Lady Gaga’s VMAs Performance Prep Involves Screaming Into a Pillow, Freezing Ice Baths

Lady Gaga took to social media on Thursday (Aug. 20) to show fans how she would be getting ready for her VMAs performance in a post-pandemic world. She also shared a photo of herself in an ice bath on Tuesday (Aug. 25).

In the first clip, the pop star is shown laying perfectly still while wearing a neon-yellow Chromatica t-shirt and a pink mask with giant bunny-esque ears. While she’s face-down in bed, the scene is narrated by the words “Dreaming of reality” flashing across the screen before she lets a muffled scream out into the pillow.

“When you want to be on stage performing for your fans but there’s a super-virus,” she captioned the amusing visual, which is cut short by the words “Stay Tuned” taking over the feed. In a charming coda, Gaga is seen relaxing in the pool, wiling away the day by lounging on a giant unicorn floatie in an outlandish get-up involving a veiled headpiece and parasol.

In the ice bath pic, Gaga is sporting a face mask and the sign of the horns. “#vmas,” she captioned the pic, along with snowflake and rain cloud emojis.

Earlier this week, Ariana Grande broke the news that she and Gaga are set to perform their hit collab “Rain On Me” live for the very first time at the annual awards show. It will mark the first Gaga has taken the stage as a VMAs performer in half a decade — she last opened the show in 2013 with Artpop lead single “Applause.”

Meanwhile, the duo lead this year’s pack of nominations with nine nods each, including seven for their No. 1 hit (video of the year, song of the year, best collaboration, best pop, best cinematography, best visual effects and best choreography).

This year’s socially-distanced MTV Video Music Awards will take place Aug. 30 at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center.

Watch Gaga bide her time in quarantine as she waits for the big day below.