A&W

[anwdelrey 9,270]

11 hours ago, 111 said:

 

no girl she is saying she spends most of her time fucking at the ramada while ppl think she is home in rosemead

It’s almost as if lyrics contain layers and multiple meanings. But anyways.

[White Dress 6,901]

21 hours ago, anwdelrey said:

“I say I live in Rosemead really I’m at the Ramada / It doesn’t really matter, doesn’t really really matter”

 

I wonder if this line is a response to the media’s perception that she fabricated her come up. In the sense that she doesn’t necessarily “owe” her detractors the truth, and if she contradicts herself or “censors” herself it doesn’t really matter to her because she doesn’t owe anyone anything. AND when she is vulnerable and truthful, ie her honest thoughts on feminism, it isn’t received well anyway. I know it also serves to support the theme of the song, but this is how I interpret it.

bestie, I think she’s just horny 

[anwdelrey 9,270]

1 minute ago, White Dress said:

bestie, I think she’s just horny 

See I get that but this line follows “Do you really think I give a damn what I do after years of just hearing them talking” so I think it can be interpreted in multiple ways. I.e. to serve the American Whore aspect of the song, but also as a response to her critics. In my opinion.

[HeyBlueBaby 3,332]

When she sang “do you really think I give a damn what I do after years of just hearing them talking”, I instantly thought of her time with Jack D and that county jail pic  queen!

[IanadeIrey 62,021]

4 hours ago, anwdelrey said:

See I get that but this line follows “Do you really think I give a damn what I do after years of just hearing them talking” so I think it can be interpreted in multiple ways. I.e. to serve the American Whore aspect of the song, but also as a response to her critics. In my opinion.

I think you’re right—and sorry no one is engaging meaningfully with you on this because what you’re saying has so much merit lol. Yes, the lyric has its first dimension in meaning (where she says she’s at home in Rosemead but really she’s at the Ramada Inn for a sexual encounter). But the line represents more than just that - it’s not purely literal. 
 

It expresses a kind of dichotomy that the media often captures about Lana. The line contains within itself the oscillation between a wholesome domestic idealism and a more suggestive, perhaps crass femme fatale-ism that the public loves to project onto Lana. They tend to both fetishize and weaponize these two conceptions of Lana in their think-pieces, and she completely toys with that in the line, concluding that “it doesn’t really matter” whether or not she’s presenting herself as one or the other. 

[anwdelrey 9,270]

46 minutes ago, IanadeIrey said:

I think you’re right—and sorry no one is engaging meaningfully with you on this because what you’re saying has so much merit lol. Yes, the lyric has its first dimension in meaning (where she says she’s at home in Rosemead but really she’s at the Ramada Inn for a sexual encounter). But the line represents more than just that - it’s not purely literal. 
 

It expresses a kind of dichotomy that the media often captures about Lana. The line contains within itself the oscillation between a wholesome domestic idealism and a more suggestive, perhaps crass femme fatale-ism that the public loves to project onto Lana. They tend to both fetishize and weaponize these two conceptions of Lana in their think-pieces, and she completely toys with that in the line, concluding that “it doesn’t really matter” whether or not she’s presenting herself as one or the other. 

I knew you’d get it 😌 and thanks for expanding on my thought in a more coherent way lol. It really is a song with many many layers. I would love to hear what you think about the Jimmy segment and its purpose in the song. I for one don’t think it’s a callback to Jim or anything like that, but more of a “let’s dance the pain away” kinda thing.

[Dark Angel 202,376]

54 minutes ago, IanadeIrey said:

I think you’re right—and sorry no one is engaging meaningfully with you on this because what you’re saying has so much merit lol. Yes, the lyric has its first dimension in meaning (where she says she’s at home in Rosemead but really she’s at the Ramada Inn for a sexual encounter). But the line represents more than just that - it’s not purely literal. 
 

It expresses a kind of dichotomy that the media often captures about Lana. The line contains within itself the oscillation between a wholesome domestic idealism and a more suggestive, perhaps crass femme fatale-ism that the public loves to project onto Lana. They tend to both fetishize and weaponize these two conceptions of Lana in their think-pieces, and she completely toys with that in the line, concluding that “it doesn’t really matter” whether or not she’s presenting herself as one or the other. 

 

something that i noticed is a little detail in the following lyrics "call him up, come into my bedroom, ended up, we fuck on the hotel floor", notice how she first mentions her bedroom, which would coincide with her home in rosemead, afterwards the hotel floor, which would coincide with the ramada, i feel like this lyric, especially with that little detail, can be interpreted in different ways, perhaps she's describing how when she's with somebody new, they get this picture-perfect, calm, matured image of her, but later on, they learn more of her struggles and secrets, that's a very metaphorical take on it, but i feel like this song is more deep and complex than we think

[IanadeIrey 62,021]

27 minutes ago, anwdelrey said:

I knew you’d get it 😌 and thanks for expanding on my thought in a more coherent way lol. It really is a song with many many layers. I would love to hear what you think about the Jimmy segment and its purpose in the song. I for one don’t think it’s a callback to Jim or anything like that, but more of a “let’s dance the pain away” kinda thing.

Lol I got you! Thank you for bringing it up in the first place ❤️
 

Definitely a song with so many layers, and I’m totally with you on the Jimmy segment. In my opinion, she’s telling in the first part of the song, but then showing in the second part of the song -  she now embodies “the experience of being an American Whore” through a seemingly fun and loose breakdown.
 

With the samples of the NFR title track, the Jimmy segment feels a bit like a pastiche of two Lanas (the critics’ darling, Lana and the subject of harsh criticism, Lana) - it takes the song that represents Lana’s most critically-acclaimed career-period and periodically distorts it against hip-hop beats and more vibe-y than narrative-driven lyrics. This, in my opinion, is a juxtaposition that marries the Lana who says she lives in Rosemead and the Lana who’s at the Ramada. So I think she’s just representing the lyrics from earlier in the song, but through sonics rather than lyrics.  
 

And I think she just wanted to fuck around in the studio with Jack lol. With her fashion choices and behaviour on social media over the last year-and-a-half, it really seems like she’s having fun with this image of the “American Whore” and reclaiming this stigmatized label assigned to her (by the media, and, perhaps as a result of how things ended with a certain someone based on the lyrics she sang on TikTok).

[Alison by Slowdive 26,149]

On 2/28/2023 at 1:11 PM, IanadeIrey said:

Lol I got you! Thank you for bringing it up in the first place ❤️
 

Definitely a song with so many layers, and I’m totally with you on the Jimmy segment. In my opinion, she’s telling in the first part of the song, but then showing in the second part of the song -  she now embodies “the experience of being an American Whore” through a seemingly fun and loose breakdown.
 

With the samples of the NFR title track, the Jimmy segment feels a bit like a pastiche of two Lanas (the critics’ darling, Lana and the subject of harsh criticism, Lana) - it takes the song that represents Lana’s most critically-acclaimed career-period and periodically distorts it against hip-hop beats and more vibe-y than narrative-driven lyrics. This, in my opinion, is a juxtaposition that marries the Lana who says she lives in Rosemead and the Lana who’s at the Ramada. So I think she’s just representing the lyrics from earlier in the song, but through sonics rather than lyrics.  
 

And I think she just wanted to fuck around in the studio with Jack lol. With her fashion choices and behaviour on social media over the last year-and-a-half, it really seems like she’s having fun with this image of the “American Whore” and reclaiming this stigmatized label assigned to her (by the media, and, perhaps as a result of how things ended with a certain someone based on the lyrics she sang on TikTok).

exaaactly! i vaguely remember a while ago writing that i was manifesting some sort of deep dive into a euphoric moment - baby wants a dance, baby gets her way  to me the jimmy part is a crushing dreamlike collapse into a representation of her experiences at the ramada (metaphoric, parodic, or not). ugghhh the jimmy part of the song just makes it so whole <3 and it's honestly such necessary relief after the heavy third verse. i also don't know enough abt music to fully understand or even identify a backbeat lol but i feel like the production in jimmy is intentionally meta 

[themiddleofhollyweird 89]

Got a cop who turned on the back beat

Puts the shower on while he calls me

Sneaks out the back door to talk to me

I'm invisible, you should’ve told me

Did you really think I would spare your tears just to save your happiness?

When I had no idea you were engaged. 

After all of those years,

do you think I’d spare their tears to save my face?

You must not have known who you were dealing with.

[themiddleofhollyweird 89]

Got a cop who turned on the back beat

Puts the shower on while he calls me

Sneaks out the back door to talk to me

I'm invisible, you should’ve told me

Did you really think I would spare your tears just to save your happiness?

When I had no idea you were engaged. 

After all of those years,

do you think I’d spare their tears to save my face?

You must not have known who you were dealing with.

 

we moved on too quickly from this.

brings a whole new meaning to the sidepiece at 33 line. heartbreaking really.

 

also fuck sean

[creditcardromancer 752]

On 2/24/2023 at 3:02 AM, 111 said:

because that's what she sang on that video followed by "puts the shower on while he calls me"

and listening to the song you can definitely hear "who turned on the backbeat", it's the word right before that seems to be censored weirdly (like on get free and florida kilos etc) so i imagine she says "got a (censored), who turned on the backbeat" 

 

now how the hell do i explain this to genius staff and get it corrected... 

 

which part did she censor on Florida Kilos?? How have I not noticed this?

[Umaniac 1,917]

Like earlier I was thinking how would Sean even have an affair with Lana when paparazzi follows her every step but then I noticed that Sean probably called the paps most of the time. We actually speculated about it back in the day and it would also tie with Violets for Roses and now A&W

[fishtails 13,795]

1 hour ago, themiddleofhollyweird said:

Got a cop who turned on the back beat

Puts the shower on while he calls me

Sneaks out the back door to talk to me

I'm invisible, you should’ve told me

Did you really think I would spare your tears just to save your happiness?

When I had no idea you were engaged. 

After all of those years,

do you think I’d spare their tears to save my face?

You must not have known who you were dealing with.

 

we moved on too quickly from this.

brings a whole new meaning to the sidepiece at 33 line. heartbreaking really.

 

also fuck sean

I think this also gives new meaning to Tulsa Jesus Freak since the whole song is pretty much about Sean/their relationship

 

But specifically the line "find your way back to my bed again" kind of gives the context needed, that (likely) they had officially broken up, but continued to hook up after that, while unbeknownst to Lana, he was dating and engaged to another women (hence these new lines in A&W)

 

He's a terrible person...I'm sure there are other songs about him on Ocean Blvd too but I hope Lana is able to move on from him now that she has shared all of this 

 

Spoiler

I also kind of hope his new wife finds out he was cheating on her with Lana and leaves him 

 

[Deleted Member 23,728]

.

[creditcardromancer 752]

I liked this song on first listen, but all of the theories and hidden vocals have made me adore it. 

32 minutes ago, fishtails said:

I think this also gives new meaning to Tulsa Jesus Freak since the whole song is pretty much about Sean/their relationship

 

But specifically the line "find your way back to my bed again" kind of gives the context needed, that (likely) they had officially broken up, but continued to hook up after that, while unbeknownst to Lana, he was dating and engaged to another women (hence these new lines in A&W)

 

He's a terrible person...I'm sure there are other songs about him on Ocean Blvd too but I hope Lana is able to move on from him now that she has shared all of this 

 

  Hide contents

I also kind of hope his new wife finds out he was cheating on her with Lana and leaves him 

 

When she says on the second floor darling… maybe she means the second floor of the Ramada. lol

[longtimeman 8,919]

1 hour ago, fishtails said:

I think this also gives new meaning to Tulsa Jesus Freak since the whole song is pretty much about Sean/their relationship

 

But specifically the line "find your way back to my bed again" kind of gives the context needed, that (likely) they had officially broken up, but continued to hook up after that, while unbeknownst to Lana, he was dating and engaged to another women (hence these new lines in A&W)

 

He's a terrible person...I'm sure there are other songs about him on Ocean Blvd too but I hope Lana is able to move on from him now that she has shared all of this 

 

  Hide contents

I also kind of hope his new wife finds out he was cheating on her with Lana and leaves him 

 

It also puts the act of  releasing the two singles on his birthday, and on Valentines Day, into even sharper perspective.

[acacia 358]

my mom who doesn't like lana said a&w is her favorite song from her and that she actually really likes it   and this is from someone who described lana as if florence welch was singing while sl1tting her wrists 

[fl0r1dakil0s 21,427]

17 minutes ago, acacia said:

described lana as if florence welch was singing while sl1tting her wrists 

 

[IanadeIrey 62,021]

14 hours ago, Surf Noir said:

 

something that i noticed is a little detail in the following lyrics "call him up, come into my bedroom, ended up, we fuck on the hotel floor", notice how she first mentions her bedroom, which would coincide with her home in rosemead, afterwards the hotel floor, which would coincide with the ramada, i feel like this lyric, especially with that little detail, can be interpreted in different ways, perhaps she's describing how when she's with somebody new, they get this picture-perfect, calm, matured image of her, but later on, they learn more of her struggles and secrets, that's a very metaphorical take on it, but i feel like this song is more deep and complex than we think

This is really insightful. And I actually think it could have to do with how she “transformed” in the eyes of Sean.
 

At first she “called him up” and he “c[a]me into [her] bedroom” — which she calls a “sacred place” in Violet — and this reflects the Lana who represents wholesome Americana and domestic idealism. This is what Lana was reaching for in Chemtrails and was en route to achieving in her relationship with Sean.  
 

But then it “ended up” that they “fuck[ed] on the hotel floor” — so now this previous act of lovemaking (Lana’s “legacy” as described in Salamander) that occurred in her “sacred place” is now a mere hookup. And given the nature in which he approached her for this hookup as revealed by Lana on TikTok, she was non-consensually placed into a mistress role, that of an “American Whore”.

 

So, before, it was about having someone to love her. But after this “transformation” that had become externalized onto her by Sean, she had no choice but to live “the experience of being an American Whore.”