AnneAmanda

even though we a re long past the btd sound i will forever be thankful that he helped bring us one of my favourite albums of all time!

She's protective of Frances Cobain, ergo she completely trashes Courtney Love, the girl's fucking mother, and implies she's mentally ill?
The bigger question should be why is this repugnant woman still talking?
She got the attention she wanted for her book, idiots everywhere are applauding her for her "wit" in suggesting a young woman kill herself, and she did all of it without getting half the public backlash Lana gets for showing up to an interview without a forced pearly smile.
Love how just a few days ago she was smugly retweeting Lana fans like their expressions of disgust were the height of hilarity now she's awkwardly trying to dig herself out of a hole. Also this was NOT a cat fight, Lana took no part in this. This was one feeble older woman viciously slandering a harmless 29 year old younger woman (whom she'd never even met) and disguising it as feminist commentary.

FADER - June/July 2014

Her portrayal of those relationships, though, has prompted mixed reviews among feminists. Some criticize the way she seems to idealize powerlessness and servitude, while others appreciate her fluid embodiment of different identities, as well as her candor about both her desire and her weakness. In any case, her comments on the subject will be disappointing for both camps:

“For me, the issue of feminism is just not an interesting concept,” she says.  “I’m more interested in, you know, SpaceX and Tesla, what’s going to happen with our intergalactic possibilities. Whenever people bring up feminism, I’m like, god. I’m just not really that interested.”

Fortunately, her ambivalence about politics doesn’t undo any subversiveness that may be embedded in her work (though, nor does it excuse any ill it may cause). When pressed, she adds, more illuminatingly,

“My idea of a true feminist is a woman who feels free enough to do whatever she wants.”

***

THE NEW YORK TIMES - June 12, 2014

A recurring criticism was that her songs about being swept away by love were anti-feminist in their passivity; she contends that she was writing about private, immediate feelings, not setting out doctrine.

“For me, a true feminist is someone who is a woman who does exactly what she wants,” she said. “If my choice is to, I don’t know, be with a lot of men, or if I enjoy a really physical relationship, I don’t think that’s necessarily being anti-feminist. For me the argument of feminism never really should have come into the picture. Because I don’t know too much about the history of feminism, and so I’m not really a relevant person to bring into the conversation. Everything I was writing was so autobiographical, it could really only be a personal analysis.”

***

During her Ultraviolence promotional interviews, Lana Del Rey was attacked by the media for not being a feminist, which relied heavily on the soundbite “Whenever people bring up feminism, I’m like, god. I’m just not really that interested.”

How is this an admission of not being a feminist?  Is the lack of interest in discussing feminism tantamount to not being a feminist?  Further when you add in both the statements from Fader and New York Times, it is clear that Lana does have a sense of what feminism is to her:  “My idea of a true feminist is a woman who feels free enough to do whatever she wants.”  &  “For me, a true feminist is someone who is a woman who does exactly what she wants,”
 
Aren’t these sentiments that Lana describes the basis of feminism?

She further clarifies that “Because I don’t know too much about the history of feminism, and so I’m not really a relevant person to bring into the conversation.”

Furthermore, multiple statements from people who have worked with Lana (Dan Auerbach, Emile Haynie, Rick Nowels,  Dan Heath) all talk about how much control she exerts over her creative and production process.

While Lana may be a reluctant figure of feminism, where does all this hate from the feminist community come from?  (Jezebel, Ms., Kim Gordon, etc.)

Hopefully not. Someone call Nicole.  

The way Kim comes for Lana is a little bit personal. Sounds like the problem rests with her, taking the Ride video 100% literally, wishing Lana would kill herself, whining about the fact that Lana isn't interested in carrying the burden of always being a feminist role model.
 
Lana built her own career, writes her own music, has a mind of her own, and never tries to pretend she is perfect. Sounds like a pretty strong woman to me.  She's open about her fantasies and honest - to a fault - about the things she feels. I bet if someone were to open up Kim's brain and find all of the secrets she's harbored in there, we could make plenty of comments about Kim's relationship with feminism or her own private fantasies/thoughts.
 
