Lady Gaga’s ‘Top Gun’ Anthem ‘Hold My Hand’ Is Pure ’80s Gold

Author Brian Ives // Managing Editor, Beasley Media

May 6th, 2022 2:12 PM

Back in 1986, Tom Cruise’s Top Gun was a box office smash, and the soundtrack ruled the radio, thanks to Kenny Loggins’ “Danger Zone” and Berlin’s “Take My Breath Away” (both of which were co-written by Giorgio Moroder, often referred to as “the Father Of Disco”).

This summer, history may repeat, as the long-awaited Top Gun sequel Top Gun: Maverick woill finally hit theaters. And they may have a huge hit, thanks to Lady Gaga’s theme song, “Hold My Hand,” which sounds like it can almost fit in with the original soundtrack, with some 2020s magic added. As Gaga said when she announced the song, “When I wrote this song for Top Gun: Maverick, I didn’t even realize the multiple layers it spanned across the film’s heart, my own psyche, and the nature of the world we’ve been living in. I’ve been working on it for years, perfecting it, trying to make it ours. I wanted to make music into a song where we share our deep need to both be understood and try to understand each other—a longing to be close when we feel so far away and an ability to celebrate life’s heroes.”

Watch the video for the new song below. Top Gun: Maverick hits theaters on May 27.

GALLERY: Lady Gaga's Top 12 Best Songs Ranked

• 12. “Just Dance”

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  Lady Gaga wrote this song a day after arriving in Los Angeles from New York. The singer-songwriter said, "I was taken very quickly out of my party lifestyle. I wrote it instantly - like it flew out of my body." She explained the meaning of the song as "If you've ever been so high that it's, like, scary, the only way you can deal with it is not deal with it, so you just kind of dance through the intoxication."

• 11. “Bad Romance”

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  This club banger is the lead single from the deluxe edition of Gaga's debut album, The Fame Monster. Lyrically, the song celebrates the passion and desire found in a bad romance novel.

• 10. “LoveGame”

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  Critics appreciated the song's "I wanna take a ride on your disco stick" hook. Gaga had explained that the term "disco stick" is a euphemism for a penis and was inspired by her sexual attraction to a stranger at a night club.
• 9. “Alejandro”

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  Gaga explained the song's meaning about the "purity of my friendships with my gay friends, and how I've been unable to find that with a straight man in my life."

• 8. “Poker Face”

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  The song started trending this year because of a viral TikTok video where a fan reacts to the lyrics of the post-chorus, realizing that Gaga’s singing “f-f-f--- her face”. This revelation in the TikTok community has led to people googling the lyrics to check if it’s true.

• 7. “Applause”

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  Gaga attributes her failing hip influencing the song saying, "When I was finishing the [Born This Way] tour, I was physically breaking. I was in a lot of pain, but didn't know where really. I have a strong threshold for pain, so I kept slapping myself saying, 'Get it together.' The only thing that kept me going was the applause. And I was able to drown out the pain and finish the show."
• 6. “John Wayne”

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  Gaga's Americana craving for a wild, blue-collar man and smoking cannabis. She fantasizes about "a real wild man" like John Wayne. Some critics felt that "John Wayne" might portray Gaga's relationship with her ex-fiancé Taylor Kinney.

• 5. “Joanne”

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  Joanne was Gaga's aunt, who she died of lupus when she was 19. Gaga explained how the song has helped her father to come to terms with the loss of his sister after all these years.

• 4. “Shallow”

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  This is the most awarded song in music history, written and performed by Gaga and Bradley Cooper. It was released as the lead track for their 2018 musical romance drama "A Star Is Born." Gaga wrote it from her character Ally's point of view, with the self-aware lyrics asking each other if they are content being who they are.
• 3. “Telephone”

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  "Telephone" was originally written for Britney Spears's sixth album Circus. However, after it failed to make the album's final track listing, Gaga recorded the song as a collaboration with Beyoncé on The Fame Monster.

• 2. “Judas”

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  Gaga explained that the song was about the incidents that have haunted Gaga in the past as well as honoring one's inner darkness in order to bring oneself into the light. Several religious groups condemned Gaga for the use of religious imagery and her role as Mary Magdalene in the video.

• 1. “Paparazzi”

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  Gaga said that she intended this song to have a few different interpretations, "The song is about a few different things – it's about my struggles, do I want fame or do I want love? It's also about wooing the paparazzi to fall in love with me." Adding, "It's a love song for the cameras, but it's also a love song about fame or love – can you have both, or can you only have one?"

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Author Brian Ives // Managing Editor, Beasley Media

Category:

• Music
• My Kiss Radio

Tags:

Lady Gaga,Top Gun