The Dead Dance

"**The Dead Dance**" is a song recorded by American entertainer Lady Gaga. It was released September 3, 2025, as a single from the reissue of her seventh studio album, *Mayhem* (2025). It was released alongside an announcement that Gaga would appear in the Netflix series *Wednesday* (2025) as Rosaline Rotwood. The music video for the disco song was directed by Tim Burton. Gaga wrote and produced the song with Watt and Cirkut, as she did with the rest of *Mayhem*.

The song debuted at number 13 in the UK.

## Background and development 
Following the release of the television series *Wednesday* in November 2022, a faster version of "Bloody Mary" (2011) by American singer and songwriter Lady Gaga was used beside Wednesday Addams's dance and its fan-made videos on TikTok, which became viral. Gaga herself recognized it and recreated the dance in a black-and-white video on December 9, 2022, wearing goth makeup and clothes similar to the one worn by actress Jenna Ortega.

The series was renewed for a second season and began filming in Ireland. It was revealed on November 13, 2024 that Gaga had joined the cast in an unknown role. Series creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar explained that Gaga had reserved the song for the show.

## Promotion and release 
In late August 2025, Gaga made the song known during a virtual "meet and greet" event on the gaming platform Roblox, where she and fans designed *Mayhem*-inspired clothes for a *Dress to Impress* catwalk competition. On August 28, Gaga made a surprise appearance at an event with Netflix and Spotify, *Wednesday* "Graveyard Gala" event in New York City, where she officially announced "The Dead Dance" and shows the song for guests inside themed coffins.

"The Dead Dance" was released on September 3, 2025, together with the second half of the second season of *Wednesday*. On September 2, Gaga showed the song's cover art. Shortly after, the song was also added to the digital songlist of *Mayhem* on streaming platforms.  

## Composition
"The Dead Dance" was written and produced by Gaga, Andrew Watt, and Cirkut. It is an upbeat synth-pop song with a disco bassline, elements of funk, 1980s inspired synths, and instances of electric guitar.  Many in the news media described the effect of Michael Jackson's "Thriller" (1982) on the song.  In the lyrics, Gaga urges listeners to join in on a "dead dance".

## Commercial performance
"The Dead Dance" appeared on the *Billboard* Global 200 at number thirteen, becoming the fourth song from *Mayhem* to reach the chart’s top 15. It also entered at number ten on the *Billboard* Global Excl. U.S. chart  on the week of September 5&ndash;11.

In the United States, the track debuted at number forty on the *Billboard* Hot 100 chart dated September 20, 2025, with 8.7 million official streams, 7.8 million in radio airplay audience, and 5,000 sold during the tracking week of September 5–11. 

In the United Kingdom, it entered at number thirteen on the UK singles chart, marking the second-highest debut of the week and Gaga's 33rd top-40 song in the country. Within Australia, "The Dead Dance" opened at number 50 and was the only new entry on the chart that week, rising to number 43 in its second week.

## Music video 
The music video for "The Dead Dance" was directed by Burton and produced by Gaga and Michael Polansky, alongside Burton and Natalie Testa. 

The music video takes place in a graveyard and begins with Gaga standing on a wall surrounded by dozens of dolls, which gradually come to life as she starts to dance. During the first chorus, masked dancers join her to perform a dance as night falls and more dolls awaken to the rhythm of the song. 

Gaga wears a Victorian-inspired clothes and makeup that gives the illusion of cracked porcelain.

## Live performances and other appearances
 in 2025]]

Gaga performed "The Dead Dance" for the first time at the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards on September 7. 

Beginning with the September 11, 2025, concert in Toronto, the song was added to the set list of The Mayhem Ball. During the first London show on September 29, Emma Myers and Evie Templeton appeared live with Gaga onstage, dancing to "The Dead Dance" dance from *Wednesday*, as well as "LoveDrug".

In December 2025, "The Dead Dance" became available as part of a Lady Gaga music pack in the virtual reality rhythm game *Synth Riders*.

## Charts 
## References