Lana Del Rey Responds to 'Norman Fucking Rockwell!' Review: "To Write About Me Is Nothing Like It Is to Be with Me"
The singer publicly replied to NPR's Ann K. Powers — whose in-depth analysis of the new album included compliments of Del Rey being at her most "compelling," as well as comparisons to "uncooked" Joni Mitchell songs — and has set off an online war between fans and critics.
Del Rey responded to Powers' piece, saying, "There's nothing uncooked about me. To write about me is nothing like it is to be with me. Never had a persona. Never needed one. Never will."
Here's a little sidenote on your piece – I don't even relate to one observation you made about the music. There's nothing uncooked about me. To write about me is nothing like it is to be with me. Never had a persona. Never needed one. Never will.
— Lana Del Rey (@LanaDelRey) September 5, 2019
She also told Powers not to "call yourself a fan like you did in the article," objecting to being presented as a suddenly political person.
So don't call yourself a fan like you did in the article and don't count your editor one either – I may never never have made bold political or cultural statements before- because my gift is the warmth I live my life with and the self reflection I share generously.
— Lana Del Rey (@LanaDelRey) September 5, 2019
The reactions to the Twitter spat (which Powers responded to very gracefully) have been predictably split along fan and critic lines. See an assortment of the responses below.
Del Rey isn't the first artist to get flak for responding to generally positive reviews defensively — Lizzo did the same thing to a Pitchfork review earlier this year, while Chance the Rapper criticized people for voicing their negative opinions about his latest album, The Big Day.
This is so incredibly good
— Mark Richardson (@MarkRichardson) September 4, 2019
You are not a fan you don't deserve to write about her bye
— Cherry Girl (@borntocherry) September 5, 2019
a pulitzer for that opening paragraph alone
— Marissa R. Moss (@MarissaRMoss) September 4, 2019
We get it, you don't like her music. You could have just said so instead of wasting people's time
— 𝙉𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙁𝙪𝙘𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙍𝙤𝙘𝙠𝙬𝙚𝙡𝙡 (@hisnameiskeanon) September 5, 2019
Amazing piece; the best writing I've read on LDR yet. You're an inspiration.
— Zoe Camp (@jzcamp) September 5, 2019
Amazing work. @LanaDelRey, I think NFR is stunning end to end. But I also hope you can see that a critic engaging deeply with your work is a good thing even if you don't love every word. Artists would KILL to have a critic of Ann's caliber write about them with such nuance.
— Kristi Coulter (@KristiCCoulter) September 5, 2019
❤️to genius music critic @annkpowers, all day every day.
— Emily Nussbaum (@emilynussbaum) September 5, 2019
As a person who puts things into the world, imagine not being grateful for a reviewer who drew lines btwn/comparisons to literature, fashion, contextualized the work big pic and within the LDR discography and LA's cultural geography, and wanting pure ass-kissing instead.
— Jessica Hopper (@jesshopp) September 5, 2019
1) @annkpowers is a god.
— madeleine seidel (@mhllndrivethru) September 5, 2019
2) that piece was measured, well thought-out, and really not a negative review!!!
3) attacking critics is always gonna be a TERRIBLE look. https://t.co/hbVGLSnevB