Born to Die

In 2007, Elizabeth "Lizzy" Grant signed a recording contract with the record label 5 Point Records, and began planning her debut studio album. But after hiring new management services, taking an interest in adopting the stage name Lana Del Ray, and a perceived lack of motivation during production, she found herself in conflict with the record label and her producer David Kahne. The final product, Lana Del Ray, was digitally released in January 2010, and her stage name was respelled Lana Del Rey shortly after its launch. After settling on her current stage name, Del Rey signed a recording contract with Stranger Records in June 2011, and released the track "Video Games". Initially, she had released the song because it was her "favorite" and had no intentions of releasing it as a single, although the video went viral on YouTube after its premiere. During an appearance on the French television series Taratata in November 2011, Del Rey announced that her second studio album would be titled Born to Die. In an interview with British GQ, Del Rey revealed she was sent to boarding school in Connecticut at age 14 to get sober from alcoholism and said much of Born to Die is written about her experiences with alcohol while living in New York:I was a big drinker at the time. I would drink every day. I would drink alone. I thought the whole concept was so fucking cool. A great deal of what I wrote on Born to Die is about these wilderness years. A lot of the time when I write about the person that I love, I feel like I'm writing about New York. And when I write about the thing that I've lost I feel like I'm writing about alcohol because that was the first love of my life. Sure, there have been people, but it's really alcohol.The photograph used on the cover for Born to Die was shot in Carpenders Park, Watford by Nicole Nodland, while Del Rey and David Bowden oversaw the overall direction for its packaging. On behalf of Complex, Dale Eisinger ranked the cover eighth on the magazine's list of "The 50 Best Pop Album Covers of the Past Five Years", commending its usage of the typeface Steelfish and speaking favorably of the "ominous" feeling it evoked, which he credited to "the shadows or whatever the shapes in the background are [and] how properly Lana can affect her detached and still-flawless persona to a simple gaze". The album's track listing was announced on January 9, 2012, while the record was released on January 31 in the United States; it became Del Rey's first album with Interscope Records after she secured a distribution arrangement with them. == Composition ==

Born to Dies music style has been described as alternative pop, "sultry, overstated orchestral pop," baroque pop, indie pop, sadcore Of the style of her vocals on the album, Del Rey said: "people weren't taking me very seriously, so I lowered my voice, believing that it would help me stand out. Now I sing quite low... well, for a female anyway". The singer's first singles, "Video Games" and "Born to Die" were described variously as "quasi-cabaret balladry", "woozy and sometimes soporific soundtrack soul", and "pop". Del Rey described "Video Games" as "Hollywood sadcore". Tim Lee of musicOMH noted the songs are extremely similar, commenting that "her (alleged) agents clearly having stumbled upon a formula with which they can (allegedly) print money and (allegedly) further consign Lana's secretive, (allegedly) real debut LP to the annals of history. You didn't hear it from us, right?". Del Rey was described as a "gangsta Nancy Sinatra", although she cites Britney Spears, Elvis Presley and Antony and the Johnsons as her musical influences. When asked about her musical style, Del Rey said: I would have loved to be part of the indie community. But I wasn't. I was looking for a community, I don't even know any people who are musicians. I never met that indie popular indie, whoever the fuck that is. Who IS indie? First of all, I can't really get my head around what indie music is. Because if you've heard of it, it's sort of pop music, right? Because it's, like, popular? Or is it just that it's not on the radio? It's not like I was in an indie community and then I blew up. It's like, I was living on the street and I'm not – like, for real, you know what I'm saying? with a chorus that recalls Sheryl Crow's "down and out drunken loner persona" in her 1994 single "Leaving Las Vegas". "National Anthem", Lamb says, fits into the lyrical structure of Born to Die in that the theme is that of a "bitter, albeit narcotized, criticism of all of the wealth and emotional artifice Lana Del Rey is accused of embracing". == Promotion ==