Her commenting safely from the pages of a memoir on someone else, seemingly for no reason other than to make an example of someone, well... like I said, sounds like she's got the problem, not Lana. Sorry if Lana makes you uncomfortable but hey, you slammed a very popular artist to make yourself (and your book) find some rumblings of attention, so congratulations but I see right through it.

Waiting for Azealia Banks to say something on this. I bet Lana herself would have a lot to say but she NEVER goes public about this stuff.
 
The saddest thing about this is if this happened to someone like Lorde or Taylor Swift everyone one would immediately come to their defence, fan or not, the things Kim Gordon said are that harsh, but Lana is always left to fend for herself. She's like the nerdy kid in high school, everyone sees this stuff happen to her but they just watch. No one thinks to throw her any fucking support.
 
Also I must be forgetting the song where Lana says no to voting or earning equal pay.
Let's just list all the sexism displayed in this paragraph:
1 Slut-Shaming Lana for her taste in men and lovemaking.
2 Criticising Lana's apt description of a true feminist because Lana said it.
3 Insinuating that Lana shouldn't sing as an individual who has chosen a different lifestyle to her, but instead sing about very certain topics. She's basically saying that Lana Del Rey's experiences are less valuable because she's a female, she should be singing about how independent she is and act like everyone wants her too because anything less is just unheard of in society (Jim Morrison, Kanye West, Eminem, pretty much all male rappers)
4 Advising Lana to kill herself. This isn't sexist so much as simply inhumane and reprehensibly irresponsible.
 
Does Kim think she's gonna get away with all this?

EXACTLY.
 
And yet it seems no one (other than Lana's admirably aggressive twitter legion) has really called Kim out for this yet. Advising another woman that you've never met to kill themselves, especially in such a vitriolic and heartless fashion, is a much worse immpression to be putting out to our youth than a lonely woman admitting her own depression. The fact that Lana has made her anxieties clear to the world actually makes what Kim said even more, well, downright evil.
 
And yet if Lana were to respond in even the most reserved of manners, she'd be the one accused of trying to ignite a spat.
Let's hope she has enough common sense to realise that this woman is way out of place, it seriously wouldn't be good for her mental state if she took any of what was said to heart. Which is very likely considering who said it.

To put my predictive powers in context, I thought that Britney Spears would be a one hit wonder, & that Madonna wouldn't outlast the eighties.
 
Having said that, there is something very special about Lana, and I feel that the fact she weathered the storm in early 2012, and now seems happy with making her own art, means that she will be creating for a long time, but also that her records will keep on being discovered.

Everyone(the hipster music press) thought back around spring 2012 that she's a "flash in the pan" and will be irrelevant by 2013. Now she's bigger than ever.
 
From "Video Games" to "Big Eyes", Lana has never put out a song that I thought cringe-worthy or bad in any way. I know she is not the sole songwriter for many of her songs, but that doesn't change the fact that she knows how to partner up with quality songwriters too. That's a skill in itself. She has a tremendous visual arts flair that IMHO is indelible. From the videos of "Video Games", "Blue Jeans", "Summertime Sadness" with their super-8 type quality to the epic "Ride" to "Tropico" I think she's a female David Lynch.
 
On top of all that, a new album coming at the end of the year. She's literally the only woman in the pop industry(other than Sia) that I can celebrate.
 
There is a way she invokes nostalgia and sadness that is indelible. Some people have a problem with that, but someone has to carry that torch. She is fucking crazy, but she is free.
 
