By Niya Miller
Lana Del Rey, an American singer and songwriter, has been creating songs for nearly a decade. Lana, whose real name is Lizzy Grant, had used multiple stage names until her debut as Lana Del Rey, most notably Lizzy Grant, Sparkle Jump Rope Queen, and May Jailer. She debuted under her current name in 2012 with the album Born to Die and has released many projects since. Her albums each have a specific vibe, era, genre, and style, but they are all distinctly Lana. Born to Die: Paradise Edition was released in 2012, Ultraviolence in 2014, Honeymoon in 2015, Lust for Life in 2017, Norman F***ing Rockwell in 2019, Chemtrails Over The Country Club in 2021, Blue Banisters in 2021, and most recently Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd in 2023. Let’s take a look at 10 songs to introduce you to the sound of Lana Del Rey’s music.
10. Young and Beautiful- Great Gatsby (2013) Soundtrack
Lana wrote this song for the 2013 movie The Great Gatsby and was released as a single. Lana is both anxious and nostalgic in this song. She reminisces about her past love as well as talks about how she’s scared he won’t love her when she’s old. “Will you still love me when I'm no longer young and beautiful?/Will you still love me when I got nothing but my aching soul?” She sings. This song plays during the party scene in the movie and is performed in a jazzy, 1920s style to fit the setting more.
9. The Other Woman- Ultraviolence
Lana uses her Jazz influences on this track perfectly. With long, layered, soaring singing and simple lyrics, this song is just stunning. She sings about envying another woman, “The other woman is perfect where her rival fails/And she's never seen with pin curls in her hair anywhere”, where she compares herself to this perfect woman. The production is simple to allow her vocals to have the spotlight.
8. Dealer- Blue Banisters
This song, featuring Miles Kane, is an emotional
masterpiece. As Lana Del Rey herself puts it, “I think I need to add that song, 'Dealer', where I'm just screaming my head off. People don't know what it sounds like when I yell. And I do yell." She said in an interview shortly after the release of Blue Banisters. Lana’s vocals truly get their time to shine in this song. She belts the chorus with so much emotion and anger, and Mile’s calm and steady singing contrasts with it nicely.
7. Video Games- Born to Die
Video Games is the first single released under the name Lana Del Rey, and it still holds up after all this time. With orchestra production and beautiful yet strong vocals, it is just a stunning song. Lines like “It’s you, it's you it’s all for you” and “Heaven is a place on earth with you” solidify this song as one of Lana’s best and most romantic love songs. It’s track 4 off of Born To Die.
6. Venice B****- Norman F***ing Rockwell!
Even though this is Lana’s longest song, not a second of it is wasted. This song, like all other songs off of Norman F***ing Rockwell!, is very atmospheric. Partially written and produced by Jack Antonoff, a famous name in the pop world, Jack and Lana use synths and nostalgia to make the song come to life. With lines like “On the stoop with the neighborhood kids/Calling out, bang bang, kiss kiss” and “as the summer fades away/Nothing gold can stay”, she does the classic Lana thing of using 60s and prior nostalgia to appeal to her audience- and it works. Lana released this as the second single off of this album and is the 3rd track.
5. The Greatest- Norman F***ing Rockwell!
Much like Venice B****, this song was written and produced by Jack Antonoff and Lana Del Rey and carries the same atmosphere with it. This song talks a lot about how
Hollywood, the music scene, and the culture around it have changed. Lana sings lines such as “We didn't know that we had it all/But nobody warns you before the fall” and “L.A. is in flames, it's getting hot/Kanye West is blond and gone/"Life on Mars?" ain't just a song/I hope the live stream's almost on”. Lana wrote parts of this song about the 2016 election and her thoughts on Kanye’s involvement.
4. Living Legend- Blue Banisters
Blue Banisters is an album where Lana truly lets her voice shine- and this song is no
exception. Lana uses her voice as both just a voice and an instrument. She sings about a role model in her life, with lines such as “And baby you, I never said to you/You really are my living legend”. Fans have speculated this song to be about her parents, her sister Chuck Grant, or an ex-friend or boyfriend.
3. Shades of Cool- Ultraviolence
Shades of Cool is the 3rd track off of Ultraviolence, and it is a perfect example of an Ultraviolence song. It has soaring vocals, guitar, and a jazzy, New York-style feel. She’s describing her man, and how he isn’t a good person but she still admires him. “'Cause you are unfixable/I can't break through your world/'Cause you live in shades of cool/Your heart is unbreakable” is a great example of this.
2. A&W- Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd
Much like the rest of her album Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd?, this song is both catchy and heartbreaking. The beginning half of the song is a slow ballad looking into Lana’s past. The second half is upbeat, catchy, and almost a completely different song. The transition between the different vibes is the best part of
the song. It shows Lana’s versatility and how she can sing beautiful, lyrical songs as well as trap or more pop-ish songs. This song was the lead single and track 4 and is one of her longer songs at 7:13.
1. Ride- Born To Die: Paradise Edition
To get the full experience of this song, you need to watch Lana’s music video and the monologue that goes along with it. This song is a hymn to the open road and the freedom that comes along with it. With beautiful production and strong vocals, this song is a fan favorite. The monologue has lines like:
“Every night I used to pray that I'd find my people,
and finally I did on the open road.
We had nothing to lose,
nothing to gain,
nothing we desired anymore,
except to make our lives into a work of art.
Live fast. Die young. Be wild. And have fun.
I believe in the country America used to be.
I believe in the person I want to become.
I believe in the freedom of the open road.”
This song is an experience every music enjoyer needs to experience. This song feels like going 70 with the windows down the day after you get your license. Lana knew exactly what she was doing with this song, monologue, and music video.
Here’s a link to a playlist that has all these songs as well as 5 others to check out (Hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have- but I have it, Summer Bummer (ft. Asap Rocky), Art Deco, White Dress, Flipside) :
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