in Amsterdam, 2011|alt=A brunette female sings on a stage in front of a crowd, wearing a black dress that covers above the knees and black high heels. A blue balloon obscures the upper righthand corner. To promote Born to Die, Del Rey embarked on the Born to Die Tour from November 4, 2011, to September 25, 2012. Mainly consisting of concerts in Europe, the tour also visited North America and Australia. "Video Games" was featured for the first time on The CW's Ringer on September 28, 2011, during a pivotal scene, propelling Del Rey into the mainstream. Del Rey also promoted the album with performances in a number of live appearances, including for MTV Push, and at the Bowery Ballroom, where, according to Eliot Glazer of New York, "the polarizing indie hipstress brought her 'gangsta Nancy Sinatra' swag". Matthew Perpetua of Rolling Stone commented that, despite Del Rey's nervousness and anxiety while performing live, she "sang with considerable confidence, though her transitions from husky, come-hither sexuality to bratty, girlish petulance could be rather jarring". Del Rey also performed "Video Games" on Dutch television program De Wereld Draait Door, on British music television show Later... with Jools Holland, and on a show at Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, California. She gave several interviews to newspapers and online magazines such as The Quietus, The Observer, and Pitchfork, while creating her own music videos for several tracks such as "Blue Jeans" and "Off to the Races". On January 14, 2012, Del Rey appeared on Saturday Night Live to perform "Blue Jeans" and "Video Games". Her performance soon came under scrutiny, and was criticized by NBC anchor Brian Williams, who called it "the worst in SNL history". SNL cast member Andy Samberg and the host of that week's episode, Daniel Radcliffe, came to her defense, with the latter stating that the criticism towards her was less about the performance and more about "her past and her family". == Singles ==

"Video Games" was released as Del Rey's debut single on October 10, 2011. The song received mostly positive reviews from critics, who praised Del Rey's vocals and considered it one of the best songs of 2011. "Video Games" attained worldwide success, reaching number one in Germany and top-ten positions in Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Netherlands, Ireland, Poland, Scotland, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. An accompanying music video, directed and edited by Del Rey, contained video clips of skateboarders, cartoons, shots from old afties, and paparazzi footage of Paz de la Huerta falling down while intoxicated. The music video helped increase Del Rey's online popularity. The music video for it leaked on December 14, and was based on a concept Del Rey created, directed by Yoann Lemoine. Rolling Stone gave the video a generally favorable review. Del Rey announced "Blue Jeans" as the third single from the album. It was officially released on April 6, 2012. An accompanying music video directed by Lemoine premiered around the web on March 19, 2012. "Summertime Sadness" was released as the fourth single on June 22. The official music video was released on July 20. "National Anthem" was announced as the fifth single and released on July 6. Its music video was released on June 27. "Dark Paradise" was released as the final single on March 1, 2013, only in Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Poland. "Radio" charted at number 67 in France. "Without You" debuted at number 121 in the UK. "Off to the Races" was released as a promotional single in The Netherlands on January 6, 2012. A music video, directed by Del Rey, was released on December 22, 2011. "Carmen" was released as a promotional single in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland on January 26, 2012. On February 27, 2012, Del Rey revealed on Facebook that the video for "Carmen" was shot and would be finished being edited that day. It was released on April 21, 2012. == Critical reception ==

