Lana Del Rey has announced plans to drop a new album, her first since the Grammy-nominated Norman Fucking Rockwell!, in September.
The announcement was included in a lengthy note to fans Lana shared to Instagram late Wednesday. The note, which begins by proposing a "question for the culture," also sees Lana speaking at length about her previously being "crucified" and accused of "glamorizing abuse" for her lyrical content. By Lana's explanation, she's simply a "glamorous person singing about the realities of what we are all now seeing are very prevalent emotionally abusive relationships all over the world."
The note's opening moments, however, have been met with criticism from some who feel Lana could have made the same point in a more general sense without specifically naming other artists. Specifically, some have taken issue with what they argue is Lana's suggestion that the artists mentioned here—including Doja Cat,Beyoncé, and others—haven't also been met with criticism regarding what they choose to write about.
"Now that Doja Cat, Ariana, Camila, Cardi B, Kehlani and Nicki Minaj and Beyoncé have had number ones with songs about being sexy, wearing no clothes, fucking, 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 glamorizing abuse?" Lana asked.
Here's the note in full:
Lana's new album is out Sept. 5. Below, sample the discourse spurred by Lana's IG note, which also includes additional reflections on her career at large, as well as mentions of her two upcoming books of poetry:
