Lady Gaga at Twitter headquarters

For a girl whose father was worried about her getting a real job, Lady Gaga’s showing dear old dad there’s no cause for concern. Since reportedly going broke for the early portion of her pop star career, Lady Gaga’s taken on the title of Polaroid creative director, unofficial (and unwanted) ice cream muse, and Farmville promoter among other things. Now you can add tech angel investor to the list. Someone’s going to need a bigger business card.

Skipping the trend of celebrity as online startup entrepreneur, Gaga’s will go straight to online startup investor with a stake in a $1 million investment in online startup Backplane. {Dealbook/New York Times} Lady Gaga (née Stefani Germanotta) won’t be investing alone: the $1 million funding round is being led by Google’s Eric Schmidt, though Gaga will reportedly be a 20% shareholder in the company.

Before you decide to stop working on ways to get your demo tape to Lady Gaga, and start getting your business plan in front of her, you should know that Troy Carter, the entrepreneur behind Backplane, is also Lady Gaga’s business manager. In other words, the man with a large amount of responsibility for Lady Gaga’s overwhelming social media success.

Backplane isn’t publicly available yet, but already has a team of seven and has been cooking since last fall. Carter sees it as a platform for musicians and sports teams to build communities that include Twitter, Facebook and other existing networks. Though the intent is for entertainment, we could easily see brands buying into the platform if it’s effective. Tide may not be as sexy as Lady Gaga, but if Backplane can help make campaigns across social websites and different campaigns easier to manage that’s something that will be as attractive to someone selling soap as someone selling singles.

Not to mention, Carter has one pretty great case study on his hands: Lady Gaga beat out Ashton Kutcher and Justin Bieber to become the first person to reach 10 million Twitter followers; the first person to gain 10 million Facebook fans (now 37 million); and her videos continue to set and blow through all kinds of YouTube records. Her recent promotion with Amazon cost the e-tailer millions, but it also brought enough attention to Amazon’s new music service to crash their servers.

At this point, people online like Lady Gaga more than Coca-Cola, long touted as one of the world’s most valuable brands. While Silicon Valley still isn’t sold on Hollywood players (entertainers) bringing significant value to startups, we wouldn’t bet against the guy behind one of the most valuable online brands in modern pop culture, or the possibility that other brands will want in on the action.

Womenswear Designer of the Year: Alexander Wang, Jack McCollough & Lazaro Hernandez for Proenza Schouler, and Marc Jacobs

Menswear Designer of the Year: Michael Bastian, Patrik Ervell, and Simon Spurr

Accessory Designer of the Year: Alexander Wang, Jack McCollough & Lazaro Hernandez for Proenza Schouler, and Reed Krakoff

Swarovski Award for Womenswear: Joseph Altuzarra, Ashley Olsen & Mary-Kate Olsen, and Prabal Gurung

Swarovski Award for Menswear: Alexander Wang, Phillip Lim, and Robert Geller

Swarovski Award for Accessory Design: Alejandro Ingelmo, Eddie Borgo, Jason Wu, and Pamela Love

Honorary Awards

Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award: Marc Jacobs

CFDA Board of Directors Special Tribute: Arthur Elgort “in honor of his impact on photography and fashion.”

Fashion Icon Award: Lady Gaga “for being a fashion revolutionary impacting style today.”

Media Award, given in honor of Eugenia Sheppard: Hilary Alexander of The Telegraph

Founders Award, given in honor of CFDA founder Eleanor Lambert: Hal Rubenstein of In Style.

International Award: Phoebe Philo for Celine {CFDA}

Tech companies played a role in the moments immediately following the catastrophe, but now it’s fashion’s turn to step in with monetary support to help in rebuilding devastated areas and people who’ve lost their homes, family members and possessions to the natural disasters. If you’re preparing to do some shopping take a second to check out the designers who are directing some of their profits to Japanese aid and make your purchase matter a bit more.

Jewelry designer Alexis Bittar will donate 100% of all sales made on his website next week to the Catholic Relief Services for Japan. In addition, on March 24th, 100 percent of all retail sales at Bittar’s boutiques will be donated as well. WWD notes that his first fashionable fundraising effort for Haiti last year raised $60,000.

Tadashi Shoji will donate 10% of sales made in his two stores for the next month.

Coach has pledged ¥400 million (approximately $5 million), according to WWD.

