ABSTRACT
With over 41 million followers on Twitt er, a fan following on Facebook of over 64 million and a dedicated fan base on YouTube, American recording artist Lady Gaga is a timely exponent of how social media can be used as a tool by modern celebrities to connect and further mobilise their fan base. This chapter explores how Gaga fans, known as little Monsters, are connecting with the star through social media platforms, and ruminates on how the relationship between fan and celebrity is currently being affected by these new media forms. Building on work by Marwick and boyd (2011), and drawing on an online survey of Gaga fans that received 156 respondents, this chapter seeks to unravel the motivations and aspirations surrounding the online relationship between Gaga and her followers, adding valuably to our understandings of fan/celebrity relations.
