The Only Lady Gaga Shrine in Chicago is at Virgin Mobile's Lincoln Park Flagship

Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for The Goods by Vox. You can also see what we’re up to by signing up here.

This summer, Virgin Mobile started their quest to take on Chicago's cell phone population with great rates, iPhones, a trendy Branson vibe and... from what we can tell, they've gained momentum in the past few months. Surely, the success is because of all the billboards along 90/94 and the dashing good looks and surly smile of Mr. Branson, but maybe there were other forces involved... something more like "an energy". And the only energy we can think of that the store that rock our chakras to the core while we're in the Virgin Mobile Flagship on Clark is that of the shrine of Miss Lady Gaga.

In the North-West corner of the store, there are long black curtains enveloping a photo of a artist-rendered Gaga, sunglasses, lit by a cascade of flickering candles and eerily surrounded by a quiet aura. There are other photos scattered and placed in the shrine, some of tattooed models, others of Gaga-inspired imagery.

Looking over at the manager in the lounge area and ask him why the shrine is here, and with a soulful look in his eyes he sits up in the leather club chair with a proud posture and nods his head.
· Virgin Mobile [Official Site]
· All Lady Gaga Coverage [Racked]