Sheinelle Jones Says Lady Gaga’s Mom’s Parenting Advice Moved Her to Tears
The 'Today' anchor says Cynthia Germanotta's words about truly listening to your child stopped her cold
Key Takeaways
- Sheinelle Jones was moved to tears by Lady Gaga's mom's must-hear advice.
- Jones featured Germanotta in her book after feeling she could reach other parents through her.
- Germanotta's regret inspired her and Lady Gaga to launch the Born This Way Foundation.
Sometimes the most powerful parenting advice doesn’t come from experts with degrees or bestselling self-help gurus. It comes from a mother looking back on what she wishes she had done differently—and finding the courage to say so out loud. That’s exactly what happened when Today anchor Sheinelle Jones featured Cynthia Germanotta, the mother of global superstar Lady Gaga, in her book Through Mom’s Eyes. The parenting advice Germanotta shared moved Jones to tears—and it’s a message every parent needs to hear.
Cynthia Germanotta’s simple yet powerful words featured in ‘Through Mom’s Eyes’
In Jones’s book Through Mom’s Eyes, Germanotta offered a passage that is simple, direct and achingly honest: “Close your laptop and put your phone down, sit on the couch, look your child in the eye and really listen.” Those words, read aloud during Episode 9 of What Matters With Liz, stopped Jones in her tracks. The moment was so moving that Jones became visibly emotional recalling it.
“That was Cynthia Germanotta. That was Lady Gaga’s Mom. I’m getting teary because I remember when she said it,” Jones said, her voice thick with emotion as she recalled the interview.
Why Sheinelle Jones knew she had to feature Lady Gaga’s mom in her book
Jones described the encounter as one that stayed with her long after it ended. She had interviewed Germanotta at a restaurant in New York City, and the experience clearly left a lasting impression—so much so that Jones knew she had to feature Germanotta’s story in Through Mom’s Eyes. According to Jones, Germanotta carried an urgency, a desire to reach other parents through her story.
“First of all, she looks just like she did when she was talking to me. It was like she wanted I was the conduit to so many women who are listening right now that she wanted to reach and it was like her chance,” Jones recalled.
Germanotta had something she needed to say, and she wanted it heard by as many mothers and fathers as possible. The message at the heart of it all is one of regret—and of hope that other parents might learn from her experience.
Lady Gaga was bullied as a child—and her mom missed the signs
Here’s what makes Germanotta’s story hit so close to home for so many families: a detail many parents might not expect. Lady Gaga, whose real name is Stephanie, was bullied as a child. But she had great grades. That distinction matters deeply, because the bullying didn’t come with the telltale signs many parents are taught to watch for.
“It’s not always like the telltale signs of like, ‘Oh, their grades are slipping,'” Jones explained.
Stephanie mentioned to her mother that something was happening, but the signals were easy to miss. A child who brings home strong report cards can appear, on the surface, to be doing just fine. The pain they carry may not show up in the ways adults expect. It’s a reality many parents know all too well: A child can be hurting deeply and still bring home perfect report cards. They can smile at the dinner table, excel in activities and seem fine on the surface—while carrying pain their parents don’t see until it’s almost too late.
This was the reality Germanotta confronted when she looked back on her daughter’s childhood. If she could do it all over again, she would have put down the distractions, looked her daughter in the eye and truly listened.
How Lady Gaga and her mom turned childhood pain into a mission of kindness
Out of that painful childhood experience came something beautiful: one of the most powerful youth advocacy efforts in the world today. Germanotta and her daughter now run the Born This Way Foundation, which centers its mission on kindness. As Jones shares in Through Mom’s Eyes, the foundation was born directly out of Lady Gaga’s experience of being bullied as a child.
What began as personal pain transformed into a platform for change—a way to turn a difficult childhood into something that could help other young people facing similar struggles. The foundation represents a full-circle moment for the Germanotta family. Germanotta’s regret about not listening closely enough became a shared mission between her and her daughter to ensure other families have the tools and awareness to do things differently.
The one thing every parent can do today, according to Lady Gaga’s mom
This isn’t just a celebrity story. It’s every parent’s story. The heart of Germanotta’s message is universal and strikingly ordinary: Put down the phone. Close the laptop. Sit with your child. Look them in the eye. Listen—really listen.
These aren’t grand gestures that require money, resources, or specialized training. They require presence, attention and the willingness to stop what you’re doing long enough to hear what your child might be trying to tell you. Even loving, attentive parents can miss what matters most. Your child can be struggling and still bring home good grades. They might mention something in passing that deserves a longer conversation.
For any parent reading this, the message Jones shares in Through Mom’s Eyes couldn’t be clearer: The most important thing you can do for your child doesn’t require perfection. It doesn’t require money or expertise. It simply requires you to close your laptop, put down your phone, sit beside them and truly listen—before the moment passes and you find yourself wishing you had.
What Matters With Liz airs every Wednesday on YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music and Apple Podcasts, with highlights and behind-the-scenes clips shared on Instagram and Facebook.
Conversation
All comments are subject to our Community Guidelines. Woman's World does not endorse the opinions and views shared by our readers in our comment sections. Our comments section is a place where readers can engage in healthy, productive, lively, and respectful discussions. Offensive language, hate speech, personal attacks, and/or defamatory statements are not permitted. Advertising or spam is also prohibited.
