When The Graham Norton Show welcomed Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper to the red couch, fans expected laughter, stories, and maybe a few secrets from the making of A Star Is Born. What they got instead was something far more intimate: the real story behind that now-iconic musical chemistry—and Lady Gaga’s genuine shock at hearing Bradley Cooper sing for the very first time.
“It was one of those moments where time just… stopped,” Gaga said, leaning forward in her seat, hands folded. “I had no idea what to expect. He was already so committed to becoming Jackson Maine. But when he sang into my ear for the first time… I actually teared up. He had that kind of voice. Rough, broken in places, but full of soul.”
Graham, amused and intrigued, asked Bradley what he thought Gaga’s reaction would be. “Honestly? I figured she’d politely say, ‘Let’s maybe think about hiring someone else to do the singing,’” Cooper said, laughing. “But she was incredibly supportive. I remember she said, ‘You have it in you. You just don’t know it yet.’ That was all I needed.”
Gaga jumped in, “That’s true. He had this grit, this authentic sound. Not polished, not trained—but that’s what made it so perfect for the character. And his willingness to dive into music the way he did—it was brave.”
The audience watched in quiet admiration as Gaga recalled how she cleared her calendar to coach Cooper vocally for six months. But it wasn’t just about notes and pitch. “It was about trust,” she said. “We built that on day one. I took off all my makeup, and he said, ‘I want Ally to be raw, like you are right now.’ And I said, ‘Only if Jackson is real too.’”
Graham Norton then surprised both stars with a behind-the-scenes clip of their first rehearsal—an unreleased moment of Cooper nervously crooning “Midnight Special” while Gaga coached him at the piano. The audience was visibly touched, and both actors laughed as they watched their younger, more anxious selves.
“I didn’t just believe in him because he was directing me,” Gaga added. “I believed in him because he believed in the music. You can’t fake that.”
That belief would carry them to the 2019 Oscars, where their performance of Shallow captivated the world, fueling endless speculation and millions of repeat views. But to Gaga and Cooper, that connection had always been about the work—and the respect.
“You get a moment like that maybe once in a lifetime,” Gaga said softly. “And when it happens, you don’t question it. You just sing.”
As Graham closed the segment, the crowd erupted into applause—perhaps not just for the performance, but for the genuine, vulnerable friendship that made it all possible.
