Last Thursday was the culmination of weeks of built up anticipation, waiting patiently for this one day to finally be upon us after waiting months, weeks and hours. When the day finally came, I could barely contain my excitement for it – something I celebrate gathered around a table with my family, comfy and warm in our holiday clothes, huddled in patience, counting down the minutes until it began…

The Lady Gaga Thanksgiving Spectacular.

As a dedicated Little Monster, I was ecstatic to watch the new holiday special. Everyone is familiar with Gaga’s crazy antics and out-of-this-world costumes. But as I watched the special, I felt underwhelmed. Not by her performances (which were phenomenal) or the special itself, but by her outfits. And it made me realize how the music industry and current media have desensitized us to what is weird.

When Gaga first appeared on the scene, hanging bloodily from a chandelier at the 2009 VMAs, there was a shock factor. And every VMA appearance since then – from the infamous meat dress to her gender-bending alter-ego Joe Calderone – has been iconic.

This year, when Gaga appeared on stage at the 2013 VMAs, I was impressed by her homage to her past albums and eras, sporting costumes from The Fame and Born This Way.

However, everyone knows the most infamous, if not iconic, performance of the VMAs was that of Miley Cyrus (and we all know what happened next).

But from that moment I wondered, why was everyone so concerned about Miley’s wedgie when Gaga’s bare ass is always on deck for the world to see?

It seems as if certain artists have justified weird as the new normal, and Lady Gaga was the figurehead for this movement.

Each artistic movement since Gaga has a weird factor, but with its own personal twist.

There’s Katy Perry and her bubblegum-sweetheart strangeness…

Rihanna and her sexy, sultry oddities…

Ke$ha’s delusional drunk antics…

And whatever the hell Miley decides to do this week.

And as I watch award shows and live performances, I become incredibly underwhelmed by over-the-top weirdness, the type that makes no sense and is simply trying to get you to talk.

As an open advocate for Miley Cyrus, people often ask me how I feel about her newest controversial publicity stunts. When asked how I felt about the crying cat behind her as she sang “Wrecking Ball” at the AMAs, I said, “It was weird, but nothing out of the ordinary.”

The artists from whom we expect the weirdest, most controversial performances from aren’t so much controversial as they are a source of small talk the next day at the office, with everyone seeming to have the same opinion:

“Gaga entered on a horse made of humans the other day.”

“Oh, is that all?”

Even when I watched Gaga and R. Kelly’s awkwardly sexual performance on Saturday Night Live, I didn’t feel the least bit uncomfortable. In fact, I was expecting more. I was expecting something more explicit, more daring, more wow-inducing than some half-assed twerking (pun always intended) and skin-tight body suits.

As award season rolls in, I’ve come to prefer performances that use gimmicks to highlight the talent of the artist, rather than performances to highlight publicity’s gimmicks.

A few current performances that do an excellent job of this include:

Katy Perry at the European Music Awards (2013)

As the pop star is suspended in mid-air, she showcases that she can really belt it out under any circumstance. You may even say she can sing unconditionally. (Okay, terrible puns are over).

Lady Gaga on Saturday Night Live (2013)

Gaga performs the dazzling hit from ARTPOP, “Gypsy” accompanied by piano and a few backup dancers. She shows off her dual-instrument ability and demonstrates how to make the best out of a small stage space.

Miley Cyrus at the European Music Awards (2013)

While everyone’s buzzing about her psychedelic pussy (okay, I promise that’s the last one), not many people know that her AMA performance was a carbon copy of her EMA performance with a different backdrop. I prefer this version because her own crying face holds more emotion to the song than a cat crying diamonds. This added emotion really makes you pay attention to the lyrics and makes you remember that, oh yeah, Miley can actually sing.

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