Lana Del Rey, the iconic Americana, 1960s-esque pop star has reached her stardom, and is one of the most listened to and known artists today. Her worldwide fanbase is off the charts, and her profound lyrics speak to so many romantics all around the world. Her appearance at Stagecoach festival was the highlight of many of the attendees, but one question has been going around the grapevine, making a huge hit on tiktok, instagram, and X; why is she singing about Morgan Wallen, the hit country singer?
For some context, Lana del Rey (formerly known as Lizzy Grant) has been in the mainstream media since her hit in 2011, “Video Games.” Since then, she has been releasing hits throughout the 2010s, like “Summertime Sadness,” “Diet Mountain Dew,” and “Young and Beautiful,” which were all part of her most successful album, “Born to Die,” which spent over 500 weeks on the US Billboard 200 after it’s release. She made a comeback in the 2020s with a new soft spoken, dreamy, and acoustic sound. Some of her recent hits include “Say Yes to Heaven,” “Let the Light in,” and “Margaret.” She has also worked with many other popular artists, such as the Weeknd, A$AP Rocky, Sean Lennon, and Stevie Nicks. To say the least, she has reached the stars with her success, and her talent.
But the question still remains. Why is she singing about Morgan? Well, fans all over tik tok have several theories. She debuted her unreleased song, “57.5” live at Stagecoach, in which the bridge of her song went, “I kissed Morgan Wallen; I guess kissing me kind of went to his head; If you want my secret to success; I suggest don’t go ATVing with him when you’re out west.” Fans proceeded to scream out of shock and excitement, as they had no idea what she really meant.Â
Well, “57.5” was a song about how she has 57.5 million listeners on spotify, yet she includes lyrics about how she still flies commercial airlines, and still calls up psychics when she needs advice. It seems that she’s trying to make the point that although she is extremely successful, she is still a human being, no different than anyone else. She also includes lyrics like, “Round ’em up, round ’em up, they want the spotlight,” signifying the rush and need for fame from artists across the board.Â
Fans initially thought she was confessing her romantic involvement with Morgan, but after analyzing her lyrics and tone of voice, they realized she is actually dissing him. Fans are theorizing that he tried to leech onto her and take advantage of her for his own success, as she has reached the topmost levels of fame due to her hard work and talent. They viewed it almost as a diss track, to those who want to take advantage of her fame for their own success.Â
Lana Del Rey started her career in the underground music scene at the age of 17, performing at gigs, open mic nights, and clubs around New York City. She reached her path to fame by working her way up to the top and by being passionate about her art. Her message in “57.5” about kissing Morgan Wallen was a way to remind people that fame and success does not come easy, it comes through hard work and perseverance.
However, fans are still speculating. What do you think she meant by her controversial verse?