Initial reviews At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted mean rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 62 based on 37 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Jaime Gill of BBC Music commented that the album "isn't perfect", criticizing the production of songs such as "Dark Paradise", but concluded that Born to Die is the most distinctive debut album since Glasvegas's eponymous disc released in 2008. Slant Magazine writer Sal Cinquemani commented that several tracks had their production changed for the album, making tracks such as "National Anthem" and "This Is What Makes Us Girls" less "radio-friendly". Cinquemani wrote, "ironically, the album's sole weakness is the strength of its immaculate production, which can be a bit overwhelming over the course of 12 tracks." Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune gave a negative review, criticizing the repetitive production. Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone declared that the lyrics, with their "pop-trash perversity", were the strength of the album, but that Del Rey had a voice that was "pinched and prim" and "wasn't ready to make an album yet". He concluded, "Given her chic image, it's a surprise how dull, dreary and pop-starved Born to Die is." AllMusic critic John Bush wrote: "There is a chasm that separates 'Video Games' from the other material and performances on the album, which aims for exactly the same target—sultry, sexy, wasted—but with none of the same lyrical grace, emotional power, or sympathetic productions... an intriguing start, but Del Rey is going to have to hit the books if she wants to stay as successful as her career promised early on". Channing Freeman of Sputnikmusic disliked the album, saying, "The worst thing about Born to Die is that even its great songs contain problems". The Observers Kitty Empire said that, unlike pop singers Lady Gaga and Katy Perry and their "hedonic outpourings", "Lana Del Rey's partying is fuelled by a knowing sadness, and sung in that laconic, hypnotic voice, which ultimately saves this thoroughly dissolute, feminist nightmare of a record for the romantics among us". The A.V. Clubs Evan Rytlewski panned the album, writing, "Shallow and overwrought, with periodic echoes of Kesha's Valley Girl aloofness, the album lives down to the harshest preconceptions against pop music". Randall Roberts of Los Angeles Times also noted that Del Rey's vocals have "so much potential and yet [are] unrefined", and said that despite having standout tracks like "Summertime Sadness" and "Dark Paradise", listening to the album "has become tiring and woozy, like if you'd taken a half-dozen Ambiens when you'd put the record on—and now you're getting very, very sleepy". Pitchforks Lindsay Zoladz commented: "The album's point of view—if you could call it that—feels awkward and out of date... [it] never allows tension or complexity into the mix, and its take on female sexuality ends up feeling thoroughly tame. For all of its coos about love and devotion, it's the album equivalent of a faked orgasm—a collection of torch songs with no fire". Alex Denney of NME gave a positive review, saying: "Although it's not quite the perfect pop record 'Video Games' might have led us to wish for, Born to Die still marks the arrival of a fresh—and refreshingly self-aware—sensibility in pop." Retrospective acclaim Born to Die has received retrospective reviews through the years, with many critics and journalists giving it a second chance and publishing think-pieces about the industry's perspective on Del Rey. Meaghan Garvey, writing for Pitchfork, said that "it’s a drag to rehash the Born to Die discourse now [...] a conversation so tediously narrow," praising the album as "thrillingly rich." In 2021, Pitchfork included it in their "Rescored" list, with Anna Gaca claiming that "Born to Die turned out to be a sign of things to come, like genre-agnostic pop ballads with hip-hop beats, and the arch, depressive languor that’s more mainstream than ever." Craig Jenkins from Vulture agreed, stating that "in retrospect, it was a dumb conversation." He added that Born to Die "came from nowhere with a fully formed [...] aesthetic that was perhaps too much too soon," arguing that "it felt time-displaced and familiar all at once, like discovering a [...] cassette tape from that part of the 90s where trip hop invaded pop." Dan Solomon, writing for CultureMap, asked to fellow music critics to "keep [the controversy] in the past," arguing that it is "simplistic to dismiss Born to Die." He described the album as "easy to listen to," and "great-sounding," while praising "Off to the Races" as "a self-assured performance from a singer in control of her voice, a mix of acting and singing." He also called "Dark Paradise" and "Summertime Sadness" standouts. In a similar opinion, Grantland Alex Pappademas questioned if "there [was] any way to separate the Internet hatred of Lana Del Rey from her sort of surprisingly good album." Chris Lacy from Albumism stated that "it's crystal-clear [Del Rey] is the mastermind behind Born to Die," describing the album as a "realistic portrait of addiction, sexual obsession, abnormality and fear." He also praised the album's music videos, calling them "epic short films that were thought-provoking" and that they "would've made Michael Jackson proud." However, he noted that the album "loses steam midway," calling closing track "This Is What Makes Us Girls" a "saving grace." Jesse Cataldo from Slant Magazine named Born to Die Del Rey's second best album in 2021, describing it as a "startlingly composed premiere effort." Miranda Mikkola from Gay Times called Born to Die "one of the greatest major-label debut albums of the century," stating that "it's still a gorgeous album that we love to revisit every now and then," while marking "Off to the Races", "National Anthem" and "Dark Paradise" as standouts. On a similar note, Angelina Fay from No Majesty agreed that the album is "still great to rediscover" and praised it as "timeless in every sense of the word." Rhian Daly, writing for NME, argued that Del Rey "was too special to live in the shadows of other artists [...] she just had to find her path to that point." Rob Harvilla from The Ringer had a rather mixed retrospective review, writing that Born to Die was "spotty but occasionally excellent" and rating it as "her worst album." However, he called "Video Games" "an alarmingly great song", described "Radio" as "gorgeous" and praised Del Rey as "the perfect artist of our times." Billboard included the title track in their Songs That Defined the Decade list and called it "one of the most standout musical moments on the album." ==Accolades==

