Rowan Harris

Fans of Lana Del Rey are all over St. Louis High School, including staff editor Rowan Harris!

Not many artists today have shown the versatility that alternative singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey has. Throughout her professional career, which has spanned more than a decade, the Grammy-nominated singer has written songs in a variety of genres. Her discography is as varied and complex as the singer is.

Albums like Born to Die and Paradise were overnight successes, making Del Rey a powerhouse both on the charts and online. The albums were notable for their unique sound, combining hip-hop beats with string arrangements to make a new, indie sound. Her third album, Ultraviolence, also had a new sound, adding jazz influences to her songwriting.

“My favorite album is Ultraviolence. It’s so good. It makes me depressed in the best way possible,” stated senior Lexie Thayer. Thayer is an avid fan of Del Rey, and has been a fan for many years. “Lana Del Rey is an icon. She is the artist of the century,” she added.

Del Rey has been sweeping through other grades, as well. Sophomore Leia Firman shared, “I love how old-fashioned her music sounds. It feels like I’d be hearing it in a fancy restaurant.”

Aside from being an indie pop phenomenon, Del Rey has had her fair share of attention online. From the beginning of her career, Del Rey has been an icon on tumblr.com, both for her aesthetic and her songwriting. Nowadays, though, Del Rey has had many of her songs go viral on the social media app TikTok.

Her released songs aren’t the only popular parts of her discography, though. Before the release of Born to Die in 2012, Del Rey had a successful music career for over a decade previously. Some of her most popular songs, viral on TikTok, are unreleased. These include songs like “Go-Go Dancer,” “Queen of Disaster,” and “Say Yes to Heaven.”

Her fans are avid consumers of these unreleased songs, and often compile them into hidden lists on apps like Spotify. “My favorite unreleased song is ‘Put Me in a Movie’,” shared Firman.

With her long-lasting career, it looks like the indie phenomenon isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. With her latest release, Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd., released in March of 2023, the singer continues to rake in big successes.