As the age-old saying goes: There could be 100 people in a room and 99 don’t believe in you, but all it takes is just one… and that one is Bradley Cooper.
His strong faith in Lady Gaga‘s abilities was obvious at the 2019 Oscars, especially during their intimate performance of “Shallow.” But it turns out that the singer didn’t have that same confidence in herself that he did. Luckily, her A Star Is Born co-star was by her side to give her the little push she needed.
After accepting the Oscar for Best Song, Lady Gaga, Mark Ronson, Anthony Rossomando and Andrew Wyatt went backstage to speak to the press all about the lovely experience, where Lady Gaga revealed the words of encouragement Bradley gave her ahead of their performance. “What I would like to say is one of the hardest things in life is to be brave enough to be yourself,” she said. “I wish to everyone that is going to that celebration to feel a joy inside of them. That’s actually what Bradley said to me yesterday right before we did our last rehearsal for this performance of ‘Shallow.’ He said, ‘Let’s just drop a little bit of joy.'”
Once they completed their performance, which earned them a standing ovation, she realized, “Joy did a whole lot for me.”
Todd Wawrychuk / A.M.P.A.S.
Lady Gaga seemed particularly keen on spreading love at the award show on Sunday night. She stopped on the red carpet to chat with E! News’ Giuliana Rancic all about the pride she feels in being a part of a such an inspiring project. “That’s all that you can hope for. You can only pray that blessing of what you made can reach into the world and spread love,” the performer shared. “Of all things that we can spread, that’s the most beautiful that we possibly could.”
The singer got plenty of love from her family and friends who were in the audience. Bradley Cooper’s girlfriend, Irina Shayk, was one of those people who proudly watched the stars perform their hit song. And when they returned to their seats, Irina was the first to stand up and give them a warm hug in congratulations.
To see more candid moments like this, check out the gallery above!
For a recap of the 2019 Oscars, watch E! News tonight at 7 p.m.!