Awards Year-end lists Decade-end lists == Commercial performance ==

In the United Kingdom, Born to Die sold 50,000 copies on its first day of release. It debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart and sold 116,745 copies. By accumulating digital sales of 50,007, the album became the fifth album ever to sell upwards of 50,000 downloads in a single week. Additionally, it was the fastest selling album of 2012, becoming the first album to reach 100,000 copies sold in that year. Born to Die remained atop the chart in its second week, selling an additional 60,000 copies. In the UK, the album was certified six-times platinum In France, the album debuted at number one on the French Albums Chart with sales of 48,791, whose 16,968 digital copies. The album remained at the top position the following week with 23,888 copies sold. With over 1,000,000 copies sold as of September 2019, it is one of the best-selling albums in France of all time. In New Zealand, the album debuted and peaked at number two on the charts, spending forty weeks in the chart. After the conjunction of Born to Die: The Paradise Edition, the album charted at number six. "Born to Die" is the fifty-seventh best charting album of all time in New Zealand. In the United States, the album attained first-week sales of 77,000 copies, subsequently debuting at number two on the Billboard 200, behind Adele's 21, and shipped over 500,000 units in the country by January 2013, getting Gold certification. On the week ending August 31, 2013, though the album was in its eighty-first week on the chart, it re-entered the top twenty at number 20, selling 13,000 copies. As of January 2024, Born to Die has sold 2.3 million copies in the United States, and has been certified five-times platinum by the RIAA for album units equivalent to five million. According to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), Born to Die was the fifth global best-selling album of 2012 with sales of 3.4 million copies. By June 2014, the album had sold seven million copies worldwide. == Legacy ==

With the release of Born to Die, Del Rey became the main focus of attention of the press for her image as well as her music. Since her debut with "Video Games", Del Rey had been causing many to begin to accuse her of trying to erase her past with a different type of songs and style. Considering the album's composition and her appearance, many tabloids began to question her authenticity and claim that her success was due only to her beauty. Also, speculation arose that Del Rey was just a character created by Lizzy Grant and pop music industry, with her label trying to get a place and audience within indie music. Business Insiders Kevin Lincoln commented that Lana was manufactured by her label and used "Video Games" as a form of advertising. Sasha Frere Jones of The New Yorker came out in defense of the artist as well, writing: "The weirder strain of criticism concerns authenticity [...] Detractors cite a variety of presumed conspiracies, some involving the influence of her father, Rob Grant [...] The rumor of manipulative managers guiding her; the reality of professional songwriters working for her [...] and how Grant's top lip got so big so fast [...] Surely no equivalent male star would be subject of the same level of examination." Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine also proved to be in favor of Del Rey, declaring: "I was initially puzzled by the accusations of inauthenticity that were hurled with such vehemence and frequency at Lana Del Rey in the wake of her meteoric rise to it girl status last year [...] And I guess we're supposed to lament the fact that, unlike Amy Winehouse, she doesn't appear to have a predilection for dope or booze to back up her supposed bad-girl bona fides. But since when exactly has 'authenticity' ever been a criterion in pop music?". Born to Dies sound, themes and aesthetic left a major impact in popular music. In 2019, The Washington Post named Del Rey one of the "five people who helped shape the culture of the past decade." Max Migowsky from Indie described her as "the figurehead of an entire generation," while Zachary Small from Hyperallergic called Born to Die "ahead of its time." Al Horner from Red Bull agreed, marking Born to Die as "[a] blueprint for a new sonic world" and describing its sound as the feminine equivalent of grunge music. He argued that Del Rey's success "convinced record labels to take a chance on [...] emotionally vulnerable pop" and stated that "there's never been more space for melancholy in popular music." Sorrell Forbes from uDiscover Music named Born to Die "the most powerful moment in her career," while arguing that Del Rey brought "the sound [the public was] looking for." Del Rey herself stated in an interview with Pitchfork in 2019 that "there's been a major sonic shift culturally. I think I had a lot to do with that." Omar N. Goulding from Culturizando called Born to Die "the most influential album of the decade," arguing that "people were getting tired of happy music and wanted to listen to something different" and that Del Rey "set the [sad girl] trend into pop culture." Richard S. He, writing for Billboard, said that Born to Die is "one of the main catalysts for pop's mid-2010s shift from brash EDM to a moodier, hip-hop-inflected palette." Billboard later included the album's title track as one of the 100 songs that defined the 2010s, adding that it influenced "a sonic shift that completely changed the pop landscape." Critics and journalists alike agree that Born to Die influenced the works of Lorde, Billie Eilish, Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift, among others. Swift herself named Del Rey the "most influential artist in pop." Born to Die was listed among publications' best-of lists of the 2010s decade, including NME (No. 10) and The Independent (No. 3). The Guardian included the album at number 70 on its 2019 list of The 100 Best Albums of the 21st Century. == Track listing ==

