"911" is a song by American singer Lady Gaga from her sixth studio album, Chromatica. It is included as the album's eight track, and is preceded by a string arrangement, "Chromatica II", which transitions right into the beginning of the song. It was written by Gaga, Justin Tranter, BloodPop and Madeon, with the latter two also producing along with Benjamin Rice. It is a Euro disco song with influences from funk and techno. Lyrically, it talks about the antipsychotic medication the singer has to take.
Background and recording
"911" details and describes Gaga's relationship to her antipsychotic medication, olanzapine. Gaga said: "It's about an antipsychotic that I take. And it’s because I can’t always control things that my brain does. I know that. And I have to take medication to stop the process that occurs." BloodPop further elaborated: In an interview with Rolling Stone, BloodPop confirmed that while Gaga was recording the song, she insisted that the studio be near pitch-black and that she wear a wig in order to feel like someone else as she wanted to "relive everything she was talking about in the song with every take". Co-writer and producer Madeon added that they wanted to keep production quiet because "there’s so much life and impact in those lyrics that you want to let them breathe. You don’t need to drown them."
Composition and lyrics
"911" is largely a Euro disco song. The song sees Gaga using monotonous, robotic vocal effects on top of industrial synthesizers, a techno-funk groove, and a "trippy" chorus. Throughout both verses, Gaga describes how her mental illnesses have directly affected the world all around her. In the chorus, she fully accepts and realizes her mental illness, explaining that her biggest enemy is, actually, herself. The lines "I can't see me cry/Can't see me cry ever again/I can't see me cry/Can't see me cry/This is the end" are confirmed as a reference to the decreased emotional responses which are a side-effect of her medication. Leah Greenblatt from Entertainment Weekly compared the song to the work of French electronic music duo Daft Punk, while Nick Smith of musicOMH noted similarities to Kylie Minogue's "Speakerphone". Jem Aswad from Variety found a "vocal nod to Lipps Inc.’s 1980 smash 'Funky Town' in Gaga’s trademark robo-dominatrix voice."
"Chromatica II"
"911" is one of the three songs on the Chromatica album which are preceded by an orchestral interlude. Gaga wanted to emphasize the "cinematic" feeling of the record and felt that it had distinct acts, "such as the sharp right turn it takes when '911' kicks in." The interludes were composed by musician Morgan Kibby, who assembled a 26-person orchestra to record the string arrangements. Talking about the creative process of "Chromatica II", the interlude preceding "911", she explained: Upon the album's release, the seamless transition between "Chromatica II" and "911" became a fan-favorite and was discussed as an album highlight. It generated several memes, with people editing the transition into classic scenes from movies and TV, other internet memes, phrases, and videos, and recreating the transition with similar sounding songs, most notably with Kylie Minogue's "Can't Get You Out of My Head". Annie Zaleski of Time magazine found the strings of "Chromatica II" a "delight", as they "crescendo and swerve" into "911".
Critical reception
Spencer Kornhaber from The Atlantic found "911" a standout moment of the Chromatica album, and described it as a "playfully robotic" song which "reveals new intricacies with each listen." Stephen Daw of Billboard ranked the track as the third best from the album, with "deeply satisfying production" and "some ridiculously clever songwriting", while saying that Gaga "is in her element when she is delivering camp." Kory Grow from Rolling Stone thought the song "splits the difference between the Buggles and Kraftwerk, filtered through Gaga’s kaleidoscope", and noted that "she’s at her best... when taking musical risks", like with "911". Jeremy J. Fisette from Beats Per Minute named it the "strongest song on the record". Tom Johnson from The Line of Best Fit also found it an album highlight, saying that along with another track, "Replay", they are both "honest and thoughtful, brilliant dance music." Writing for PopMatters, Evan Sawdey thought that even though "Gaga is still hiding behind vocoders and numerous filtered vocal effects", the song is one of the best moments of the album as her "real life and experiences are seeping through the gaps in the 4/4 rhythm chains". Caryn Ganz of The New York Times listed the "winking monotony" of "911" as one of the moments she enjoyed from the album. Los Angeles Times's Mikael Wood called it a "catchy, fist-pumping song". Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine thought that Gaga's "distorted vocals" and the "euphoric swoon of the track’s pre-chorus" create an "effective contrast". Dan Weiss from Spin criticized the song for being "so breathlessly wordy you can’t remember the hook". Mark Richardson from The Wall Street Journal thought that "911" along with another song, "Enigma", "find Lady Gaga deploying the more bombastic style of her earlier hits to lesser effect."
