Layton: Gaga for Lady Gaga

Sunglasses adorned with lit cigarettes. Tarantino-esque dialogue and an appearance from… Sunglasses adorned with lit cigarettes. Tarantino-esque dialogue and an appearance from “Kill Bill’s” P*ssy Wagon. Tyrese Gibson. Lesbianism and Beyonce eating a Honey Bun.

No, this isn’t one of Perez Hilton’s fever dreams — it’s just the newest Lady Gaga video.

It’s official: The world — and especially the music industry — runs on Lady Gaga.

Last week, the unstoppable force that is Gaga finally debuted her music video collaboration with Beyonce for her chart-topping sixth single, “Telephone.” The premiere came after what seemed like months of eager anticipation and frequent delays.

The 11:30 p.m. time slot during E! News proved to be the perfect moment — between the television premiere and the online introduction of a more explicit version of the video, “Telephone” has already received 18 million views in just one week, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. It’s on top of the music video chart on iTunes.

The video, which is almost 10 minutes of pure Gaga zaniness with plenty of easter eggs thrown in, is nothing out of the ordinary for the immensely popular artist. From someone who has established much of her reputation based on her eccentricities, it could almost be considered tame.

What it represents, however, is the revitalization of the dying art of the music video. Gone are the days when a music video could consist of girls shaking their scantily clad junk for Usher or long-haired rock artists crooning in the rain, and still be considered decent.

If according to The Buggles, video killed the radio star, and if reality killed the video star in the manner Robbie Williams suggested, then Lady Gaga has butchered reality and resurrected both the video and the radio star — and she’s hosting a 24/7 rager with both of them.

Say what you will about her musical capabilities as an artist, but it’s impossible to deny her innovative approach to her work and the effect she has had on the music industry. More songs are continuing to pop up that attempt to emulate Gaga’s electronic dance niche. Artists (musical and otherwise) are practically begging her to consider collaborations.

She may not have won Album of the Year at The Grammy’s, but countless viewers had personal Kanye West moments of outrage when Taylor Swift took the prize.

Perhaps it is her elusive persona, or the drive to understand where Gaga’ss mind is at when she decides to wear orbiting rings as an outfit for a performance. Maybe it’s the rumors that she has a penis (false) or that she dabbles in bisexuality (true). It might simply be her infectiously catchy music, but one thing is clear — everyone wants a piece of Gaga, and no one really knows why.

Stefani Germanotta — her real name — is exactly that: just a name. Few people know anything about Lady Gaga past the quotations she gives in interviews, and even then, it’s unclear whether those reported thoughts are Germanotta’s, or if they are just another extension of the Gaga character.

Personally, I think the mysterious aura is for the best. At this point, no one really cares to know anything about Gaga — fans just want more of what she has to offer. In this way, she truly is the essence of an inimitable artist, and that will give her lasting power.

Sure, people may grow tired of the antics and general weirdness, but I have a feeling that when people begin to get tired of whatever Lady Gaga happens to be doing, she will find a way to reel them back in.

My suggestion: corndogs. An outfit composed entirely of corndogs.

I’m just saying.