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Born to Die. • Emile Haynie • Parker }} • Grant • Tim Larcombe }} • Patrik Berger • Haynie }} • Grant • Haynie • Dan Heath }} • Grant • Parker }} • Grant • Mike Daly }} • Haynie • Jeff Bhasker • Daly }} • Grant • Parker • David Sneddon • James Bauer-Mein }} • Haynie • Bhasker • Sneddon • Bauer-Mein }} • Grant • Rick Nowels }} • Haynie • Nowels }} • Grant • Parker }} • Haynie • Parker }} • Grant • Parker }} • Haynie • Bhasker • Parker }} • Grant • Chris Braide }} • Haynie • Braide }} • Grant • Nowels }} • Haynie • Nowels }} • Grant • Larcombe • Jim Irvin }} • Haynie • Al Shux }} }} }} }} }} • Grant • Liam Howe • Hannah Robinson }} • Haynie • Howe }} }} • Haynie • Nowels }} }} ; Notes • signifies a co-producer • signifies a vocal producer • signifies an additional producer • signifies a remixer == Personnel ==

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Born to Die. Performance credits • Lana Del Rey – vocals • Emilie Bauer-Mein – backing vocals • James Bauer-Mein – backing vocals • Lenha Labelle – French vocals • David Sneddon – backing vocals • Hannah Robinson – backing vocals Instruments • Patrik Berger – guitar, bass guitar, percussion, synthesizer, sampler, drum programming • Jeff Bhasker – guitar ; keyboards ; additional keyboards ; additional strings • Chris Braide – guitar, acoustic piano, strings, drum programming • Pelle Hansen – cello • Emile Haynie – drums ; keyboards ; additional keyboards ; guitar • Dan Heath – flute , additional strings • Erik Holm – viola • Liam Howe – additional keyboards, programming • Devrim Karaoglu – additional synthesizer, orchestral drums ; additional pads • Brent Kolatalo – additional drums • Ken Lewis – additional vocal noises ; additional drums • Rick Nowels – guitar ; additional strings ; keyboards • Dean Reid – pads • Al Shux – guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, programming • Sacha Skarbek – omnichord • Fredrik Syberg – violin • Patrick Warren – chamberlain strings ; additional strings ; guitar, keyboards ; strings, secondary strings Production • Carl Bagge – string arrangements • Patrik Berger – production • Jeff Bhasker – co-production , additional production • Chris Braide – production • Lorenzo Cosi – engineering • Mike Daly – vocal production • John Davis – mastering • Duncan Fuller – mixing assistant • Chris Galland – mixing assistant • Larry Gold – string arrangements, conductor • Dan Grech-Marguerat – mixing • Nicole Nodland – photography • Mat Maitland – design • Emile Haynie – production • Dan Heath – string arrangements, conductor • Liam Howe – co-production • Brent Kolatalo – additional recording • Erik Madrid – mixing assistant • Manny Marroquin – mixing • Kieron Menzies – engineering • The Nexus – vocal production • Rick Nowels – co-production ; vocal production • Justin Parker – vocal production ; additional production • Robopop – production, mixing • Al Shux – production, vocal production • Steve Tirpak – string assistant == Charts ==

Weekly charts Year-end charts Decade-end charts == Certifications ==