Keep on sad-corin' Lana.

she will be famous forever 
 
or for as long as she wants to be 

This week, Lana Del Rey's first major release, Born to Die, turns 3. Definitely the fans' favorite era, the album was promoted with eight singles, a big amount of beautiful videos that went incredibly viral on Tumblr, two tours, interviews, a re-release/EP, a short film and more. The album sold more than 5 million copies and it's still charting all around the world. It was met with mixed reviews from critics, but half of them were paying attention to Del Rey's personal life instead of the album itself. Now that we're in 2015, Born to Die is among Billboard's best albums of the decade (so far) and it is waiting for more magazines and half-decade lists to praise it just like it deserves.   "Born to Die", the album's second single is the perfect opener – sonically and thematically. You can hear the beautiful violins and loud trip hop beats while she's singing about a young girl fantasizing and trying to survive in a world of dangerous, drug addict men. The song peaked at No. 9 in the UK and its iconic video was an internet sensation. The first promo single and fan-favorite "Off to the Races" is a masterpiece in terms of production and lyrics. While the title track is slow and depressive, "Off to the Races" is a violent alt-hip hop song about an "old bad man" and her sick relationship with him. The lyrics are more than romantic or sexual – they express how maddening love can be. The story-teller "Blue Jeans" features one of the most interesting lyrics from the album. This aggressive trip hop/soft rock song was released as the third single, accompanied by two videos. The first one is a home-made vintage film while the second is a beautifully directed, black and white work of art with a deep meaning. "Blue Jeans" became a Top 40 hit in some Europe countries and it is, without a doubt, one of Lana's most memorable songs/videos. We need to take a moment to think about the perfection of "Video Games", the album's lead single. The mystery behind it and its iconic video. The Top 10 hit was the beginning of a worldwide star, the creation of something important. It was just a simple yet intriguing video, but the whole Internet was talking about it. The majestic melody, romantic lyrics and powerful chorus make "Video Games" her best ballad. Going back to the trip hop/alternative hip hop sound, "Diet Mountain Dew" is a sexy retro song about a pretty girl wondering if her love for this bad man will last forever. The fifth single, "National Anthem", was a commercial failure due its lack of airplay and performances. Its lyrics are clever and open to a big amount of interpretations. In the controversial, high-budget video, Lana plays Marilyn Monroe and Jacqueline Kennedy, while American rapper ASAP Rocky is JFK. It was named one of the best music videos of the decade. "Dark Paradise" was released as the sixth single in order to promote the album, its re-release and the Paradise Tour. Just like the rest of the album, "Dark Paradise" has a very melancholic and dramatic melody. Its music video never saw the light of the day. "Radio" is probably the only optimistic song on Born to Die. The lyrics discusses themes such as hard-working, fame and overcoming. With "Carmen", the second promo single, the album goes back to its dark sound – but this one is definitely the darkest. Del Rey sings about this 17-year old girl Carmen that everybody loves with soft and gloomy trip hop beats in the background. "You said I was the most exotic flower," is the opening line of the jazzy "Million Dollar Man". The fans love when Lana performs this song live – it's an even jazzier version and her vocals are almost always on point (and sometimes they're just funny). The worldwide hit, "Summertime Sadness" is the eleventh song on Born to Die, and the second co-written by the amazing Rick Nowels. The indie pop/trip hop/shoegazing ballad was a hit in Europe in 2012 – it reached the No. 1 spot in Poland and became the 21st best-selling single in the UK that year. In 2013, French DJ Cedric Gervais had his breakthrough with his first single; a Grammy-winning progressive house remix of Lana's "Summertime Sadness". Both the original version and the remix were Top 10 hits in North America, Oceania, South America and Europe. The last song on the standard edition of Born to Die is the rebellious "This Is What Makes Us Girls". The outro of the song is just an epic way to end this incredible album. The deluxe version includes the ballads "Without You" and "Lucky Ones" and the sexy "Lolita".  
VIDEOS
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
PHOTOSHOOTS/COVERS
 

 
What's your favorite song from Born to Die? Least favorite?
Favorite thing about this incredible moment for popular music?
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=clGpZdf3bwY
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

I can hear this album for years and never get tired of it. Whenever I play it, the opening strings on Born To Die always give me the chills I had when I first heard it. Luv it.

It's crazy that I am still not tired of the songs, such high quality music in there
Born To Die
Dark Paradise
Summertime Sadness
 
This album is a masterpiece
 

Hey Lanaboards! So, I've done a few music videos in the past, and it's taken me awhile to do a Lana one. I've always felt a little intimidated by doing a Lana video, but when I heard BB for the first time, I knew I had to do it. I directed, filmed, and edited this video, and have been working on it since July (conception started in June).
 
I usually create characters for my videos, but I decided to actual try loosely portray portions of Lana's life in this video. The video takes place at Lana's bedroom in Lake Placid, Brooklyn, and in Coney Island. In addition to the locations, I tried to pack tons of Lana Easter eggs in there for the fans (ex: her fav movies, books, outfits she's worn).
 
I would really appreciate any support you can give the video. Thank you so much for watching!
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J17hymjIsns

So, I posted a few pages back about how Lana's dress was similar to a dress Marilyn Monroe wore created by the same designer..
but I also stumbled across this - maybe it wasn't only Marilyn she was channeling, as another one of her favourite people to channel also wore a similar dress - Priscilla Presely.
Or, perhaps, they're both just channeling Marilyn here, but either way, I found it interesting and thought I should drop it here.
 

I don't think there's anything more important about a Lana era than the music itself, period. But seriously, works of art shouldn't have to be explained by their artists on stage or something. Art is meant to be studied and through that the meaning will be revealed. That's what is so interesting about almost every form of art whether it's literature, music, or visual. It'd be boring if she explained everything perfectly. Where would be the mystique, the star power, or the elusiveness that makes Lana what she is? You completely don't understand who and what she is as an artist and it makes me feel like you're mentally lazy for wanting her to spell everything out for you so you can "get" it. That's what makes me think you're just not going to last as a fan of hers. Might as well give it up now. 
 
And I'm not saying I WANT her to release the album and vanish. But I'm merely saying she completely has the option to, just like any other artist. She isn't our barbie doll to play dress up with and to make dance and sing whenever we want to. Leave that for someone like Katy Perry who willingly puts herself in that kind of position. But the option to release something and not have to shove it into people's faces through performances and interviews IS a legitimate way to do things. Look at Prince, Kate Bush, Bjork, David Bowie... None of them feel the need to do all that. It'd be perfectly fine if they did, but they don't. I just don't understand why you have to keep pushing so hard for her to do anything other than make music. She's said before that that's what she enjoys doing: writing and making the music itself. 
 
 
If you are just so fed up with the way Lana does things then I suggest you give up on her. Artists generally become even more reclusive with age, so BTD may have been the most outgoing Lana you'll ever get. Enjoy the MUSIC!!!

Since when are singers not considered musicians?

i really loved it! 

If we get some uptempo's like Off To The Races Ill be so happy, that song is pure gold. Or even just one upbeat song like OTTR's, its a standout track.

I would love that, actually.

Yes, please.
 
I'm tired of this basic bitch causal white t shirt..jeans image. 
 
One of the reasons, she underperformed tbh this era. This imagery, videos are just not strong enough to gain new interest from the gp.
 
Everything is so bland. 

Agreed...with a bit of a soft rock tinge. As I said before, I'm thinking Dusty Springfield meets Nina Simone meets Stevie Nicks. Lana loves genre clusterfucks....her versatility is awesome.

Just a week or two ago I started re-visiting AKA and I can say it is her best album so far, imo. So much diversity on that album, none of her albums have offered us.It's a shame she is not re-relasing it or recreating these songs live, especially since she complains about playing the same songs over and over. She should be the last popstar to complain about lack of material. And just these days, here we go, she seems to show interest in her past look and all. So I hope that she slightly goes back to that direction in terms of style, songwriting and sound. Uptempo songs like Raise Me Up or Jump or Queen Of The Gas Station are perfect and suit her so well. 
 
I bet she will finish writing for this album before the tour starts and at this point, I highly doubt she will tour outside of North America. In the rest of the world she had a sales decline between 70-85 % anyway, so finishing this album and make a short tour seems to be the right thing to do.

This is amazing. and jazzy.   and Doo Woppy.
 
I've always wanted her to go back to the Driving Cars With Boys/You Can Be The Boss/ Kinda Outta Luck sound again.

all i know is that there *needs* to be some upbeat songs on the next album. we know that lana does them exceptionally well & in a style that's all her own. sometimes i listen to her unreleased songs & mourn for the hits that could have been.