Lana Del Rey Flag Poster (36 x 24)

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To honor the release of the singer’s ninth studio album, Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd, we’ve ranked her 50 best songs, from modern standards to deep cuts to an unreleased gem we can’t get out of our heads. Many who think of her almost immediately think of the American flag next. On top of that, she’s been closely associated with Republican values for a long time, even once being accused of voting for Donald Trump. She stands as a charming yet confidently assertive homage to an era when aspirations leaned towards meritocracy and progressed into triumph rather than conceding to withdrawal. This has become an entire subculture in itself, with many on social media platforms like TikTok showing off their ‘Lolita aesthetics’ to the familiar sounds of Del Rey hits. Society has always had paedophilic undertones, but this movement has become a powerful contributor to its reign. What’s more, Hollywood has washed over Nabokov’s initial sentiment, rendering it lost in a mosaic of visually pleasing images, catering to a cultural infatuation with young girls.

One obvious answer is that Del Rey is “everything straight men idolize about the sultry sex queen tradition of the American Pacific, a sweet sad California golden sunburnt lover wrapped in an American flag who tastes like cigarettes and broken dreams.” Also, it doesn’t hurt that she looks like this: Lana Del Rey in Hollywood California, February 2012 (Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic/Getty) Del Rey herself also causes people, specifically men, to ask questions, and not just about life, love and tunnels. One of those questions, put forth by a young heretic, was not so existential, but instead a plea for understanding, specifically about Lana’s appeal. It read, “It is once again time for me to ask that heterosexual conservative men please explain lana del ray to me.” Red, white and blue flags flapping in a balmy breeze, a star-spangled Hollywood walk of fame, a jagged New York skyline and gaudy neon on palm-tree fringed boulevards – from the moment that Lana Del Rey released the video for her breakthrough single ‘Video Games’ larger-than-life America has felt like the biggest presence in her work.If we want to pretend her appeal has anything to do with conservative politics, specifically, it’s mostly that she isn’t a doctrinaire modern liberal, but more of an old school one. There are also her forays into independent thought, ones that don’t properly take identity politics into consideration, among other transgressions. And she’s not exactly an activist, particularly on issues that conservatives, heterosexual or otherwise, are bothered by. Maybe there are some out there who are opposed to people having running water, I suppose, though she hasn’t taken heat for that stance, yet. No this was not intended-these are my best friends, since you are asking today," she wrote — although it was written as a standalone comment, not a reply to anyone in particular. Lana Del Rey has always had her foot on the cultural pulse, embracing 1950s nostalgia and the nihilism of Russian poets, much to the delight of sad girls everywhere since Born To Die. The mood of every album dictates a new aesthetic, so expertly honed that it feels knowingly cultivated, but so effortlessly carried off it still feels relevant. But Del Rey’s affinity for old-school Americana, fevered patriotism, and the American dream endure through every moment of self-reinvention.

Some of the world’s most notorious works of fiction are those teeming with unapologetically left-wing, against-the-grain, and culturally disruptive rallying cries for change. Within this realm of culture reside the fiery blaze of the oppressed: worlds that have been repeatedly suppressed by the glowing ammunition of conservative values, some of which crumble at the mere defiance of tradition. However, on the opposing side, a more insidious truth takes root – a society consumed by the stoicism of unwritten laws, one that has long forsaken the hidden malevolence at its very core. The debate surrounding Lana Del Rey as a problematic figure can be seen as trite, often eliciting eye rolls when brought up again. Yet, embedded within it is a narrative as ancient as time itself: a perverse, paedophilic undercurrent ingrained within society, one that will persist unless we actively exercise prudence. OK complex not that our 10 year relationship matters I guess," she tweeted. "Thanks for the cool soundbite taken out of context, I said that the bigger problem is Sociopathy-so whether he meant to incite a riot is less important than the larger issue in America at hand -the problem of sociopathy."

American Flag

The apocalyptic uncertainty of post-election America helped inspire "When the World Was at War We Kept Dancing," one of the songs from her upcoming album Lust for Life, Del Rey went on to add: