NEW MUSIC: LADY GAGA | HOLD MY HAND (MUSIC FROM THE MOTION PICTURE TOP GUN: MAVERICK)

Lady Gaga has released her new single “Hold My Hand,” which will appear in the upcoming Tom Cruise movie "Top Gun: Maverick," which opens in theatres on May 27. The stadium-ready single was produced by Lady Gaga and longtime collaborator BloodPop, with additional production by Benjamin Rice. The version of “Hold My Hand” that appears in the film features additional production and scoring by Harold Faltermeyer and Hans Zimmer. “When I wrote this song for Top Gun: Maverick, I didn’t even realize the multiple layers it spanned across the film’s heart, my own psyche, and the nature of the world we’ve been living in,” Lady Gaga explained on Twitter. “I’ve been working on it for years, perfecting it, trying to make it ours. I wanted to make music into a song where we share our deep need to both be understood and try to understand each other — a longing to be close when we feel so far away and an ability to celebrate life’s heroes.” The sequel to Tom Cruise’s 1986 classic has been delayed many times, with several of its most recent setbacks due to the pandemic. When producing the music with Bloodpop and Benjamin Rice, Gaga said she wanted to make “a song where we share our deep need to both be understood and try to understand each other—a longing to be close when we feel so far away and an ability to celebrate life’s heroes.” The song is Gaga’s first release since Love for Sale, her final collaborative album with Tony Bennett. The long-awaited sequel to 1986’s "Top Gun" was initially scheduled for release in 2019 but was postponed to “work out all the complex flight sequences.” It was delayed once more due to the pandemic.