Lady Gaga draws inspiration from her 'Joker' sequel character to create 'Harlequin' album

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. The energy from their studio time flowed into Gaga’s performance and fueled the creation of her new album “Harlequin,” out Friday. “It was important to us that the album felt cohesive, not because it fit into one style, but because the energy and personality tied it all together,” said Polansky, who called Gaga “brilliant and fearless." “It’s also a deep love and respect for all the musicians and people that were in the studio with us every single day.” “Harlequin” marks Gaga’s first jazz-inspired album since the death of her longtime collaborator and close friend Tony Bennett. “He always used to say to me, 'If you stick with quality, you’ll never go wrong,’” recalled Gaga, who had shared the stage with Bennett and collaborated on two albums: 2014's “Cheek to Cheek” and 2021's “Love For Sale,” which both won Grammy for best traditional pop vocal album.