Lady Gaga has revealed her upcoming album Harlequin, which will serve as a musical companion to the highly anticipated film Joker: Folie à Deux. The album is set to drop this Friday, September 27, just a week ahead of the movie’s worldwide release on October 4, marking the five-year anniversary of the original Joker film.
In the movie, Gaga stars as Harley Quinn alongside Joaquin Phoenix, who reprises his role as the Joker. The film also features performances by Steve Coogan, Catherine Keener, Brendan Gleeson, and Zazie Beetz.
The pop icon shared the announcement via her social media, building anticipation for a project that blends music and cinema. Described as a jukebox musical, Joker: Folie à Deux features covers of jazz standards like “Oh, When The Saints,” “Get Happy,” and “That’s Life,” alongside a few original tracks, all of which will be included on Harlequin.
In a recent Vogue interview, Gaga opened up about her connection to the character of Harley Quinn: “Harley Quinn is a character people know from the ether of pop culture. I had a different experience creating her, namely my experience with mania and chaos inside – for me, it creates a quietness. Sometimes women are labelled as these overly emotional creatures and when we are overwhelmed we are erratic or unhinged. But I wonder if when things become so broken from reality, when we get pushed too far in life, what if it makes you…quiet?”
"I would say that I worked from a sense-memory perspective: What does it feel like to walk through the world and be…braced, in an intense way. And what happens when you cover up all of the complexities beneath the surface?"
While Gaga’s role in Folie à Deux has fans excited, it could be the last film in the Joker franchise. Director Todd Phillips recently hinted that this movie may close the chapter: “It was fun to play in this sort of sandbox for two movies, but I think we’ve said what we wanted to say in this world.”
Harlequin marks Lady Gaga’s first album since 2021’s Love For Sale, a collaboration with the late Tony Bennett. However, Gaga has teased that a new solo album of original material, dubbed LG7, is set to arrive in 2025.
