Lirazel

Sweetest Anne @@annedauphine accidentally found this article discussing Lana Del Rey’s sadness, the idea of what a woman should be, pain and really interprets her songs in a different and kinda interesting way. Read it! I read parts of it because I’m a little busy (I guess) but I’ll read it all as soon as I can.
Anne also says hi and that she misses you all.
 
https://perfectmag.co/2018/11/20/lana-del-rey-sad/

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Nah, I doubt it. She has grown stagnant, yes, in fact I think she's been this way since Honeymoon. Perhaps it's partly due to laziness, and/or the disappointment of realizing fame wasn't what she thought it'd be. But I think the main reason is her personal life and her emotional state. Who knows what's been going on behind closed doors and in her mind. Who knows what might have happened to her. All I know for sure is that 2011-2012 Lana seemed to have the world on a string. It was like it was *finally* her time to shine, you know? And for a brief moment in time, she did. But she's been fading ever since. She had (and has) SO much potential. I've seen people with little talent, the blandest personalities and average looks manage to make something of themselves -or in some cases, become even more successful than Lana. Because they wanted to succeed, and those around them wanted them to succeed too. You have to want it. You have to work for it. And Lana...gave up on her career a long time ago. She's definitely lost her spark, and it shows. I just hope she finds something that makes her happy again.
 
And I hope it's not fucking Hillsong

I think fame is watering down what made her so great in the first place. Yeah, she's been famous for awhile now, but as it grows, her theatricality and effort fade, in performance and in the visual side to her art (music videos, stage outfit and presence). Is she running out of stories to tell?

I am so goddamn envious of her skills of self-mythologizing. I wish I could do that in my writing! Maybe I am lacking talent for that, or self-confidence. Can't help but love how she spuns tales of her life. 
I am torn about Hope is... when it comes to the sound, but I am so in awe of the narrative (though I hoped the Sylvia reference to be explored more, but it is what it is, I guess).
Think I might do some close reading of her lyrics.

I think people keep overlooking that the very founder of Hillsong has paid off rape victims... That's no regular church. I'm just saying Lana can do a little research about the place she's going to. I mean, at least for me, I wouldn't go to a random ass place without doing research. As I've stated countless times, it's a good thing we haven't seen her back. I'm saying that this church is known to abuse people, so in terms of Lana's wellbeing and her being very, erm, air head like, it's a good thing she's not revisiting this place that's known to be manipulative. I'd say about half of this thread has been people focusing on the gay conversion therapy thing, which in itself is a form of abuse, but you guys keep overlooking the pedophilia and rape victims being paid off. Obviously there's all of those things in some churches, but if you're smart, you do some research before joining anything, unless you're THAT lost in life, which is sad. I'm just stating, in terms of abuse, Hillsong takes the cake over many Churches I know about. We're not saying other Churches don't have bad things, were saying this has got to be one of the WORST and most publicized, so Lana should at least be vigilant enough to do some searching. But again, glad she hasn't been back.

Before you say anything, yes, I know that I have no life so don't judge me for translating this whole shit, I don't even know why I wanted to do it.

Hi!

I wished in May that the Swedish radio channel P3 would make a music documentary on Lana Del Rey and it seems like they published one earlier this week! I accidentally heard their documentaries on Taylor Swift and Kanye West last spring/early summer and they present the story and background fairly interestingly so I kept listening even though I don't care about them. Anyway.

This is an audio documentary where they tell the story of Lana, who she was and who she is today, and who her fans are. It's in Swedish. They have interviewed fans who know her story very well and... it's just a great summary of her. There's nothing new that we (hardcore) fans don't already know of, but in case you wanna have a listen too, I translated everything for you. I warn you, it's quite a long text. I just thought that it's pretty good summary of her career in case anyone wanna go back to check something, or I dunno.

You can listen and download the audio here. Just click on "Ladda ner (66 min, MP3)". https://sverigesradio.se/avsnitt/1216359
If any fellow Swedes read this, I think they'll air the documentary again on Saturday, January 12th, at 17:00 / 5 PM. It aired last Tuesday morning, but that day has already passed so...

I personally thought it was really cool to know the video clips they mentioned in the documentary even before they played the audio and, since I wasn't a fan until like 2013, I kinda missed all the shitstorm of hate that Lana went through and how bad it was. They told all of that fairly well I think.
 

