Lana Del Rey certainly isn’t Recording Academy’s sweetheart. Despite having released six albums and scoring some iconic career moments such as the success of Young and Beautiful from The Great Gatsby, she still hasn’t managed to earn music’s most important trophy.
Del Rey has always been neglected by the Grammys. She was, in fact, nominated for the above-mentioned movie theme, as well as her 2017 album Lust for life, her most optimistic work to date. However, it’s this year that Lana managed to make it to the main categories. Her latest body of work, critically acclaimed Norman Fucking Rockwell!, or Norman Effing Rockwell how Bebe Rexha announced it to the millions of viewers watching the ceremony, received nominations for both the Album and Song of the year. Better late than never.
Having lost three times in the past, I’m sure Lana isn’t expecting miracles. In the best song category, she’s competing against Taylor Swift’s Lover. Even if we forget that Swift already has 10 awards, we need to remember that her song has been praised by almost every single relevant music critic. Getting one of the Grammys won’t be easy, but there are definitely a few valid reasons why NFR! should be the first Lana album to receive one.
1. Jack Antonoff’s production on the album is fantastic
Norman Fucking Rockwell! was produced mostly by Lana and Jack Antonoff. It would seem like everything Antonoff takes part in turns into gold. He was a contributing producer of Taylor Swift’s (yes, I know!) three albums: 1989, Reputation and Lover. He also produced Lorde’s iconic second album Melodrama. The fact that Jack produced for two of Grammy Awards’ favourite artists gives us a reason to believe Lana has a chance to win this year. NFR! is great, because it’s not overly produced, with instrumentals complementing Lana’s beautiful vocals instead of distracting the listener. Let’s hope the members of the Academy loved album’s beautiful pianos and guitars as much as I did.
2. NFR! is Lana’s most mature album to date
Over the years, Del Rey received a lot of criticism for, so called, lyrical cliches. A few years ago Lorde, who shares a lot of mutual fans with Lana, criticised her work saying that “all that “don’t leave me stuff” is unsuitable for young people to listen to. With Lana’s music often called overly dramatic a lot of music critics refused to give her credit she deserves.
Don’t get me wrong: themes of hopeless romanticism and mysterious relationships are present on Rockwell. The general vibe of the record, however, is much more empowering. Many critics including Anthony Fantano praised the slight change in Del Rey’s lyrical approach. The album opens with a verse: “Goddamn, man child… You fucked me so good that I almost said I love you.”
3. Lana wasn’t scared to take risks on NFR!
Del Rey’s previous album Lust for life was a little bit more diverse than NFR! It featured two collaborations with A$AP Rocky and a few quite radio-friendly tracks, including the title song featuring The Weeknd. Grammys are mainstream awards, which means a lot of fans hoped Lust for life would win in the Best Pop Vocal category. That didn’t happen.
NFR! is a completely different type of record. The singer described it as a “chill record to drive to”. The main single, Venice Bitch is a 10-minute long psychedelic soft-rock ballad. That didn’t stop it from receiving two major nominations this year.
4. Just months after release, Pitchfork named it 19th best album of the decade
Lana’s relationship with Pitchfork hasn’t always been easy. The publication gave her first album Born to die a 5.5/10 rating, comparing it to “fake orgasm”. They aren’t the easiest publication to get a good rating from, that’s why it’s important industry professionals acknowledge how much Lana has developed as an artist over the years. On top of that, Del Rey’s single The Greatest was called best new music on their website.
5. Elton John is a huge fan
Lana and Elton recently appeared together on the cover of Rolling Stone. The legendary musician said he really enjoyed the record. “I don’t think you’ve ever made a record with such a flow to it. I don’t think I’ve heard a record like this for so long. They’re kind of timeless songs” said Sir Elton.
