Ex-Boyfriend Sues Stefani Germanotta Over 'Lady Gaga' Stage Name!

Lady Gaga

How much of Lady Gaga's fame is actually due to Stefani Germanotta? Not very much, says a New Jersey-based songwriter, record producer and self-declared former lover of the 'Poker Face'!

Rob Fusari is asking Gaga $35 million, claiming that her stage name was his creation. The man filed a lawsuit two days ago in New York Superior Court in which he said that he was the one who discovered and mentored Gaga back when she was still just Stefani Germanotta. Fusari says he called Stefani Germanotta 'Gaga', because he was a big fan of Queen's 'Radio Gaga'. "One day when Fusari addressed a cell phone text to Germanotta under the moniker 'Radio Gaga' his cell phone's spell check converted 'Radio' to 'Lady'. Germanotta loved it, and 'Lady Gaga' was born", the legal papers say.
According to Fusari, after Gaga hit the glory, she dumped him and refused to pay him earnings from her merchandise and recordings. "It's an age-old story in the music business. You become famous, and you turn on the person who discovered you", his lawyer, Robert Meloni told the New York Daily News.
Lady Gaga's representative made no comment in this matter.