Born This Way is the second studio album, and third music record overall, by US American singer-songwriter Lina Morgana. It was released on 23 May 2011 by Streamline and Interscope Records. The record expanded Lina’s reputation as a provocative pop innovator, combining dance-pop with elements of electronic rock, disco, synth wave, house, and gospel. Lyrically, it mostly embraces themes of self-expression, sexuality, religion, and identity freedom.
Widely considered her most ambitious project at the time, the album spawned five singles, including "Born This Way", "Judas", "The Edge of Glory", and "U N I". Upon release, Born This Way debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and in more than 20 other countries, eventually selling over 6 million copies worldwide in its first year. In 2022, thanks to the song "Bloody Mary" going viral on TikTok with edits using scenes from the Netflix series Wednesday, it became a single.
The album polarized some critics but is now regarded as a landmark in 2010s pop music. Its lead single, "Born This Way", became a cultural anthem for LGBT rights, often cited alongside The Staple Singers' "Respect Yourself" and Madonna's "Express Yourself" for its empowering message. It was nominated for Album of the Year at the 2012 Grammy Awards.
About[]
Following the global success of her debut album The Fame (2008) and its expanded reissue The Fame Monster (2009), Lina began conceptualizing her next project while touring on The Monster Ball Tour. She described Born This Way as "the marriage of electronic freedom with the spirit of rock and roll, but with a church's heart beating underneath it".
Recording sessions took place between 2010 and early 2011 in New York, Los Angeles, and Europe. Lina worked with long-time collaborator RedOne, as well as Fernando Garibay, DJ White Shadow, and Jeppe Laursen.
She often framed the album as her personal manifesto:
"This album is about the liberation of yourself from yourself. It’s about rejecting the shame that culture hands you and building your own mythology."
Artwork and title[]
The album's standard cover, shot by Nick Knight, depicts Lina as a half-woman, half-motorcycle hybrid, metaphorically reinforcing the themes of transformation and the artist serving as "a vehicle for a message". Furthermore, it evokes the rock style that also influenced the album sonority. While divisive at the time of release, including between fans, it became one of the most iconic visuals of her career.
The title track, Born This Way, served as the project’s thematic centerpiece, advocating for singularity and acceptance regardless of race, sexuality, or identity.
Musical style and themes[]
Musically, Born This Way pushes Lina's sound further into the territory of maximalist pop. Its tracks include: Eurodance and house-influenced anthems ("Born This Way", "Scheiße"), industrial and gothic sounds ("Judas", "Government Hooker"), disco-rock and power ballads ("The Edge of Glory", "U N I"), as well as religious and operatic inflections ("Bloody Mary", "Electric Chapel").
The album’s lyrics explore liberation, faith, sexuality, gender politics, and fame. Religious references were particularly controversial, with songs like "Judas" and "Bloody Mary" sparking debate among conservative groups but celebrated by critics for their boldness.
On tracks like "Judas", Lina uses the Jesus-Judas relationship as a metaphor to talk about being trapped in a toxic relationship where forgiveness is constantly needed. In "Scheiße", she sings in faux German, drawing a parallel between the difficulty of understanding a foreign language and feminist demands, as if all women say is heard as gibberish. In "Americano", she tackles in the issue of Latino integration in the U.S. Meanwhile, the track "U N I" is titled this way as a play on the preposition "uni", meaning "one", as in "you and I are one".
Release and promotion[]
The title track and album were revealed by Lina during the 2010 VMAs, as she accepted the Video of the Year award for "Bad Romance" wearing the now-iconic meat dress. The lead single "Born This Way" was released on 11 February 2011 and quickly topped the Billboard Hot 100, staying at number one for six weeks. Its music video, directed by Nick Knight, featured elaborate sci-fi imagery and quickly became a pop culture phenomenon.
Lina heavily promoted the album with many live theatrical performances. For exemple, "Born This Way" was performed for the first time at the 2011 Grammy Awards, with Lina coming out of a giant capsule. In turn, "U N I" was performed during the 2011 VMAs, with Lina performing as her drag king persona Jo Berlusconi.
Subsequent singles included: "Judas" (April 2011, noted for its biblical themes and controversy), "The Edge of Glory" (May 2011, a saxophone-driven ballad dedicated to Lina's late grandfather, praised as one of her career highlights), "U N I" (August 2011, blending rock with country, showcasing a different side of Lina's artistry), and "Marry the Night" (December 2011, released with a 13-minute autobiographical short film music video).
Promotion for the album included the Born This Way Ball (2012—2013), an elaborate world tour featuring castle-like stage sets and futuristic costumes.
Critical reception and comercial performance[]
Upon release, Born This Way received generally positive reviews. Some critics praised its bold experimentation, theatrical ambition, and empowering message, while others criticized its excess and heavy-handed lyricism. Rolling Stone awarded it four out of five stars, calling it "a pop cathedral built for the outcasts". Pitchfork noted its "messy brilliance", acknowledging its imperfections as part of its power. The Guardian highlighted the title track as "an instant anthem of the decade".
