Among the most striking artifacts unveiled at the newly opened David Bowie Centre in London is a deeply personal letter Lady Gaga once wrote to the late icon. The note, displayed publicly for the first time, sheds light on the immense influence Bowie had on one of pop music’s most theatrical modern performers.

The letter is undated but believed to have been sent in late 2012 or early 2013. In it, Gaga thanks Bowie for sending her an advance copy of his then-upcoming album. She describes the gift as an overwhelming moment, writing that she cried while listening to the songs. “How does he know I exist?” Gaga wrote. “I feel as though my entire career has been an artistic plea for you to notice me.”

At the time, Bowie was preparing the release of The Next Day, his surprise comeback record, which arrived in March 2013 after a decade-long hiatus. Gaga was in the midst of finishing Artpop, her third studio album, which was eventually released in November that year. The overlap situates the letter during a period when both artists were working on projects that would mark significant chapters in their careers.

The note closes with Gaga expressing a wish to meet Bowie in New York, signing off simply, “Love + Art, Gaga.” Though a meeting never took place, the letter captures Gaga’s reverence for a figure she often cited as her greatest artistic inspiration.

The relationship between the two artists never extended to an in-person encounter, but Gaga has spoken frequently about Bowie’s profound impact on her artistry. Following Bowie’s death in 2016, she performed an ambitious tribute at the Grammy Awards, blending theatrical staging with a medley of his most beloved songs, including “Space Oddity,” “Let’s Dance,” “Rebel Rebel,” and “Heroes.”

In interviews around that time, Gaga described Bowie as a guiding light in her own creative journey. Speaking to NPR, she recalled the first time she discovered Aladdin Sane, calling it the beginning of her “artistic birth.” She credited Bowie with introducing her not only to new sounds but to an entire philosophy of living through art, a fusion of music, fashion, performance, and technology.

The unveiling of Gaga’s letter coincides with the launch of the David Bowie Centre at the Victoria and Albert East Storehouse in London, which officially opened this past weekend. The new cultural hub houses an expansive archive of Bowie’s life and career, offering fans unprecedented access to his personal and creative history.

The collection includes costumes, handwritten lyrics, instruments, and rare documents, offering an intimate look at the star who constantly reinvented himself over five decades. Among the discoveries is a set of notes Bowie had begun sketching for a musical set in 18th-century London, a project few knew he was working on in his final years.

Gaga’s letter, now part of this archive, bridges two generations of pop innovation. For Gaga, Bowie represented the ultimate example of fearlessness in performance and creativity. For Bowie, whose career was defined by continually reshaping identity, Gaga may have embodied a kindred spirit willing to blur boundaries between music and spectacle.

Although their paths never crossed in person, the letter now on display provides fans with tangible proof of Gaga’s admiration and the deep connection she felt to Bowie’s work. In many ways, its inclusion at the new Centre underscores the continuing ripple effect of Bowie’s artistry on those who followed him, artists who, like Gaga, have built their careers on challenging convention and elevating pop into performance art.