A collaborative effort between Gaga, Fernando Garibay, DJ White Shadow, Paul Blair, and Cheche Aliar, "Americano" was influenced by the events surrounding the repeal of the controversial California Proposition 8—a ballot proposition that defined marriage as a union between opposite-sex couples, thereby prohibiting and invalidating same-sex marriage throughout the state—as well as the growing struggles of Mexican immigrants. "The song was directly inspired by events that happened that day," recalled Garibay, in his interview with MTV. "It was in August, in the middle of summer, last year, and it was when Prop 8 was overturned in California. And there was a lot happening with immigration and the border issues and she pushed, she said she wanted to make this song really Mexican, with the stru