Fast Retailing founder Tadashi Yanai, the billionaire retailer who owns Uniqlo, is donating Â¥1 billion (about $12.2 million) of his own money to relief efforts, and Fast Retailing is donating another Â¥400 million (approximately $5 million) as a company. Customers can donate clothing at Fast Retailing stores like Uniqlo, Comptoir des Cotonniers and Theory. Fast Retailing will also donate coats, jeans, towels and underwear to victims – that represents an additional $8.6 million of aid, according to Time.

Lady Gaga‘s Japan earthquake relief wristband has a starting price of $5 (all proceeds go towards Japanese relief efforts) and reportedly raised $250,000 in 48 hours with the support of her little monsters.

Dirty ice cream? Yes. Breast milk ice cream? No way.

Just last week we wrote “incorporating the name of one of the worldâ€s biggest pop stars, while good for grabbing the attention of Gaga fans via vague headlines, doesnâ€t seem like itâ€s all that great for creating a distinct brand identity,” when posing the question of whether breast milk ice cream (named Baby Gaga) would be a trend that anyone would jump on. Seems like Lady Gaga agrees, and as of last Friday began legal proceedings against Baby Gaga makers The Icecreamists. {London Evening Standard}

Lady Gaga’s suit accuses the Icecreamists of “riding on her coattails,” and calls the ice cream itself “deliberately provocative and, to many people, nausea-inducing.”

Okay, we kind of agree with the first part, and we agree on the nauseating nature of the ice cream, but this is also coming from the same woman who wore raw meat and is including the scent of blood and semen in a forthcoming fragrance.

All of which are perfectly good reasons for the Icecreamists to choose a name that might not be mistaken as a Lady Gaga endorsed product, but we have to admit there’s something… odd about Mother Monster taking on a concept that’s provocative on the opposing side.

Icecreamists owner Matt O’Connor called the legal action “utterly ridiculous” and vowed to fight the case. “This is a David versus Goliath battle I’m convinced we will eventually win. The world’s biggest superstar has taken umbrage with the world’s smallest ice-cream parlour,” he said.

Well, we warned of this happening, but as the saying goes almost all publicity is good publicity (unless you’re Max Clifford, in which case bad publicity just shows how flawed your thought process is). If O’Connor can count on anything, it’s that at the end of this his ice cream shop will definitely get a taste of the fame.

Image via TimeOut London

Weâ€re sure youâ€ve heard about the breast milk ice cream that one London shop has had on its menu by now, but yesterday we learned that local officials confiscated all of the supply that was on hand at the store due to health concerns. The ice cream is apparently being sent to be tested for hepatitis contamination. {Los Angeles Times}

In case you missed the news, which has been spreading around radio talk shows, newscasts and Internet blogs for about a week, an artisan shop called Icecreamists in London has been selling ice cream made from human breast milk, dubbed “Baby Gaga” and sold for $22 a scoop. Icecreamists†owners promise the ice cream, which is made with vanilla and lemon zest, tastes fantastic. {Shape} Apparently someone out there agreed, as the flavor quickly sold out. {Time Out London}

Concerns from England’s Health Protection Agency that the breast milk used to make the ice cream was not properly tested for harmful bacteria resulted in officials confiscating remaining supplies. Shape spoke with Dr. Ruth Lawrence, director of the Breastfeeding and Human Lactation Study Center at the University of Rochester Medical Center, told the health and fitness magazine: “The bigger philosophical issue is there are so many small babies and sick babies who desperately need breast milk. If women have milk to give, it would be wonderful to donate it to a milk bank…I suspect the breast milk ice cream contains only trace amounts, anyway.” For what it’s worth, the Icecreamists have maintained that the breast milk used was tested for the same diseases that blood is tested for when donated.

This may be a case where the gross factor is in our heads, but we wonâ€t be trying Baby Gaga any time soon. Sure, we know where the milk in stores comes from, and cow milk might have an ick factor for some. Still, ingesting anything that contains even a sliver of something that was secreted from another humanâ€s body is just too disgusting. Once youâ€re past a few months old, breast milk should be out of the question. Plus, $22 for a scoop of what amounts to cleverly marketed baby food exceeds our budget range.

The Icecreamists are known for clever names like Sex Bomb and the Vanilla Monologues, but we aren’t sure about this one. We first heard of the product via a tweet that said something about Baby Gaga but didnâ€t say what Baby Gaga was, so we thought Lady Gaga was pregnant or showing off pictures from when she was a child. Incorporating the name of one of the worldâ€s biggest pop stars, while good for grabbing the attention of Gaga fans via vague headlines, doesnâ€t seem like itâ€s all that great for creating a distinct brand identity. With a forthcoming Lady Gaga scent tapping blood and semen for inspiration {Fashionista} and the Lady’s propensity for outfits from the butcher, it’s probably not the kind of association that helps sell people on body fluids as ingredients anyway. On their Facebook page, the Icecreamists say they have a revamped baby formula version ready to roll. Might we suggest a re-naming party to celebrate?

We have a few thoughts on this situation. First, the Vogue reps looking to get the pictures taken off the Internet are wasting their time. Gaga has 8 million followers on Twitter who have already seen the cover by now, and no doubt millions of other people around the world got wind of the leak and have searched and found the photos as well. As a reference, in 2010 Lady Gaga made Googleâ€s list of top 10 most searched people in entertainment. {Google Zeitgeist} Thereâ€s just no fighting the power of the Internet to spread news like wild fire – particularly news that involves as huge a pop star as Lady Gaga.

Our second observation is that it was quite unethical for Lady Gaga to leak a cover of such a prestigious magazine, but more importantly, it was genius. Leaks are a fantastic way for celebrities to use social media to their advantage, and what is Vogue honestly going to do about it? Shun Lady Gaga forever? That wonâ€t be much help in keeping Vogue relevant into the future, since a significant challenge for the magazine has been being relatable to the average consumer which is something Gaga, even in all her fashion extravagance and craziness, does very well.

Not to mention that Lady Gaga probably did Vogue a favor. She also leaked via Twitter this week that her new single will be out Friday, February 11^th, a few days earlier than originally planned. Now that fans anxiously waiting the release of Born This Way are aware of Gagaâ€s Vogue cover appearance, many of them may go purchase the magazine as well as the song.

As for the cover itself, Lady Gaga’s bleached out eyebrows, Louise Brooks bob in Gwyneth Paltrow pink and berry-colored lipstick actually remind us (in a good way) of something you might find in a 1910-era magazine, when covers were expressions of illustrators’ creativity. It’s nostalgic, but modern at the same time. We do, however, find it a close second to her 2010 grayed-out Vanity Fair cover in terms of mystique. Which do you prefer?

Comfortable? Probably not. But ladies, these shoes go with EVERYTHING.

To be fair, one would not actually look naked in this shoe. Rather, one would look as if their feet had entirely disappeared. We absolutely love it, but we do have a few concerns. For one thing, how do the mirrors on these shoes not break when you walk on hard pavement in them? The floating on air look is beyond cool, but shattered glass? Not so much. Plus, these shoes could be too blinding in very bright sunlight. We were also bummed to learn that these shoes have been around for a while, and Chaves†final collection was planned for February 2010.

Still, word about the “The Invisible Shoe” has been slowly making its way around the Internet, and it isnâ€t the only funky footwear Chaves came up with in her time. She also created a high heel made with leather and sycamore wood cubes, called the “Form & Texture” shoe, in addition to shoes made with large straps of Velcro. {Yatzer} Both designs look like something Lady Gaga would wear, and we have to appreciate Chaves†unique vision, but both also look like theyâ€d be quite difficult to actually walk in.

“The Invisible Shoe” seems like the best of concepts related to sci-fi and pale color palettes combined, but do you think anyone wearing them on the streets would look cool or just strange? Weâ€re undecided.

Lady Gaga with the Polaroid GL10 portable printer, photos of the Polaroid GL30 digital camera/printer combo

Images via CrunchGear

This year it was all about the big picture as she debuted the Polaroid Grey GL30 Instant Camera, which (surprise!) takes the polaroid instant photo concept digital. The GL30 has a flip-up LCD screen for framing shots, a panel of controls underneath the screen and alternately a one shot option. Sticking with the instant image aspect that’s made Polaroid an icon, it also doubles as a wireless color printer which actually sounds pretty cool. If you can do without the camera or already have a favorite but like the idea of instant prints, the GL10 is a portable printer that should be right up your alley. It will be the first to launch at a price of $149.99 with a scheduled release sometime in April, and allows you to make Polaroid style print outs of digital images via Bluetooth on the fly. {WSJ} It’s not iPhone compatible, but maybe all those new Meizu M9 owners can make up for that.

