Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars’ Retro ‘Die With a Smile’ Music Video: Watch

Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars tip their cowboy hats to the era of Dolly Parton and Porter Wagoner in their new music video for “Die With a Smile,” the pop duo’s new collaboration that dropped at midnight ET Friday (Aug. 16).

The visual finds the “Just Dance” singer and Silk Sonic band leader jamming out on a set built to resemble a retro musical variety TV show, wearing matching red-and-blue outfits that wouldn’t have been out of place on the Grand Ole Opry stage in the 1960s. With Mars on guitar and Gaga seated at a piano — cigarette hanging from her lips, her blonde tresses teased to oblivion in true Parton style — the pair passionately belts out their existential new song.

“If the world was ending, I’d wanna be next to you/ If the party was over, and our time on Earth was through,” Mars and Gaga sing on the track that is more yearning throwback 1970s soul than C&W. “I’d wanna hold you just for a while/ And die with a smile.”

Shortly after the project dropped, the Joker star and “Uptown Funk!” hitmaker gave “Die With a Smile” its live debut at Mars’ Thursday night (Aug. 15) concert at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles. For the show, he wore a cowboy hat, while Gaga again sported bee-hive hair akin to her look in the music video.

“Ladies and gentlemen, put your hands together for the icon, pop royalty, Lady Gaga!” Mars said while introducing his duet partner to wild cheers from the surprised crowd.

The pair barely gave fans a heads up before announcing that their new song was on the way, simply posting the cover art and confirming its release date on Instagram less than 12 hours ahead of time. “WHILE YOU WAIT TILL LG7… ‘DIE WITH A SMILE’ a duet with @brunomars ❤️‍🔥” Gaga wrote at the time, teasing her upcoming seventh album.

Watch the “Die With a Smile” music video starring Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars above.