Lady Gaga says she originally felt 'ashamed' to become Ariana Grande's friend: 'Eventually she called me on my s---'

• Lady Gaga spoke about her new collaboration with Ariana Grande, titled "Rain on Me," during an interview with Zane Lowe for Apple Music's Beats 1.
• Gaga said that Grande has experienced "life-testing stuff," so when they first met, she tried to distance herself from the "Sweetener" singer in an effort to allow her to heal.
• "I was too ashamed to hang out with her because I didn't want to project all of this negativity onto something that was healing and so beautiful," Gaga said.
• The "Stupid Love" singer said that Grande called me on my s---" and "then this friendship blossomed."

Lady Gaga spoke candidly about how she initially felt "ashamed" to form a friendship with "Rain on Me" collaborator Ariana Grande.

"That woman has been through some really tough, really hard, life-testing stuff," Gaga said of Grande during a new interview with Zane Lowe for Apple Music's Beats 1.

On Friday, the two pop stars released a new duet called "Rain on Me." Speaking to Lowe, Gaga explained that she and the "Thank U, Next" singer "connected right away and she was so wonderful."

"When she came into the studio, I was still crying and she was not," Gaga recalled. "She was like, 'You're gonna be OK. Call me. Here's my number.' She was so persistent. She would try over and over again to be friends with me."

The "Stupid Love" singer continued: "I was too ashamed to hang out with her because I didn't want to project all of this negativity onto something that was healing and so beautiful. And eventually, she called me on my s---. She was like, 'You're hiding.' And I was like, 'I am hiding. I'm totally hiding.' And then this friendship blossomed."

During the interview, Gaga also talked about the production process for the pop anthem, which is part of her upcoming album "Chromatica." She praised Grande for being "so open to trying things" and described it as "this beautiful, very healing process for me."

Similarly, Grande gushed about bonding with Gaga, who she called a "stunning superwoman."

"one time ..... i met a woman who knew pain the same way i did... who cried as much as i did, drank as much wine as i did, ate as much pasta as i did and who's heart was bigger than her whole body. she immediately felt like a sister to me," the "Sweetener" singer tweeted.

Grande continued: "she then held my hand and invited me into the beautiful world of chromatica and together, we got to express how beautiful and healing it feels to motherf---ing cry ! i hope this makes u all feel as uplifted as it does for us both. i love u @ladygaga, u stunning superwoman !"

During her interview with Lowe, Gaga also described "Rain on Me" as a track with "'many layers." Both her and Grande have previously opened up about their past trauma.

Gaga, who said she was raped as a teenager, has spoken about its effect on her mental health and her struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). She also said that her struggles intensified when she became famous.

Like Gaga, Grande has also experienced PTSD. In a 2018 cover story for British Vogue, the "7 Rings" singer said that she's "always had anxiety" and developed PTSD after the May 2017 bombing that took place outside a venue she performed at in Manchester, England.

"It's hard to talk about because so many people have suffered such severe, tremendous loss. But, yeah, it's a real thing," she told the magazine.

"I don't think I'll ever know how to talk about it and not cry," Grande added.

The Grammy-winning singer has also spoken about the "all-consuming" grief that she dealt with following the death of ex-boyfriend Mac Miller in September 2018.

They dated for two years and revealed their split in May 2018. Four months later, Miller died of an accidental drug overdose.

In April 2019, Grande also shared a photo of her brain scan with fans, which showed the "terrifying" effect of her previous trauma.

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