The Fame Monster is the third EP and second major release by American recording artist Lady Gaga. It was released on November 18, 2009 through Interscope Records. Initially planned to be included on a re-release of Gaga's debut studio album, The Fame, she announced that the eight tracks would be included on a standalone release, saying that she thought the re-release was too expensive and that the albums were each conceptually different, describing them as Yin and yang respectively. A Super Deluxe edition of The Fame Monster including The Fame and additional merchandise, including a lock of her wig, was released on December 15, 2009.

Musically, The Fame Monster is a pop album influenced by a number of genres, prominently the disco, glam rock and synthpop music of the 1970s and 1980s, as well as industrial and Gothic music. The album was also inspired by fashion shows and runways. According to Gaga, the album deals with the darker side of fame, including love, sex, alcohol and more. Lyrically, they are expressed through a monster metaphor. The cover artwork was done by Hedi Slimane and has a Gothic theme, as described by Gaga herself. The artwork was originally declined by her record company, however, Gaga convinced them to go through with it. The Fame Monster received generally favorable reviews from music critics. In some countries, the album charted with The Fame, and topped the charts in multiple nations, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Finland, Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, Poland, and Switzerland. In the United States, it reached number five on the Billboard 200 albums chart, and topped the Dance/Electronic Albums chart.

The Fame is the debut studio album by American recording artist Lady Gaga. It was released on August 19, 2008 through Interscope Records. After joining Kon Live Distribution and Cherrytree Records in 2008, Gaga began working on the album with different producers, primarily RedOne, Martin Kierszenbaum and Rob Fusari. Musically, The Fame is a dance-pop and synthpop album that has influences of pop music from the 1980s. Lyrically, the album visualizes Gaga's love of fame in general whilst also dealing with subjects such as love, sex, money, drugs and sexual identity. Promotion was primarily through The Fame Ball Tour and multiple television appearances. The Fame was included as a bonus disc on the deluxe edition of the extended play, The Fame Monster (2009).

The album received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who commended the album's lyrical content and Gaga's musicianship and vocal ability, which have been compared to fellow pop singers such as Gwen Stefani. The album was a commercial success, topping the charts in different countries worldwide, including the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Poland and Switzerland. In the United States, it peaked at number two on the Billboard 200, while topping the Dance/Electronic Albums chart for 100 non-consecutive weeks. The Fame has sold more than 15 million copies worldwide.

Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta (/ˈstɛfəniː dʒʌrməˈnɑːtə/ STE-fə-nee jurr-mə-NAH-tə; born March 28, 1986), known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to focus on her musical career. She began performing in the rock music scene of Manhattan's Lower East Side, and was signed with Streamline Records by the end of 2007. During her employment as a songwriter for the record company, her vocal abilities captured the attention of recording artist Akon, who signed her to his label Kon Live Distribution.

Lady Gaga came to prominence as a recording artist following the release of her debut album The Fame (2008), which was a critical and commercial success that topped charts around the world and included the international number-one singles "Just Dance" and "Poker Face". After embarking on the The Fame Ball Tour, she followed the album with The Fame Monster (2009), which spawned the worldwide hit singles "Bad Romance", "Telephone" and "Alejandro". The album's success allowed her to embark on the eighteen-month long Monster Ball Tour, which later became one of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time. Her most recent album Born This Way (2011) topped the charts of most major markets and generated more international chart-topping singles, including "Born This Way", "Judas" and "The Edge of Glory". Besides her musical career, she involves herself with humanitarian causes and LGBT activism.