Lady Gaga Honors Jamey Rodemeyer At iHeartRadio Festival

Lady Gaga dedicated a song to Jamey Rodemeyer, the gay teen who committed suicide last week, at the iHeartRadio Festival.
A vocal advocate of gay rights, the singer opened her ballad "Hair" by telling the audience, "We lost a little monster this week," referring to the nickname given to her fans. "Jamey, I know you're up there looking at us, and you're not a victim," she said. "You're a lesson to all of us."


She then performed the song, which she has said is about liberation.
Rodemeyer, who was 14 years old, was found dead on Sept. 18 outside his home in Buffalo, N.Y. Police are calling his death a suicide but will not go into further detail. He had posted YouTube videos in which he talked about being bullied at school because of his sexuality. He mentioned being a big fan of Lady Gaga's in his videos, and thanked her in his final blog post.


Following up on her promise, Gaga attended an Obama fundraiser in Los Angeles over the weekend, where a source told MTV News last week that she was expected to bring up the topic if the two were able to get a moment together. According to The Associated Press, Gaga was among the guests at an intimate Sunday night gathering at the home of Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg, wearing a sleeveless gown and high heels. A spokesperson for Gaga had not returned requests for comment at press time inquiring about whether the meeting of the minds had taken place.


The two-night iHeartRadio festival unfolded at the MGM Grand in Vegas and featured sets from Jay-Z, the Black Eyed Peas, Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Bruno Mars, Coldplay, Alicia Keys, David Guetta, Nicki Minaj, Jennifer Lopez and Usher.


"We lost a Little Monster this week," Gaga said of the 14-year-old Rodemeyer during the show, as a picture of the teen was shown on a screen onstage. "I wrote this record about how your identity is really all you've got when you're in school ... so tonight, Jamey, I know you're up there looking at us, and you're not a victim ... you're a lesson to all of us. I know it's a bit of a downer, but sometimes the right thing is more important than the music."


The Amherst Police Department have opened a criminal investigation into Rodemeyer's death and are considering harassment, cyberharassment and hate crimes charges against a number of teens who may have been involved in bullying Jamey.