, I could ask the same about her. Some say they should just play music, keep their causes to themselves. But if I had their positions, I would have at least one cause, one charity, and I would use my own celebrity to help the cause. Sasha supported fallen warriors. Soldiers would send her letters of thanks. Another of my girlies, Ellie Goulding’s, cause is the planet, global issues. She tweets almost daily about issues of the Earth, global warming, climate activism, even one excited recent tweet-post about McDonald’s introducing a vegan burger, things like that. As part of her official merchandise, she has launched a cute little polar bear bracelet, the proceeds of which go entirely to the World Wildlife Fund. And last week, for her work on global climate issues she was honored by the United Nations Foundation with their prestigious Global Leadership Award, praising her commitment to educate her fans and raise her voice as an advocate. All that and she’s working on a new album too. Oh and a big, huge congratulations to you, my girlie, Ellie!

Then there’s the Presidents’ club; that’s what I call it. For all the mudslinging that goes on in politics, both in Washington and on the streets of America, the ex-Presidents are fervent, non-partisan activists. No matter what one thinks of their legacies, each of them does an excellent job of working together for the good of the collective “one” of the peoples of the Earth. Coming together to form “OneAmericaAppeal.org”, all five living ex-Presidents, Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George Bush and Barak Obama, are participating to raise money for the victims of the recent hurricanes, earthquakes, fires, basically this year’s disasters, and in their efforts, on October 21, all the Presidents had a concert. All the Presidents’ star performer: Lady Gaga.

It was heartwarming, all of it. As for the Presidents, to me, it honestly and genuinely seems like when one becomes an ex-President, one puts partisanship aside. Indeed, Jimmy Carter is offering to help President Trump with North Korea, or so the headline of CNN today states. And to choose Lady Gaga as their main performer? Well, Lady Gaga did kill it at the Superbowl last year, and that was in Texas, also the situs of All the Presidents’ concert, so perhaps that made sense. As for Lady Gaga, her desire for unity and charity was apparent as well. She donated $1 million through her own foundation, the Born This Way Foundation, to assist with the disaster victim’s mental health. She seemed whole-hearted committed to this benefit. But it was her demeanor that almost makes me cry.

She seems nervous. Knowing her music well, I could see timing mistakes, mistakes she makes look like simply a variation in arrangement, the sign of a great performer. And the introduction she gives to each of the Presidents who were seated all in a row on the front row — Gaga saying “Mr. President” to each of them in a slightly different voice — was personable and heartwarming. But this is Lady Gaga. Not that I have read the comments on YouTube, and I won’t, but mixed in with the comments like “she’s my queen”, I’m sure there are comments about her old image, about how she isn’t right for this event. But I don’t care. Look at her! Look at what she’s made herself into. She’s downright gorgeous. Here’s to you, Girlie Gaga. You continue to make me proud to have been a little monster (the name of her fans) from day one! She’s growing up and making herself into a musician with real staying power. It makes me unbelievably happy that a former wild girl can be the one to set the example of grace, that someone who created so much controversy around herself, some deserved, some not, can be in such a good place, a place of leadership and respect, respect worthy of all the Presidents. Who knows? Perhaps, in a few years, all the Presidents’ Lady Gaga will be known as our national treasure. Here’s to you Gaga, a really big, huge congratulations!

Full Performance: