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I'm agreeing with you that she started big in Europe but in the last two years she was mainly in the US. I cannot see her focusing on the US and on the Europe markets in the same time. Those examples you gave are correct but Beyonce is mainly R&B which never really worked in Europe, on the other hand HBTB has a sound that is more Euro friendly

It's normal for HBTB to fall from the 1st place on itunes. She has no mainstream exposure yet the single was bought mainly by her fans. The Weeknd has tons of radio play and performances (it was lip-synced by Tom Cruise). The question is if HBTB will plummet or will stabilize and climb again with more promo and radio play.

Her main market is the US. If she will succeed in the US the rest of the world will follow. But Germany is a grey area for her for some time, they seem to have forgotten her. She's weak in the UK too

This is shaping up to be a very interesting era, I have to admit I have no clue what's coming next 1. I'm curious if HBTB will become a hit. It has some crossover appeal (in my opinion it's Lana's most GP friendly song). It survived at least 2 days at the top of US itunes without promo or radio play. The video may help but if she wants commercial success she needs to move her ass and promote. Regarding radio play this song is as radio friendly as any Lana song will ever get. But still, getting a hit is somewhat unpredictable. I would like it for Lana to have a hit on her own terms to forget that SS remix. 2. I asked myself if I would like her to have a hit with HBTB? The song is catchy in every part but it is a little bit simplistic (like most hits anyway). The lyrics are better than on HM, more relatable and she's out of her usual motives of a damsel in distress. I like a feisty Lana. 3. Will she promote? Her interview with Zane Lowe was cute, she seems happy and there wasn't any "what the fuck she just said" moments. But her problem is getting back in the spotlight, on TV. I hope that she will have the courage to go on TV because I suspect that she changed her way of singing live (as far as I observed on her ES tour videos). On the other hand, her dolce vita with Francesco in Italy doesn't hint towards a sudden promoting effort from her. 4. How will be the the video for HBTB? I'm anxious because I didn't liked any video of hers since (included) Tropico. They are bland, neither artistic or commercial. HBTB needs something clever, but with a commercial appeal (you cannot expect 14-25 y.o people to love a video where the main guy is 70 y.o). From the snippet I fear something homemade but that would be uber trolling from her

So quick to judge but you know so little about her:in 2010 she wrote: Lights, camera, accion You know I can't make it on my own in 2015 she wrote: Lights, camera, accion I'LL DO IT ON MY OWN it is a beautiful tribute to her past when she struggled Anyway, I always knew that Lana loves the big guns

Bow down bitches before the most versatile female artist ever. She did rock (surf, psihedelic), soft grunge, jazz, blues, trip hop, pop, hip hop, trap, folk and against her will EDM. (I'm sure that I forgot some and I didn't mentioned her made up genres). She surprised me again with a new sound (I'm not talking about HM) because HBTB is not like anything on BTD or UV

This could come out in different flavors as WC did. I can imagine a change in the mix that could further improve the song which is great even as it is now This is a bit to much don't you think?

I put HBTB on my 600 watt sound system an the beat is sick. I would like her voice to be a bit stronger it's to ethereal. It's definitely not your usual top 40 BS but with a different mix this could smash

I was fed up with the on the nose sad songs. This is a bit of fresh air from her and she will shut up the people who said that she is an one trick pony. I hope that there are many more songs like this on the album

I calmed down after the leak and listened. The song is fucking great. I hope she does something with it despite the leak. HM is shaping up to be a curious album because HM is very different from HBTB

I'm not interested in the song at this time. I'm to mad at the way her team handled this release. I get from the reactions that is a more poppier sound from her, so I don't have an idea yet if it's hit worthy. But what a shit team she has! They just fuck everything up. There is no way that at this level is so much incompetence. Why they announced a date for the release tho when you know the high risk for leaks? They don't have a team to take down the most important leaks which are on YT, Soundcloud and tumblr. There is no point to hate on the fans who leaked it. It was out there and this is her team's fault. Why they didn't released everything on Friday if that is the official day for releases from now on? I don't expect anything coherent from this bunch of idiots, everything will depend on how lucky she gets this era. I read the lyrics. They seems better than the bland and pointless HM lyrics. But what is the point to put R rated words in it if you want something more commercially viable? And what the fuck is doing HM and HBTB on the same album?

The title it's so Lana. It would be nice form her to step out from cliche territory for once. "High" could mean different things and I hope that the lyrics are not that on the nose. The cover is glamorous but the difference to the real life Lana seems huge to me at this point. So, is this a sign for more promo and more commercial music? The image of her dirty feet in the HM video is so contradicting with the glam cover of HBTB that makes any prediction of this era futile. The announcement of HBTB and the feature with Abel kind of overlapped and the single seems to take a back seat to the feature, this is a sign that people still want Lana to be a huge pop star. My hunch is that they will be disappointed

As I saw her in Italy she seems to be in a serious relationship with Francesco. Maybe Honeymoon, the album, is secondary for her at this point and she's more into planning her personal life: her wedding, HM with Francesco and little Lanas. I wouldn't be surprised tbh: she's 30 y.o., a millionaire, her father is a millionaire, Francesco is wealthy in his own right and part of Italy's high life. Why would she be doing promo for her album when she hates it? Honeymoon, the song, was released (if we could call the posting on her YT account a release) with even less coherency and promotional effect than WC last year, is a low key song that points nowhere lyrically or sonically. She appears to be so over being a star, so I just wait patiently for the music and nothing else, I hope that HM is a misleading single for the album tho

