Lady Gaga Addresses ‘A Star Is Born’ Bradley Cooper Romance Rumors

Since the press tour for A Star Is Born began last year, the internet has wished that its stars Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper were dating, thanks to the duo’s incredible chemistry both on screen and during their Oscars performance on Sunday. But during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live Wednesday, Gaga shut those rumors down, explaining that — no surprise here — the two were just acting.

“You had such a connection with Bradley that instantly — and I guess this is compliment — people started saying, ‘They must be dating. They must be in love,” the host told her.

After Kimmel posed the question, Gaga responded with an epic eye roll before explaining the situation.

“First of all, social media, quite frankly, is the toilet of the internet,” she said. “And what it has done to pop culture is abysmal. Yes, people saw love and guess what? That’s what we wanted you to see. This is a love song. The movie A Star Is Born is a love story.”

The 32-year-old shared that she and Cooper had worked for a week on their Oscars performance of “Shallow,” and while it was difficult for her to give up creative control for a live performance, she knew Cooper, the movie’s director, had a vision for their time on stage.

“I knew that he had the vision for how it should go. Everything that you saw…that was all him,” Gaga said. “It was so important to both of us that we were connected the entire time.”

The singer also addressed her previous professional relationship with Tony Bennett, whom she released an album with in 2014.

“Look, I’ve had my arms wrapped around Tony Bennett for three years touring the world,” she said. “When you’re singing love songs, that’s what you want people to feel.”

“I’m an artist and I guess we did a good job…fooled ya!” she concluded.

Up until very recently, Gaga and Cooper were both in relationships — Gaga recently split from fiancé Christian Carino while Cooper is still with his partner, Irina Shayk. Cooper and Shayk share a daughter, 1-year-old Lea.

In fact, Shayk accompanied Cooper to the Oscars on Sunday and was one of the first one out of her seat to give Cooper and Gaga a standing ovation after their performance. While Cooper is primarily known for his acting, Gaga told Kimmel that she was excited for the pair’s Hollywood peers to see her co-star sing live.

“Bradley is a musician,” she said. “My favorite thing about the whole experience — I was so excited for everyone to see him sing live.”

She added, “In that moment when we started and he said ‘Tell me something, girl,’ the audience started cheering and I was like, ‘Yes Bradley! Keep going!’”

Photo Credit: Jimmy Kimmel Live