TwitterIn his long and storied career, Tony Bennett has seen it all. And, um, we mean all.
Never was that more apparent than this weekend, when Lady Gaga sat down with British chat show host Jonathan Ross and spun a yarn about the time her duet partner du jour, the legendary crooner, walked in on her in his recording studio while she was wearing nothing but her birthday suit.
Fine way to make an impression. But Gaga's story ended as the audience laughed at her kooky tale, and since the host didn't press her for any more details, international press was left to fill in their own blanks. And what they came up with was quite the story—that Bennett's walk-in, rumored to have taken place during the recording of their "Lady Is a Tramp" duet, was completely accidental, and left both red-faced.
And while when it comes to Gaga, anything is possible, is it even true? Hang on that modesty, because this rumor is…
So false!
Or at least, so out of context!
While Gaga did cop to being completely naked when Bennett strolled into the recording studio, it was no accidental run-in or exercise in getting into "Trampy" character—in fact, despite the confusion brought about by where their meeting took place, a rep tells E! News that they were not even recording at the time, rather simply getting back together to participate in a forthcoming (and somewhat secretive) Vanity Fair shoot.
So all those reports that he accidentally walked in on her nakedly belting out the standard? Sorry, but time to get those minds out of the gutter, people!
"Vanity Fair invited Tony Bennett to participate in Annie Liebovitz's photo shoot with Lady Gaga," a rep explained to E! News. "Like a lot of Annie's photographs, this one holds some surprises, which will be revealed when the magazine is released. This was not an accidental meeting or related to the music video shoot for Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga's 'Lady Is a Tramp' that was recently released."
Gaga herself seemed to set the record straight on the show, though her remarks had since been taken out of context.
"I just shot a spread for Vanity Fair in America and Annie Leibovitz shot me and she wanted me to be naked, of course," the 25-year-old superstar explained. "I was in Tony's studio and I walked in, and she was like, 'I want you to be naked,' so I took my robe off and lay down and poor Tony was standing there, looking at me, like, 'Oh, this f--king girl.'"
As for Tony, the 85-year-old made clear—despite the inner monologue provided by Gaga—that he has nothing but the utmost respect for the often clothing-averse pop star.
"Lady Gaga has the mark of true genius in which she makes what is difficult appear effortless," he gushed. "Fred Astaire, Cary Grant, Ella Fitzgerald—they all shared that quality and it's what I refer to as the 'It Factor.'
"She walks into a room and immediately all eyes are on her. When she performs, she makes instantaneous decisions on how to sing, how to move—and each moment is perfect. There is an energy that she has and when you stand next to her and perform, you can't help but marvel at it and know that it is a rare thing."