 
Ok. Here's the translation of everything in case you wanna listen to the documentary and read along. Apologies in advance if anything is wrong, like if it should be 20th century instead of 1900 and any mispelled names.
 

You're right about that, 2012 is when I started noticing a shift towards acknowledgement & awareness of social issues. So that gives her about 7 years, and as a full fledged adult. Besides, look at the way she's been living all these years; does it seem like her personal growth was or is dependent on twitter and tumblr? She's spent most of her life in New York and LA for fuck's sake. She went to college and studied Philosophy, of all things. She's been reading self improvement books for more than a decade. She's known so many people, from all walks of life. She's traveled around the world. She has & has had access to more opportunities for self growth than you and I could ever dream of. And she's still acting like a dumb bitch
 
You keep talking about what happens, while I'm talking about what should happen. Oh, abuse victims go back to their abusers, what a great choice! An addict relapsing, awesome! Definitely something to applaud. Come the fuck on here. Disapproval is not the same as denial and/or ignorance. I can acknowledge a situation, understand how it came to be & why it is the way it is, and still conclude that it's a shitty fucking situation. Since when is something automatically okay simply because it's real?

Are you actually serious? Have you read any of my posts? You do realize I've been speaking on the pedophiles and rape victims along with the fact that the church tried to pay off the rape victims in order to shut them up right, while also speaking on them being in support of not letting women have reproductive rights? I'm honestly disgusted by your behavior and the fact that your argument tries to dismiss the pain and suffering people had to endure because of this church as simply an argumentative tactic. Your oversight on everything that has been discussed in here truly speaks volumes on who you are as a human being. Do you have any sort of moral compass or heart? I was simply speaking on the acts that have been perpetuated by the church in order to open up some of the fans eyes who think I'm only speaking about gay conversion therapy (which in itself is a form of abuse and is also truly disgusting for you to try and brush it off as anything less than). I clearly can see where you're coming from, fixating purely on the structure in which I presented my argument as, rather than actually absorbing any of the information. I'm simply at a loss for words attempting to understand how you can try to spin such a dark conversation into something as petty as dissecting the very way I've constructed my argument. Have some fucking respect, this isn't some heehee haha oh Lana called her song Cinnamon discussion. Were speaking about the fact that this person we supported attended and could very well still be attending a church that is known to be against every walk of life. Take your ignorance somewhere else buddy. You can try to string together and bring to life whateverr Frankenstein theory you've got on me, but I'm not having it. When you come back actually wanting to discuss the topic like a civilized adult rather than speculating who is against Lana and who isn't, then we can talk, but it is very clear you are currently in a state of trying to conjure up any sort of crack in a members argument simply to reassure yourself of Lana's innocence and disregard any sort of discussion leaning towards Lana being at fault. I truly hope you do some soul searching and learn that when something is as heavy as pedophilia, your jokes are not needed. I've suffered from my own abuse in life and I'll be fucking dead before you tell me what I do and don't stand for. Thank you.

That might have been a bit excessive, yeah. English is not my native language so expletives have less weight to me - that and I feel like it's so common to exaggerate your words on the internet.  
I do think that ignorance is not that good defense, but it's the best what we have, unless Lana is a secret agent infiltrating Hillsong. I don't like what it says about her if she is supporting them in any way.
 
Sidenote, but so many people in my country are criticising Ellen Page and saying that judging others for being homophobic is as bad as judging them for being gay (due to a slight mistranslation of her tweet). It's sad for me to see such a vile organisation getting support becauase it's Christian and so many people are still hateful toward minorities.
 
Anyway, I will always be thankful for Lana's art, even if it all goes downhill and I will lose my interest in her person. I hope this will not happen, but who knows?

