Lady Gaga halts concert to condemn ICE in fiery speech during Toyko tour
Lady Gaga has added her voice to the growing list of stars speaking out against ICE as tensions over immigration enforcement escalate across the US
While performing one of her four The Mayhem Ball shows in Tokyo on Thursday, the Oscar-winning singer paused her set to deliver a heartfelt message to the crowd.
“I want to take a moment to talk about something that is extremely important to me, important to people around the world, and especially right now in America,” Gaga told the audience in a clip that quickly went viral.
‘I’ll be going home in a few days and my heart aches thinking about the people, the children, the families who are being brutally targeted by ICE all over America. ‘I think about their pain and how their lives are being destroyed before our eyes.’
Gaga then noted the recent shooting death of critical care nurse Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis; this incident sparked widespread scrutiny and protests.
‘I’m also thinking of Minnesota and everyone back home who is living in such fear and searching for answers about what we should all be doing,’ he said.
Lady Gaga has added her voice to the growing list of stars speaking out against ICE as tensions over immigration enforcement escalate across the US; (picture 2025)
While performing one of her four The Mayhem Ball shows in Tokyo on Thursday, the Oscar-winning singer paused her set to deliver a heartfelt message to the crowd
He continued: ‘When entire societies lose their sense of security and belonging, it breaks something in all of us.
‘I hope you will all be with us tonight. I know we’re not in America right now, but we’re here for our community and we love you.’
He dedicated the song Come to Mama to ‘everyone who is suffering, to everyone who feels alone and helpless, to everyone who has lost a loved one and is going through a hard time, an impossible time, seeing when the end is near’.
He continued: ‘We need to get back to a place of security, peace and accountability.
‘Good people shouldn’t have to fight so hard and risk their lives for prosperity and respect, and hopefully, our leaders are listening. I hope you are listening to our request that you quickly change your course of action and have compassion for everyone in our country.
‘In a time when it’s not easy to have hope, it’s my community, my friends, and my family that keep me going. So tonight I want to sing a song that gives us a little bit of hope.’
Gaga has become the latest high-profile celebrity to speak out against ICE, with a growing number of stars condemning the agency following the deadly incident in Minneapolis.
Mark Ruffalo, Olivia Wilde, Wanda Sykes and others have criticized ICE at recent events such as the Golden Globes and the Sundance Film Festival.
Gaga told viewers in a clip that quickly went viral. “I want to take a moment to talk about something that is extremely important to me, important to people around the world, and especially right now in America.” (picture 2025)
Ariana Grande expressed her anger on social media by sharing a tweet from New York City Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani.
‘While tens of thousands of people across America protested ICE’s impunity, federal agents shot and killed another person in Minneapolis today. ICE is terrorizing our cities. ICE puts us all in danger. Abolish ICE.’
Mandy Moore also contributed to this thread via Instagram Stories, reposting a New York Times article titled: ‘Federal Agents Shot and Killed a Man in Minneapolis, Officials Say.’
Even Jennifer Aniston, who rarely comments on politics, broke her usual silence.
Following the fatal shooting of ICU nurse Alex Pretti by a U.S. Border Patrol officer in Minneapolis, the 56-year-old Friends star shared a series of Instagram slides expressing her perspective on the incident.
The first slide Aniston posted included a statement from Pretti’s parents, originally shared by Senator Bernie Sanders:
‘We are heartbroken but also very angry,’ they wrote. ‘Alex was a kind-hearted person who cared deeply about his family and friends, as well as the American veterans he cared for as a critical care nurse at the Minneapolis VA hospital. Alex wanted to make a difference in this world. Unfortunately, he will not be among us to see its impact.
‘I don’t use the term hero lightly. However, his last thought and action was to protect a woman. The sickening lies the administration has told about our son are reprehensible and disgusting.
Gaga has become the latest high-profile celebrity to speak out against ICE, with a growing number of stars condemning the agency following the deadly incident in Minneapolis.
‘Alex clearly wasn’t holding a gun when he was attacked by Trump’s killer and the cowardly ICE thugs. He has his phone in his right hand and raises his empty left hand above his head as he tries to protect the woman he pushed down as she was pepper-sprayed by ICE. Please reveal the truth about our son. He was a good man. Thank you.’
In another slide, Aniston shared footage of Pretti addressing her colleagues at the VA hospital as they mourn a fallen veteran:
‘Today we remember that freedom is not free,’ he said. ‘Let us never forget and always remember our brothers and sisters who serve so that we may enjoy the gift of freedom. Therefore, at this time, we commemorate and express our gratitude for their loyalty and selfless service to our nation for the sake of our freedom. We recite our honor and gratitude to them in this solemn hour.’
A third set of slides encouraged viewers to contact local leaders to talk about the shooting, accompanied by the Primitive Radio Gods’ 1996 hit Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand.
Other notable celebrities who spoke out on social media included Olivia Rodrigo, Stephen King, Kathy Griffin and Cynthia Nixon, all of whom expressed their outrage and dismay at the events in Minneapolis on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Gaga wraps up the Tokyo leg of her The Mayhem Ball tour tomorrow.
It’s unclear whether she’ll attend the Grammys on Sunday; where she received a career-high seven nominations, including Album of the Year for Mayhem, Song of the Year for Abracadabra, and Record of the Year for Abracadabra.
His tally surpassed his previous record of six nods earned in 2010.
