Lady Gaga's 'Alejandro' explores her fear of men and farewell to Latino lovers, released in 2010.
Key points
Alejandro is a song by Lady Gaga, released as the third single from her 2009 extended play The Fame Monster, a reissue of her 2008 album The Fame. The song was released on April 20, 2010, and falls under the genres of electropop, dance music, and Europop. It was written by Lady Gaga and RedOne, and produced by RedOne. The track opens with a sample from the melody of Vittorio Monti's 1904 piece 'Csárdás', played on violin. Gaga described the song as being about her fear of men and her farewell to Latino lovers named Alejandro, Roberto, and Fernando. The music video, directed by Steven Klein, thematizes military homoeroticism and celebrates Gaga's admiration of the gay community. The song received mixed reviews from critics, with some praising its catchiness and production, while others criticized it as unoriginal, citing influences from ABBA and Ace of Base. It did not reach chart peaks in any official music charts as reported in the sources. The song was recorded at FC Walvisch Studios in Amsterdam. RedOne handled instrumentation, programming, and recording, with Eelco Bakker contributing to audio engineering. The song was mixed by Robert Orton and mastered by Gene Grimaldi, with Johnny Severin doing vocal editing. The decision to release 'Alejandro' as the third single came after a quarrel between Gaga and her label, with Gaga later commenting on the choice via Twitter. The song is part of a broader body of work that includes other tracks from The Fame Monster.
The song expresses Lady Gaga's fear of men and her emotional farewell to three Latino lovers named Alejandro, Roberto, and Fernando. It conveys a sense of emotional distance and personal reflection on relationships.
Lady Gaga and RedOne wrote the song. RedOne served as the main producer and handled instrumentation, programming, and recording. Eelco Bakker contributed to audio engineering. The song was mixed by Robert Orton and mastered by Gene Grimaldi. Johnny Severin did vocal editing. It was recorded at FC Walvisch Studios in Amsterdam.
The music video was directed by Steven Klein. Gaga selected Klein because he understood her 'I am what I wear' lifestyle and theater background. The video thematizes military homoeroticism and celebrates her admiration of the gay community.
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Facts updated October 18, 2026.
Critical reception was mixed. Some critics praised the song's catchiness and production, while others criticized it as unoriginal due to ABBA and Ace of Base influences. No chart peaks are reported in the sources.
"Alejandro" by Lady Gaga is on Apple Music. Use the buttons in the song box at the top of this guide to play it on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, Amazon Music, Deezer or TIDAL. The official music video is on this page and on YouTube. What each service offers can differ by country.
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