Same! i love her music and i'm obsessed with the story she creates, but I don't really think she's that interesting as a human being idk. i love her so much though

I can't say I agree tbh, being in the limelight is hard enough, especially if you're someone...with issues. The pressure of having to play the part of the "positive role model" while dealing with all kinds of shit in your personal life can be way too much for one person to handle. To me it's not really about what she "owes" us (her fans, esp her female & LGBTQ fans), it's fully about HER as a person, her shocking lack of growth, the disservice she's doing herself, and the disappointing way she chooses to live her life. Like this is basically me @ 2018-2019 Lana https://media1.giphy.com/media/135bFFpwb5DLkQ/giphy.gif
 
Anyway, that said, I agree 100000% with the rest of your comment. Spot on, sadly. I don't mean to trivialize the issue at hand (I'm aware it might seem that way to some) but as an astrologer, she's such a fucking Gemini it makes me sick. Pure Gemini culture right there smh

No need to be rude to Lana, but we all know her going to Hillsong is fucked up. I hope she's reconsidered her actions and that's why she hasn't been spotted again. I'm all for finding your way in life, but when you've been lost for 15 years trying out cults, gurus, wicca, philosophy, spiritual guides, churches, fortune tellers, etc. I don't really know if you'll ever find a path that's suitable for you. I'm very well aware of the fact that we as human beings are growing, but Lana hasn't stood for anything ever. Yes, she's interested in furthering science, technology and space exploration (which are very broad statements seeing as everyone who is human should already be interested in the development of society and culture as a whole, so it's not really impressive) but she lacks basic goals and morals. I know she doesn't want to be a public figure, but it's not the 50s anymore. When you find yourself in the limelight nowadays, there's no way to run from being someone people look up to. People will be interested in how you think and work, that's just how fame works now. For her to go on instagram and talk about Nina Simone's influence on politics and how she was interested in the idea for Lust For Life, and then to make decisions like going to Hillsong which is a known cult who is against most of humanity, are very contradicting actions. I think her statement on feminism was very eye opening. She stated it just didn't INTEREST her, until 2016 when things got rough, and then it interested her and was her main focus. It seems as though she only stands for things she finds interesting that are becoming big in mainstream society. Same thing with the "instagram baddie" life. Lana doesn't really have a foundation of what she wants to work towards in life, she just sees something shiny and pretty making its way into mainstream culture and hops onto the bandwagon which makes me very sad. As I've stated, it's one thing to be growing as a person, it's another to stand for nothing until something interests you, you try it, and then become bored and spit it out. I just hope she finds her way to be quite honest, because she's been lost for a very long time and I don't necessarily see it improving the older she gets. I'm just glad we haven't seen her at Hillsong again.

All I'm trying to say is Lana going to Hillsong is fucked up for her female fans, her fans who have been a victim of rape, and her gay fans, WHILE ALSO being harmful to herself. It's not all about us either, I'm saying that that place can have a bad influence on HER OWN well-being as well.
She hasn't been spotted again so there's always the off chance it wasn't for her, and she stopped going. Which is what I'm hoping for

Either she's being a dumb, ignorant cunt again (remember her "feminism? I'm too smart for it, I care about BIGGER things like space and God, fuck sexually abused and murdered women because I am not one of them even though I like to portray myself as some poor sex worker in my songs" bs?) or she's a really vile person deep down under her artsy fartsy, depressive persona. Both of those options are fucking horrible, but as a stan who has much love for her art and person, I hope it's the first one, though it's becoming a bit hard.
 
One word: disgusting.
 
Sorry for the harsh words, but she makes loving her really hard sometimes.

Either she's being a dumb, ignorant cunt again (remember her "feminism? I'm too smart for it, I care about BIGGER things like space and God, fuck sexually abused and murdered women because I am not one of them even though I like to portray myself as some poor sex worker in my songs" bs?) or she's a really vile person deep down under her artsy fartsy, depressive persona. Both of those options are fucking horrible, but as a stan who has much love for her art and person, I hope it's the first one, though it's becoming a bit hard.
 
One word: disgusting.
 
Sorry for the harsh words, but she makes loving her really hard sometimes.

A long-time fan met Britney in Paris and wrote a lengthy post about the experience which is an interesting read tbh. However I think he's being slightly overdramatic to say the least, judging by the way he's describing her towards the end and how he's using CAPS LOCK to emphasize it. Of course I understand his disappointment, even having lost a lot of weight just for the occasion and all but honestly at this point every Britney fan should be aware of how those meet and greets are with her. He was prepared for it, I know, but still - if you've read enough of other people's experiences you know how awkward it'll probably be and the fact that it can turn into a shitshow at any minute. Can't help but feel bad for Britney, it's been clear for years that she's not very comfortable doing them so I think they should just let her be and stop the meet and greets.   I assume she likes saying hi to her fans when she's in a good mood but at this point she should take some break from doing it face to face and do Instagram live or something like that, I don't know.

