Gaga: Performing Is 'Like Having Sex With Fans'

Lady Gaga considers herself “one of the greatest voices in the industry,” as well as “one of the greatest songrwriters.” She could, however, be a better dancer: “I wouldn't say that I am one of the greatest dancers, but I am really quite good at what I do," she tells Vogue. More highlights from the cover story:

• On her life now: After touring for three years with no real break, she says, “I am really f***ing tired. I am at that last mile of the marathon when your fingers and your toes are numb and you can’t feel your body, and I am just going on adrenaline. But in the overarching objective of my life, I am really only at mile two. I try to keep that in mind.”
• On her fans: “Sometimes, being onstage is like having sex with my fans. They’re the only people on the planet who in an instant can make me just lose it.”

• On her parents: “I’m very Italian. I call [my father] every day. I ask my mother if he's been smoking. They are in their 50s, and they still live in the same apartment on the Upper West Side. Nothing has changed since I have become a star. I am a real family girl. When it comes to love and loyalty, I am very old-fashioned. And I am quite down-to-earth for such an eccentric person.”
• On her early days as a musician: “It was grassroots, downtown New York, blood, sweat, and tears, dancing, music, whiskey, pummeling the streets, playing every venue I could get my hands on. … And funnily enough, I still live in the same apartment, hang out with the same friends, drink at the same bars, and I dance in the same studios with the same dancers. Really, nothing has changed.”

Click for more from the interview, including pictures. (More Lady Gaga stories.)