It’s no secret that Lana del Rey has been deemed one of the most unproblematic artists in our generation, however, she recently dipped her toes into hot water due to her ‘disappointment’ and ‘very tone-deaf’ comments about other singers. In her lengthy Instagram post, the artist spoke out saying she sometimes feels as though she gets “crucified” or “accused of glamorizing abuse” with her songs.
In her rant to Instagram, she wrote: “Now that Doja Cat, Ariana Grande, Camila Cabello, Cardi B, Kehlani and Nicki Minaj and Beyoncé have had number ones with songs about being sexy, wearing no clothes, f***ing, cheating, etc — can I please go back to singing about being embodied, feeling beautiful by being in love even if the relationship is not perfect, or dancing for money – or whatever I want – without being crucified or saying that I’m glamourizing abuse?????”
Lana Dey Rey’s rant had become a part of a larger discussion on Twitter. Many flocked to the site to share their opinions on the matter, while some agreed with the singer, many criticized her remarks deeming them “tone-deaf” and disappointing.
One person wrote: “The success of those women has NOTHING to do with you… they’re not even in the same genre as you, why even mention them?”
Another person wrote: “Come on, you should know better. You could’ve gotten your entire point across without dragging those other women by name. Be mad at the game, not the players. Disappointing.”
One other user wrote: “Lana didn’t drag anyone but tbh she could’ve proved her point in a better way, all the women that she named have been through backlashes because of their works. she’s not the only one going through it. women in the music industry really deserve better.”
While the artist has had to come forward with a secondary post stating: “I want to say that I remain firm in my clarity and stance in that what I was writing about was the importance of self-advocacy for the more delicate and often dismissed, softer female personality, and that there does have to be room for that type in what will inevitably become a new wave/3rd wave of feminism that is rapidly approaching.”
The artist ended by saying, “But in truth making it about race says so much more about you than it does about me – you want the drama, you don’t want to believe that a woman could be beautiful, strong and fragile at the same time, loving and all-inclusive by making personal reparations simply for the joy of doing it. Nothing new here in your reaction.”
Lana Del Rey’s Instagram comments are full of positive messages reassuring the singer and also blatant disappointment on her poor choice of words. However, one question remains with her initial “controversial post” which leads to the question of how women in the music industry are instinctively pitted against each other rather than brought together. (T. Swift and K. Perry, anyone?)
Whatever the case may be, this situation has shed light on another grey area in the music industry and the feminist movement altogether.