“I love the products, I’m so proud to be here,” Gaga gushed about developing the gadgets with Polaroid. “They honored me as a woman, as a creative director and they really let me [put my] hands in there and design this sh– myself,” Gaga said. {MTV}

In other words, Mother Monster was very hands on in the design of the GL – Grey Label – line, which is probably best evidenced in the forthcoming GL20. What exactly is the GL20? The first camera/sunglasses combination that doesn’t look totally ridiculous. The unpriced Polaroid glasses allow the wearer to instantly take photos of what they’re seeing and display them on LCD screens built into the gadget. While this totally sounds like something from the mind of Gaga, if people had problems with video girl Barbie we’re almost certain privacy advocates are going to go gaga over this – and not in a good way.

On the plus side, now hidden camera filmmakers can look a little less creepy while doing their thing.

First up, Natasha Bedingfield. The famous singer with a pocket full of sunshine was one of the lucky ones chosen to perform on Dick Clarkâ€s New Yearâ€s Rockin†Eve with Ryan Seacrest, but she came on stage seemingly stuck in an American Pie moment, with her bangs permanently skewed up and to the left. {Glamour} The good news is Natashaâ€s long-sleeved LBD had the perfect amount of sparkle and her sheer black stockings were right on trend, but letâ€s hope the Silly Putty plastered bangs look doesnâ€t take hold like Lady Gagaâ€s affection for going pantsless did.

Next, Lil†Wayne. The Young Money/Cash Money star performed for BET’s 106 & Park New Year’s Eve Party broadcast wearing Designer Jeremy Scottâ€s teddy bear sneakers created for Adidas†Originals by Originals line {Sole Collector}. We truly appreciate Scottâ€s vision and creativity, and we especially admire his willingness to push boundaries, but boy do we hope men and women around the world donâ€t start wearing stuffed animals on their feet. Lil†Wayne (who could’ve used a pair of SUBS in the back) can pull the look off, and the press Scott has received as a result of the sneakers†appearance on NYE television has been unbelievable, but something tells us the ordinary guy or gal would just end up looking a little silly in teddy shoes. Scottâ€s winged Adidas sneakers, on the other hand, are really cool. You should go buy a pair.

Jeremy Scott's Adidas: Not sure about those on the left, no doubt about the style on the right.

We suppose odd, IEJ-worthy looks are a great way for celebrities to get some extra press once the NYE performance hype dies down, so we canâ€t totally blame Bedingfield and Lil†Wayne for their off-beat looks. Just donâ€t go public with any of this, kids. These are two looks you should only try at home.

A social network, pop star and socialite top popularity lists. Stop us if you've heard this before.

YouTube, which rose from 7th most visited site in 2009 the 5th most visited in 2010, helps make up the 9.85% of all US internet visits that Google properties claim. While Facebook hasn’t surpassed total Google owned/controlled traffic yet, they aren’t too far off at 8.93%. Yahoo!, often seen as the big engine that couldn’t, still represents 8.12% of all US visits with their various properties including email, which is actually a more popular destination than the Yahoo! homepage.

What surprised us though, is actually the site that traded places with YouTube: MySpace. The site is down off of last year’s 5th place to number 7, but still ranking. Yes, we thought that everyone had abandoned the site with the strange new logo. Frankly, we were pretty sure the people running MySpace were abandoning ship when they seemingly threw in the towel and partnered with Facebook, but it looks like some of you just can’t say goodbye to sparkly glitter gifs and 2001-style clip art.

Speaking of sparkly, glittering things, silver covered magazine mover Kim Kardashian edged out Oprah (who does a pretty good job of moving magazines also) for the title of top searched personality. Rush Limbaugh, Miley Cyrus and Glenn Beck are numbers 3, 4, and 5 respectively. That sounds like the start of a party game where you have to put random words into a sentence that makes sense. We’ll let you know when we come up with one.

Moving on to musicians, butcher calendar girl Lady Gaga dominated searches and beat out the teenage endorsement dream that is Justin Bieber for number one music personality search. Eminem, Taylor Swift and late King of Pop Michael Jackson were 3, 4, and 5 respectively.