With the release of A Star Is Born, Bradley Cooper's talents are finally getting the attention they deserve.
Cooper directed the movie and stars as Jackson Maine, a down-and-out country singer who meets struggling artist Ally, played by musical dynamo Lady Gaga. The pair have incredible chemistry, and the two received Oscar nominations for their roles. Cooper even joined Gaga onstage during her Vegas residency in January.
A plethora of live musical numbers feature in the movie, but is Cooper really performing all of them? Here's everything you need to know. Watch the Movie
Cooper trained for six months so that he could perform in the movie.
Cooper underwent some serious training before he played Jackson Maine. Per Entertainment Tonight, the actor had singing, guitar, and piano lessons for six months just so that he could portray a country singer in the movie.
Alongside the grueling musical schedule, Cooper also co-wrote the movie's script, directed the film, and co-wrote several songs for the soundtrack. No big deal.
Lady Gaga was impressed with Cooper's singing ability.
While promoting the movie in September 2018, Lady Gaga opened up on The Graham Norton Show about the first time she heard Cooper sing. She revealed, "I was blown away by him. He sings from his soul, he sings from his gut." Apparently, the director convinced her of his ability to play Jackson Maine at their first meeting thanks to his incredible voice.
Cooper performed live at Glastonbury in 2017.
To ensure that the movie looked and sounded as real as possible, Cooper took to the stage at Glastonbury to film scenes for A Star Is Born. Fans were, of course, overjoyed to see the famous actor play guitar and sing alongside Lady Gaga, Metallica's drummer Lars Ulrich, and Kris Kristofferson, per MTV News. The footage is now a part of the iconic film.
But someone else played guitar in the movie.
Interscope A Star is Born (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Interscope A Star is Born (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Despite Cooper having comprehensive music tutelage before filming the movie, the sound viewers actually hear in A Star Is Born is provided by another musician. While Cooper is a competent player, a famous musician—Willy Nelson's son Lukas Nelson—is responsible for the music in the movie.
Nelson even joked about Cooper's musical abilities in a red carpet interview with Entertainment Tonight, calling the actor's guitar playing a "five or a six" out of ten, which Cooper said was generous.
Having co-written much of the music, Nelson was an important collaborator on A Star Is Born. As an accomplished country music star, it makes sense that his incredible skills were utilized in the final version. Nelson confirmed to The Fader, "The music you hear on the soundtrack was played by my band, and I produced those songs with everybody."
That being said, Cooper can play guitar, and it's really him singing in the movie.
Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder didn't think Cooper should sing in the movie.
Per Vanity Fair, at the Toronto International Film Festival premiere of A Star Is Born, Cooper revealed that he'd based some of his portrayal of Jackson on Eddie Vedder from Pearl Jam. Having spent time with Vedder while researching the movie, Cooper told the singer that he planned to perform his own songs onscreen, to which Vedder apparently replied, "What? Bro, don’t do that."
The movie's opening sequence was filmed live at a Willie Nelson and Jamey Johnson concert.
As Willie Nelson's son co-wrote much of the music in A Star Is Born, Cooper was able to ask for permission to perform onstage at one of the country legend's concerts. According to Vanity Fair, Cooper wanted the live scenes to look as realistic as possible, and was given just eight minutes during Nelson and Johnson's set to perform, meaning that his performance had to be perfect the first time.
Cooper reunited with Lady Gaga in Vegas.
Fans went wild when The Hangover actor showed up at Lady Gaga's Las Vegas residency, ENIGMA, recently. Video of the duo's performance was shared on social media, proving that Cooper can definitely sing live.
Plus, it's now been announced that he will perform "Shallow" at the 2019 Oscars alongside Lady Gaga, which is sure to be epic.
Anyone who's seen A Star Is Born will agree that Cooper's vocal performance is impressive, especially when you consider the fact that he also directed, co-wrote, and acted in the movie.
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Amy Mackelden is a freelance writer, editor, and disability activist. Her bylines include Harper's BAZAAR, Nicki Swift, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, ELLE, The Independent, Bustle, Healthline, and HelloGiggles. She co-edited The Emma Press Anthology of Illness, and previously spent all of her money on Kylie Cosmetics.
