There’s a lot of controversy going on about pop spectacle Lady Gaga, aka Stephanie Germanotta.

I told you last week that she declined the opportunity to be part of “We Are the World 25.” She turned them down flat.

By coincidence, Gaga’s producer, Red One (yes, that’s his name), aka Nadir Khayat, worked with Quincy Jones on the new “We Are the World.” Because of that there was talk of Gaga joining in, but it didn’t happen. At a meeting with about 20 people, apparently, Red One said he might be able to get Ga Ga. In the end, he couldn’t.

At no time did executive producer Randy Phillips ever promise Ga Ga to anyone. But all the people he did say were coming, came. And a few more, like Fergie, taped their parts later. Phillips and Quincy Jones put together 80 artists in about four days. It was an amazing achievement, frankly. I still haven’t gotten over seeing Barbra Streisand, Celine Dion, Tony Bennett, Gladys Knight, India Arie, and so on all in one room. Yowza.

“We Are the World 25″ debuts on Friday.

Who was missing from “We Are the World”? Lady Gaga.

“They literally begged her to come,” a source told me yesterday. “She turned them down. She didn’t get it.”

Jay Z and Beyonce had no excuses. They were in town. So was Alicia Keys, who spent the weekend with boyfriend Swizz Beatz at the home of Paradigm Talent Agency chief Sam Gores and his wife, former soap star Jensen Buchanan. Alicia may have felt spread too thin between the Haiti telethon and her own Keep a Child Alive charity.

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Meet the Bride of Frankenstein, the love child of Elton John and Madonna: Stefani Germanotta, aka Lady Gaga.

At last night’s Grammy Awards, Steve Walter — who ran the late, lamented Cutting Room on West 24th Street with co-owner and pal Chris Noth — got a chuckle out of Lady Gaga.

“That’s Stefani Germanotta,” Walter said. “She got signed out of a workshop at the Cutting Room.”

That was four years ago. Here’s a link to a story that explains what happened. Producer Rob Fusari started working with the New York University student after that night.

The rest of the Lady Gaga story sounds very much like Madonna’s beginnings in Livonia, Mich. Like Gaga, she didn’t write her original hits. The people who gave her her early start were soon forgotten. Now Madonna is worth millions, belongs to a cult, speaks with an English accent and adopts children from Africa against the will of their families.

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What happened to all the men?

This week, the Top 10 albums, with one exception, showcase the voices and attitudes of women.

The Top 10 includes Kesha, two albums by Lady Gaga, the Black Eyed Peas (their driving force: Fergie), Taylor Swift, Alicia Keys, Mary J. Blige, and Susan Boyle.

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The Grammy nominations are out, and they are an odd lot.

For one thing, they totally snub Whitney Houston, Alicia Keys, and Rob Thomas. Grammy pet John Mayer is nowhere to be heard.

Substance is out, style — or fad — is in. It’s a Lady GaGa Grammys, with flashes of the trivial spread around her. Ten nominations for Beyonce? Are we kidding? And on January 1st, will anyone care about these nominees?

Whitney Houston’s lovely comeback, which could have been a Grammy story, is ignored. Entirely. How could her song, “Million Dollar Bill,” written by Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz, not make it? Mariah Carey’s “Obsessed”— deleted. Rob Thomas’s excellent pop album,”Cradlesong” — not happening.

Instead, we’ve got more Taylor Swift, and an entry from 1973: Daryl Hall and John Oates got a nomination for a live performance of “Sara Smile.” Hello? This is completely inane. They’re competing with new stuff from Bon Jovi, The Fray, MGMT, and the ostensible winner, Black Eyed Peas. Whoever pulled off that coup deserves some kind of prize. I’m sure one is coming.

My prediction: Black Eyed Peas will rule the show the way Outkast did a few years ago. “I Gotta Feeling” is this year’s “Hey Ya.” My only worry is that Outkast was never heard from again.

Basically, without real artists to support in the under 30 age group, the Grammys have disintegrated into a Tiger Beat mentality. The so called actual artists can be found in Category 15, Best Rock Solo Performance ( I love the names of the categories) — with Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, John Fogerty, Neil Young, and Prince. It’s hilarious that none of the Best Song nominations came from those albums, but instead from crappy “teams” who put together “productions.” Really.

And over in the dreaded New Artist group: Zac Brown, MGMT, Keri Hilson, Silversun Pickups, and Ting Tings. This is a cursed category. We will not ever hear of these people again. Ever.

One bright spot: a nomination for Stevie Wonder and his “All About the Love Again.” It’s a throwaway, but maybe someone read my November 2nd column. Also: two noms for unknown R&B singer Calvin Richardson, on the very small Shanachie Records. Considering all the main nominees, Ken Ehrlich would be well served to feature this guy. He’s the real deal.

Anyway, between the MusiCares dinner for Neil Young, and Clive Davis’s dinner the following night, I suspect the Grammys are going to be a desultory affair. And with beloved talent coordinator Tisha Fein summarily dismissed a few weeks ago after three decades, many of the real artists who were relegated to minor nominations may not be persuaded to show up at all.

Pierre Cossette, we do miss you!