I want to love this song. Vocally is one of her best. But this is the first time when the lyrics are really bothering me in a Lana song. I hate the bridge where the bad boy caricature is so strong that nearly ruins the whole experience. After I listen to the bridge I feel a disconnect between the deep melancholy conveyed by the song and the caricatural lyrics. For a moment I thought that she's trolling but this would make no sense so I made up the idea that this is an obsessive dream of hers, to be a lover of some dangerous guy which is in the same time a lovable and a somewhat tragic figure in the jazz era. I can picture them in the little bullet car as they are speeding down the boulevard which she's dreaming of. But this dream (which may hide some deep insecurities which I can relate to) deserves such a beautifully crafted song and so heavenly vocals?

First, let's slow down with the Dylan comparisons. Lana is instantly recognizable I give you that and it's an interesting way to define authenticity. Lana is a capable lyricist but to me she seems stuck in emotional frame that she cannot escape and hence she keeps repeating herself. I feel that her emotions are true, the melancoly in her voice is authentic but the lyrics falls short in conveying that sometimes (HM). If you have obsessive thoughts it's not allways a good thing to put your stream of consciousness in lyrical form, you become quickly repetitive. You have to be a lyrical genius to make the same emotions lyrically interesting every time. She said about HM that encapsulates the things that comes naturally to her, maybe she arrived at the point when she needs some help and she could cowrite the lyrics with someone close to her with talent (like Franco). But I still have hope that the rest of the album is better lyrically than HM

I can't watch HM on mobile wtf?

This. Some verses are beautiful on HM but as a whole the bad boy trope sticks out and diminish the whole thing for me. She's absolutely capable of being jazzy and to write decent lyrics in the same time. I'm not against the vignettes but you have to diversify your tropes and tell a compelling story if you use them (think of OTTR or Kinda Outta Luck)

Besides the usual disdain from the nypost.com, where some dude with a Foo Fighters badge gave it 1,5 stars from 4, I'm surprised how well received HM was. Even A. Fantano who usually dismiss her quickly was in-between with HM. The guy from the nypost said basically that her "I'm in love with a bad boy" shtick is wearing thin and I have to agree with that. Obviously I'm not agreeing with his score because the strengths of HM are the beautiful vocals and the production (I would give it a 3 from 4). The only big issue that I have with the lyrics is this unnecessary depiction of her love interest as a violent mafioso. I'm trying to imagine Barrie, Francesco or the WoW player from VG with some guns and a bad boy attitude and the result is just ridiculous. Some people compared HM with VG but I think the former was something relatable and authentic compared with this film noir vignette of HM which is clearly fiction and just a mean to showcase her vocal skills. She has a certain talent in creating these vignettes but I hope that there will be no more bad boy caricatures on HM because I think that would drag the whole thing down.

Calling some people flop fans is far from repulsive but I was joking anyway (in an earlier post I said that HM is not everybody's cup of tea) Anyway, I'm getting tired by "fans" who are expecting Lana to release bops, faster music. She's not a happy person and her music reflects it, take it or leave it, but don't bitch around because the music is slow. HM is a surprisingly rich song if you have the patience to listen to it.

I overplay it already on YT. I need to buy this song in HD asap (what are they waiting for?)

Everything that she did so far regarding the release of HM suggests that she wants it that way. She doesn't want more exposure, she's seems content with her fan base and her label can't do anything about it. I think that Lana herself and even Interscope acknowledged that she can't handle the mainstream media (think of the last years cancellations) and they don't force things with her anymore. And this is coherent with what she said about her music that she does it primarily for herself and everybody else's opinion is secondary...a true artist (those who don't like HM are flop fans anyway, her voice is heavenly)

HM instrumental? It seems to be the melody of HM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oR9flmjewlE#t=44

I didn't know that but is interesting that she can upload the music without mentioning her label

HM instrumental? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oR9flmjewlE#t=44

I don't feel that HM is a repeat of the BTD-Paradise sound. The production is stripped back and the emphasis is on her voice. Yes, there are strings but the music is way sadder, it makes my soul weep. The song requires some patience to really enjoy it so I kind of understand the people who don't like it. This is closer to clasical music than anyting she put out yet. I really like the jazz infusions. The lyrics became secondary to the somber vibe of the music and is a good thing for me because I wasn't a fan of the lyrics (if the lyrics would match the sound HM would resemble some of the Swans songs). I think that the way that she released the song, on her YT account without a professional lyric video, suggests that there will not be any promo this time besides the videos that she shot already. I don't expect any interviews since she's constantly informing us on her instagram about her process of making the album. She seems to isolate herself from the press as she did it during her tour. Maybe she's finally getting fed up with them and I'm with her on that. She doesn't care about her commercial viability and she clearly choose to step back from mainstream exposure. I don't even fancy her being played on the radio or singing on late-night shows. (imagine her singing HM after a brouhaha with some idiot talk show host who will ask her about SNL or why she named a song about DMD) What is interesting that I didn't found any mentioning on her YT account that the song it's released under the licence of her label Interscope or Polydor. I think that this era will be a turning point in her career as it seems like she is forcing things to happen in a certain way. She seems totally in control of the release and this means little or no label support, just Lana and us and I'm here for it