"Telephone" is a song recorded by American singer Lady Gaga for her third EP, The Fame Monster (2009). The song features American singer Beyoncé. The song was written by Gaga, Rodney Jerkins, LaShawn Daniels, Lazonate Franklin and Beyoncé. Inspired by her fear of suffocation, Gaga explained that the lyrics preferring relaxing on the dance floor to answering her lover's phone call are a metaphor, the phone calling her representing the fear of not having worked hard enough to succeed. Originally, Gaga wrote the song for Britney Spears, who recorded a demo. Musically, "Telephone" consists of an expanded bridge, verse-rap and a sampled voice of an operator announcing that the phone line is unreachable. Beyoncé appears in the middle of the song, singing the verses in a rapid-fire way, accompanied by double beats.