Lady Gaga pushed back against ageism during a heartfelt speech at the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards.
During the ceremony held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Monday night, the singer-songwriter won Best Collaboration for Die with a Smile, her duet with Bruno Mars.
Gaga, real name Stefani Germanotta, was also presented with the Innovator Award by rapper-singer Doechii, who credited the Abracadabra hitmaker with helping her to embrace her "weird" side.
Taking to the stage, Gaga hit back at critics who claimed she was "too old" to be a popstar.
"Winning an award honouring my entire career at 38 years old is a hard thing to get my head around," she began. "On the one hand, I feel like I've been doing this forever. On the other hand, I know I'm just getting started. Even though the world might consider a woman in her late thirties old for a popstar - which is insane - I promise that I'm just getting warmed up."
Gaga then recalled how some of her more "controversial" moments, such as arriving at the 2011 Grammy Awards in a plastic egg, have actually defined her career.
"If I learned anything in the three decades I've been at this, it's that the most powerful innovation is your authenticity," the Born This Way star exclaimed. "Every time I was the only woman in the room, the loudest voice was inside my own head telling me not to compromise. Listening to that voice always showed me exactly where I belonged."
Elsewhere in her moving speech, Gaga acknowledged the artists who paved the way for her and other performers, such as Elton John, Madonna, Stevie Wonder, and Cher, as well as her late friend and frequent collaborator, Tony Bennett.
The 38-year-old - who recently released her sixth studio album Mayhem - also reflected on the "fiercely brilliant" Italian American women in her family who carved out new lives for themselves with "nothing but strength and dreams and determination".
"Those women, my ancestors, they're the greatest innovators I've ever known," she continued, before giving a shout-out to her fans, known as Little Monsters. "Thank you for always seeing me so clearly from (2008 album) The Fame to Mayhem. Because you saw me, I learned to see myself. To the LGBTQ+ community, you taught me bravery before the world was able to listen. You have changed the world for the better, and your courage fuels mine every single day."
To conclude, Gaga called on people to harness their individualism.
"To every artist that's ever been told they're different, complicated or too much, please never change. Break the mould. The world doesn't need another copy. It desperately needs your original," the Just Dance singer added.