I've read people sharing some moments of their lives involving Lana's music in one way or another, but I don't think we've had a certain thread for that purpose only? Like, I'm sure I've read these memories in the pre-threads or so. I'd love to read yours, it can be anything, small or big, but if you have a special memory that you'll never forget and feel like sharing... this is the place!
 
One of my earliest memories when I just became a fan was me playing BTD-Paradise on Spotify in the living room, just to make sure if it was worth spending money on this album or not (never regretted doing it, for here I am now lol!) and I remember that dad really liked Ride. He was really impressed, that's one of my favorite memories of him. He loved the strings in it and the beat, I know he coudln't express himself in words (due to a condition that made him pass away a few years later), but the look in his eyes and his smile really showed it.
So soon after, I was waiting at the train station for my commuter train to arrive, reading through the BTD-Paradise booklet to read the lyrics. The air was pretty cold and my fingers were freezing, but I kept reading. I recall not remembering the melody for National Anthem as I read the lyrics lol (which is fair I guess since the lyrics in the booklet isn't exactly 100% the same as on the track).
 
Another memory I have was in sometime in fall 2014. I was heading to the metro station as I had finished uni classes for that day, I tried to hurry to get home as soon as I could, but then I just stopped as I heard Brooklyn Baby being played out loud in, what I think it was, one of the university's smaller buildings. The window was open and I just stood there outside, listening. Eventually I went down to the metro, I could have stayed there forever but we all need to get home lol. I was really surprised. Lana wasn't (isn't) that very big, and I was so curious to know who played Lana, haha. Maybe they loved her as much as I did.
 
Ok, your turn!

Seems like a cutie, but not to rag on anyone, but isn't it pretty weird how she's kinda just spotted like this w a man to then probably have others think that he's more important than what he is (not to sound bitchy) but what if he's just a friend or something. Like wow maybe bc I was listening to Hope and the whole gatekeeper keys post came to mind, but privacy really is some kind of richness, and she doesn't have it much   

Now what I really wanna know is where that stand is, been collecting fashion mags for a few months now and wanna know if they have a certain one I've been looking for for a few weeks now 

Great new interview about Britney and her shyness 
 
https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop/8455376/britney-spears-says-stage-persona-healthy-way-to-combat-shyness?utm_source=twitter

I always hated how a lot of megachurches had like a corporate vibe. Or were more interested in perpetuating white, white collar, suburban, bourgeoisie values or making such people feel comfortable than doing anything remotely resembling following Jesus. Comfort valued about all else. If you're not, as a pastor, regularly making your congregation feel uncomfortable you're not doing it right.  

I LOLed at work. Man, confusing CS Lewis with Louis CK is the funniest shit I've read in awhile. Whew.
 
(BTW it's wild that Louis CK's publicist's name was Lewis Kay.)
 
 

Now that I think about it, the person whose opinion about all this I'd be most curious to read is @PrettyBaby.

@TRENCH
 
Not Louis C.K.
 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._S._Lewis

Anyway, stream God by Tori Amos

I know a few of you think it's a dramatic reaction to be upset/concerned over this but I really fucking am lol. I was able to think that a one off visit was either exploration of her own values or art even, but I see no reason to return unless she's interested in the community or what they're preaching and that is unacceptable to me. Like this does upset me because it's another fucking artist making bank off the backs of LGBT fans who really doesn't give a fuck about the community or the history. These are the same motherfuckers who call me a dyke on the bus, who said I was a weird lesbian in primary school... I just cannot wrap my head around this. I love this community but I will unstan if this goes on without explanation

If you need another reason to think Hillsong is a batshit institution filled with sociopaths, my friends pastor growing up (of Hillsong) literally faked cancer for multiple years and took money from the community for "treatment." Like this is the caliber of people Hillsong attracts lmao.
 
https://www.christiantoday.com/article/preacher.who.faked.cancer.will.not.face.legal.charges/21437.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Guglielmucci