On The Download: Bring On The Lady Gaga Clones

Anytime the music industry anoints a new superstar, inevitably, a slew of imitations follow. And lo-and-behold, thanks to the meteoric rise of one Lady Gaga, the early-20-something electro-pop eclectic female rocker is the hot genre for 2010.

Gaga clones are lining up in the industry’s wings now in hopes of showing their own “Poker Face” to the world. They are mostly blonde, age 18 – 24, musically talented, provocatively dressed and trying to push the envelope of avant-garde kookiness.

And it’s hard to keep up with them all they’re emerging so quickly. Therefore, we present a handy guide for you to the crop of the second coming of Gaga-esque divas. If the below doesn’t represent a trend, we don’t know what does!

Pixie Lott – Age 19 – Signed to Gaga’s own Interscope label here in the States, Britain’s answer to Gaga comes to you from the same team which made Gaga a huge hit. Her second single, “Gravity,” is starting to impact big, and last fall she gained acclaim with her first single, “Boys and Girls.” Expect big things from this pixie-sized package.
http://www.pixielott.com/

Lolene – Age 25 – Truly being marketed in the exact same way as Gaga, even Lolene’s first single, “Rich (Fake It Till You Make It)” sounds purely Gaga-esque. She’s signed to EMI / Capitol, and I half expect her catch on at radio any week now. She recently performed at RadarOnline’s one-year anniversary party and Cherry Pop in West Hollywood; the place where Gaga got her start singing for the gays.
http://lolenemusic.com/

Kristine Elezaj – Age 24 – Just look at the outfit she’s wearing on her Web site’s home page – Could she be imitating Gaga any more? She’s even wearing Gaga’s signature unitard. She’s not signed to a label yet, but I expect her to be soon. Perhaps more Britney though musically, her first single “Souvenirs,” while generic, is kinda catchy.
http://www.kristineelezaj.com/

Ke$ha – Age 23 – You probably know her story already. This electro-trash singer from Nashville likes the men who look like Mick Jagger. She’s already broken industry records in 2010, sung back up for Flo Rida, and she writes her own songs. Her longevity in the industry is TBD, but she certainly gave a shocking performance recently on “American Idol” of her second single, “Blah Blah Blah.” Her first, “Tik Tok,” is, well…. ubiquitous, at least.
http://www.keshasparty.com/us/home

Kerli – Age 22 – Her fans would argue that Estonian chanteuse Kerli actually came before Gaga. So now here comes LA Reid’s entry to the world of Gaga courtesy of Island Def Jam (sister company to Gaga’s Interscope label at Universal) — she’s also already claimed that it’s Gaga who has been ripping HER off, since her album was out in 2008 six months before Gaga’s “The Fame” (she has since apologized). Kerli is closest to Gaga in the “quirky” department (with a dash of Bjork thrown in), and she even recently had a single on the “Alice in Wonderland” soundtrack.
http://www.kerlimusic.com/

Cascada – Actually a band, but led by blonde lead singer Natalie Horler (age 28), Cascada is Germany’s entry to the international world of dance music Gaga-ness. Cascada has actually been around since 2005, but only caught on in the U.S. in 2009 with their biggest hit to date, “Evacuate the Dancefloor”… a path only possible after Gaga hit it big in the dance genre. Part of Universal Music Group internationally, but not yet signed to a U.S. label.
http://www.cascada-music.de/

Alexandra Burke – Age 21 – Simon Cowell’s new pet project (and latest winner of Britain’s “X-Factor” is set to debut in the U.S. this fall, with a sound much more Lady Gaga than Leona Lewis. She’s even working on her first album with one of Gaga’s lead producers, Red One. She’s signed to Epic Records (SonyBMG) in the States. Her first single, “All Night Long,” should start heating up dance floors any day now. Unlike the others here, she’s not blonde (rather, she’s black and raven-haired), but expect her songs to be more dance, than pop.
http://www.alexandraburkeofficial.com/gb/

Erika Jayne – Age (unlisted on her online bio) – A protege of Sheila E, originally from Atlanta but now based in LA, Erika had a hot Dance / Club Play single in 2009 with “Give You Everything.” And her look? – yes, very Gaga-esque! Unless she comes out with new material soon, she might have already reached her peak last year. Signed to the independent Koch Records, part of E1 Entertainment, like Lolene, she’s also trying to launch big coming out of the gay scenes in NYC and LA.
http://www.erikajayne.com/