Lady GaGa: "Shy" but "prodigy-like" as teenager

Lady GaGa: "Shy" but "prodigy-like" as teenager

Pop's craze Lady GaGa's first manager has said that the performer was "shy" but "prodigy-like" as a teenager.

Gaga's manager Bob Leone met GaGa, real name Stefani Germanotta, at a New York open mic night over ten years ago.

Mag People was told by Leone: "She was painfully shy - very different from who she is now. She came to the open mics with her mother twice before she built up the courage to go on stage."

While speaking of his first impressions on hearing GaGa perform, Leone said: "She was prodigy-like. She was clearly a very good songwriter and keyboard player."

Leone, who is a former director for the Songwriters Hall of Fame, managed GaGa for six months in 2006, during which her stage persona was born.

Bob explained: "Going into it, she was Stefani, and she was still writing pop music. By the end of that six-month period, she was officially Lady GaGa."

The manager is currently auctioning rare GaGa memorabilia as part of the Rock & Roll Pop Culture Auction, which also includes items from icons such as Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson.