Madonna weighs in on Lady Gaga comparisons: 'Obviously, I've influenced her'

Madonna was interviewed on 20/20 and was asked the question that’s on everyone’s minds since comparisons started between she and Lady Gaga.

Gaga’s song “Born This Way” was widely criticized by Madonna fans for sounding too similar to her 1989 hit “Express Yourself.”

Now Madonna is weighing in the controversy, at first staying Gaga is “a very talented artist.” She also explained, “I certainly think she references me a lot in her work. And sometimes I think it’s amusing and flattering and well done,” ABC News reports.

She then seemed to be less complimentary, saying, Gaga’s songs are sometimes a “statement about taking something that was in the Zeitgeist, you know, 20 years ago and turning it inside out and reinterpreting it,” before saying “it felt reductive.”

Gaga has long expressed her admiration for the “Material Girl,” and Madonna thinks it’s obvious in her work. “There’s a lot of ways to look at it. I can’t really be annoyed by it …because, obviously, I’ve influenced her,” she said.

Rolling Stone reports that during an interview with The Graham Norton Show Madonna said of Gaga, "When I first saw her I was really impressed by her. She was cool," adding, "She did remind me of me back in the day."