Who Is Lady Gaga's Sister? New Details About Natali Germanotta
She said she was her "soulmate" in her Oscars speech.
getty When Lady Gaga accepted her award for Best Original Song at the 2019 Oscars, it wasn't her former fiancé or Bradley Cooper she wanted to thank; it was her sister.
The 32-year-old singer-turned-actress put the spotlight on her sister Natali Germanotta at Dolby Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday, Feb. 24, when she not only thanked her in her speech but took her to the awards show as her date. And this was only days after it was announced that Gaga had split from fiancé Christian Carino.
“To my sister, my soulmate, I love you. My family is here, I love you mum and dad,” Gaga said, holding back tears. And she, of course, thankedCooper afterwards. "Bradley, there is not a single person on this planet that could have sung this song with me but you. Thank you for believing in us. Thank you so much.”
“If you are at home and you’re sitting on your couch and you are watching this right now, all I have to say is this is hard work," she continued. "I’ve worked hard for a long time and it’s not about winning. What it’s about is not giving up. If you have a dream, fight for it. There’s a discipline for passion and it’s not about how many times you get rejected or you fall down or you’re beaten up, it’s about how many times you stand up and are brave and you keep on going. Thank you.”
So who is Lady Gaga's sister? Here's everything we know about Natali Germanotta.
1. She's close to her older sister.
Germanotta and Gaga are very close friends. In fact, when Gaga was engaged to Taylor Kinney, the 26-year-old was lined up to be one of her bridesmaids. And we can only assume it was going to be a similar set-up if Gaga went through with her marriage to Carino.
2. She loves animals.
Much like her big sis Gaga, Germanotta has a major love for animals. She even once brought her pet lizard to a Teen Vogue photo shoot. She even kissed it on the lips — making the crew cringe.
3. She grew up in Manhattan.
Obviously like her sister Gaga, Germanotta also grew up in Manhattan's Upper West Side. She attended a private all-girls school called the Convent of the Sacred Heart, but she insisted she wasn't overly-sheltered. Germanotta enjoyed the performing and fine arts.
"Ever since we were kids, my parents gave us the freedom to be ourselves," she told Teen Vogue.
Germanotta was only a sophomore in high school when Gaga released "Just Dance" and skyrocketed to fame, changing her family's life forever. Gaga received criticism for showing up at Germanotta's high school graduation at a church in a flesh-color unitard, but Germanotta said that was her idea.
"She asked me, 'Should I dress really conservative and look not like myself, or should I do it over-the-top and freak everybody out?' And I was like, 'The latter, definitely the latter.'"
And she said her sister's over-the-top style has definitely helped her get away with a few things.
"Whenever I wear something crazy and my dad gives me a hard time, I say, 'Well, at least I'm not walking out on the street with red pasties,' and he'll be like, 'Good point.'"
4. She studied fashion.
Germanotta studied fashion at Parsons The New School for Design and told Teen Vogue that she was always interested in fashion. She designed her own graduation gown her senior year and was in the running to design costumes for an off-Broadway show.
Once, Gaga turned a stiletto Germanotta had made for a class project into a shoe-shaped piano and played it on The Oprah Winfrey Show.
"I was at my parents' house sobbing, like, 'Oh my God,'" she recalled. When she got older, she started designing some of Gaga's costumes, including the one she wore for her Super Bowl halftime show.
5. She has a nickname for her sister.
Germanotta reportedly refers to her big sister as "Stefi."
6. She's made a few cameos.
Germanotta made a brief appearance in Gaga's music video for "Telephone," which also featured Beyoncé. And it makes sense, seeing how much Gaga loves her sister.
"I have a fierce love for my sister, who is so talented," she said in an interview with Porter magazine. "I wouldn’t say it if it wasn’t true. When she shows me her drawings, I think, "f**k!" I want to sit in her apartment with her and smoke cigarettes and sew all day."
Germanotta has also appeared on Gaga: Five Foot Two, Lady Gaga: Joanne — Piano Version and even worked as a stylist the infamous A Star Is Born.
Emily Blackwood is a writer and editor living in California. She covers all things news, pop culture, and true crime.