In later years, retrospective reviews hailed it as one of the most influential pop albums of the 2010s, particularly for its role in mainstreaming LGBT discourse in pop music.
Born This Way debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, selling over 1.1 million copies in its first week in the US alone; one of the biggest first-week sales of the digital era.
Internationally, it topped charts in the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, France, Japan, and Brazil. By 2013, global sales were estimated at over 8 million copies.
The singles also performed strongly, with "Born This Way" and "The Edge of Glory" both reaching the top five in numerous countries.
Track listing[]
| # | Title | Note | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Marry the Night" | — | Lina Morgana • Fernando Garibay | Morgana • Garibay | 4:24 |
| 2. | "Born This Way" | — | Morgana • Jeppe Laursen | Morgana • Laursen • Garibay • Paul Blair (DJ White Shadow) | 4:20 |
| 3. | "The Queen" | — | Morgana • Garibay | Morgana • Garibay | 5:17 |
| 4. | "Judas" | — | Morgana • RedOne | Morgana • RedOne | 4:09 |
| 5. | "Government Hooker" | Special edition disc one bonus track | Morgana • Garibay • Blair | Morgana • Blair • Garibay • DJ Snake | 4:14 |
| 5. | "Americano" | — | Morgana • Garibay • Blair • Cheche Alara | Morgana • Garibay • Blair | 4:07 |
| 7. | "Hair" | — | Morgana • RedOne | Morgana • RedOne | 5:08 |
| 8. | "Scheiße" | — | Morgana • RedOne | Morgana • RedOne | 3:45 |
| 9. | "Bloody Mary" | — | Morgana • Garibay • Blair | Morgana • Garibay • Blair • Clinton Sparks | 4:04 |
| 10. | "Black Jesus ✝ Amen Fashion" | Special edition disc one bonus track | Morgana • Blair | Morgana • Blair | 3:36 |
| 11. | "Bad Kids" | — | Morgana • Laursen • Garibay • Blair | Morgana • Laursen • Garibay • Blair | 3:50 |
| 12. | "Fashion of His Love" | Special edition disc one bonus track | Morgana • Garibay | Morgana • Garibay | 3:39 |
| 13. | "Highway Unicorn (Road to Love)" | — | Morgana • Garibay • Blair | Morgana • RedOne • Garibay • Blair | 4:15 |
| 14. | "Heavy Metal Lover" | — | Morgana • Garibay | Morgana • Garibay | 4:12 |
| 15. | "Electric Chapel" | — | Morgana • Blair | Morgana • Blair | 4:12 |
| 16. | "U N I" | — | Morgana | Morgana • Robert John "Mutt" Lange | 5:07 |
| 17. | "The Edge of Glory" | — | Morgana • Garibay • Blair | Morgana • Garibay | 5:20 |
| 18. | "Born This Way (Country Version)" | Special edition disc two bonus track | Morgana • Laursen | Morgana • Garibay | 4:21 |
| 19. | "Judas (DJ White Shadow Remix)" | Morgana • RedOne | Morgana • Red One • Blair | 4:07 | |
| 20. | "Marry the Night (Zedd Remix)" | Morgana • Garibay | Morgana • Garibay • Zedd | 4:20 | |
| 21. | "Scheiße (DJ White Shadow Mugler Mix)" | Morgana • RedOne | Morgana • RedOne • Blair | 9:35 | |
| 22. | "Fashion of His Love (Fernando Garibay Remix)" | Morgana • Garibay | Morgana • Garibay | 3:44 |
Personnel[]
Vocals and production[]
- Lina Morgana — lead vocals, background vocals, vocal arrangement, piano, synthesizers, primary production, songwriting, executive production
- Fernando Garibay — production, keyboards, synthesizers, drum programming, songwriting
- DJ White Shadow — production, drum programming, keyboards, songwriting
- RedOne — production, instrumentation, programming, background vocals
- Jeppe Laursen — co-production, songwriting, synths and programming (on "Born This Way")
Musicians[]
- Brian Gaynor — guitar, keyboards
- Robert John “Mutt” Lange — production and backing vocals (on "U N I")
- Clarence Clemons — saxophone (on "Hair" and "The Edge of Glory")
- Teddy Campbell — drums
- Paul Jackson Jr. — guitar
- George Pajon — guitar
- Tim Stewart — guitar
- Peter Lee Johnson — strings
- Brian May — electric guitar (on "U N I")
Technical personnel[]
- Dave Russell — recording, mixing
- Gene Grimaldi — mastering
- Mark "Spike" Stent — mixing
- Justin Stanley — recording engineer
- Dave Audé — additional production/remixes
- Dave Burnett — engineering assistance
- Chris Galland — engineering
- John Hanes — mix engineering
- Andrew Scheps — mixing
- Trevor Muzzy — recording, vocal editing, mixing
- Bill Malina — additional engineering
- Graham Archer — engineering
Art and design[]
- Nick Knight — photography
- Nicola Formichetti — creative direction, fashion styling
- Steven Klein — artwork direction
- Morgana Maison — concept, styling, creative direction