First she sang about Venus, now she is working with Mars.

As if one could take “Shallow” away from its likely status as Lady Gaga’s most popular wedding song, Bruno Mars and the pop maestro have released a duet called “Die With A Smile” (a James Bond-esque track if ever there was one). The song and accompanying music video dropped today (August 16) after both artists teased the collaboration on Instagram and wore each other’s merchandise, fueling a flood of rumors on social media.

“Die With A Smile” is a Bruno Mars song through and through, dripping with elegant pop-R&B, but Gaga’s Swiss Army knife artistry adds some rawness to Mars’ Silk Sonic sensibility. The song coats lyrics that call us out against the apocalypse with swooning optimism: “If the party was over / And our time on earth was done / I’d wanna hold you just a little while / And die with a smile.”

“Bruno and I have a lot of respect for each other and we talked about collaborating,” says Gaga. “I was finishing up my own album in Malibu and one night after a long day he asked me to come to his studio to listen to something he was working on. It was about midnight when I got there and I was blown away when I heard what he had started doing. We stayed up all night writing and finishing the song. Bruno’s talent is indescribable. His musicianship and vision are on a whole new level. There is no one like him.”

Mars adds: “It was an honor to work with Gaga. She is an icon and brings magic to this song.”

“Die With A Smile” is described as a “standalone collaboration,” which rules out any speculation that it will be part of new records from Mars or Gaga. Although both artists are scheduled to release a new LP, Mars hasn’t released an album since 2021. An evening with Silk Sonic Alongside Anderson .Paak, Gaga played excerpts from her upcoming project to the audience at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

Tune in below to see the new collaboration.

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