BLOG Lady Gaga hits stage for invite-only show for DNC delegates

Lady Gaga hit the stage at an invitation-only concert Thursday for delegates to the Democratic National Convention, covering classic songs from Woody Guthrie, Neil Young, the Beatles and others.

Gaga opened with a jazzy version of Guthrie's "This Land is Your Land" and then Young's "Old Man." She was introduced by Democratic U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, who called her a star who's not afraid to speak out about sexual violence and mental health.

She closed out her set with the Beatles' "Come Together" and then sang Edith Piaf's "La Vie en Rose" as an encore.

Lenny Kravitz, who also performed inside the convention on Wednesday night, ended his set Thursday by shouting, "We, the people! We, the people! We, the people!" DJ Jazzy Jeff spun tunes in between their sets.

The show gives Camden, one of the country's most impoverished cities, time in the Democratic convention spotlight.

George Norcross and Susan McCue, president of General Majority PAC and a former chief of staff to U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, hosted the "Camden Rising" event, held hours before Hillary Clinton formally accepts the Democratic Party's nomination for president.

Norcross is credited with working with Republican Gov. Chris Christie to help in redevelopment efforts in Camden, many partially funded through state grants and tax credits. The insurance executive is a Democratic superdelegate along with his brother, U.S. Rep. Donald Norcross. Both are supporting Clinton.

Clinton delegate Suzanne Perkins, 47, of Ann Arbor, Michigan, said she thinks celebrities can help influence delegates and voters.

After Kravitz's set, she said Bernie Sanders supporters in her delegation who like his music and politics heard his support for Clinton and might think, "Maybe I ought to open my mind. Here's a guy whose politics I agree with and he endorsed her."