Yet when Del Rey herself emerged, she wasn't dripping in flowers and pouting broodingly -- she was in track pants and a plain black long-sleeve shirt. Her dark hair, almost purple under the pink-tinged lights, was pulled into a low chignon, and she was smiling. Lana Del Rey, the icon of Hollywood sadcore, appeared genuinely, carelessly happy.
The ensuing performance was as casual as her attitude. There was no band: A few VIP guests lined the back of the stage instead, and intermittently Del Rey would simply walk around the stage and talk to them, laughing and touching their arms like old friends (which they very well could be) as she sipped a Red Bull. She sang along to a recording of her album, her voice warbling and angelic, even mouthing along to A$AP Rocky's verses in "Summer Bummer." Sometimes she stopped mid-verse to kneel at the edge of the stage and take selfies with the fans screaming for her attention, taking Snapchats with the phones they offered her and throwing out CDs of Lust for Life. When her voice cracked during a particularly high note in "Serial Killer," she breathily laughed, "F---."
Later in the evening, she stopped the music, asking instead, "Should we do like a little fourth-grade Q&A?" The resulting response from the audience was peppered with "yas queens" and "Lana, I love you!" When one fan cheekily asked if she'd ever consider dating him, she laughed, seemingly embarrassed, but responded with: "I have gone on a date with a fan -- how old are you?"
Though the fans' collective shriek of joyous disbelief made his answer indiscernible, he was apparently not old enough.
"I'm trying to stick to around 27," Del Rey seemed to say.
After fielding questions such as her favorite song ("Heroin," from her new album), whether she'd ever done heroin ("no comment"), the inspiration behind her music ("they're easy to listen to if you're a weirdo like me"), and if she needed help making good decisions ("I do need help making good decisions!"), Del Rey announced she had a few more songs to play from her album -- but they're sad.
She sang a few verses before smiling and motioning to cut the music.
"I'm f---ing up the slow song because I don't want to hear it!" she said, and immediately fans jumped in with requests. She sang a few verses a cappella, letting fans prompt her with the next word when she had trouble remembering.
She smiled the entire time.
Set list:
White Mustang
Summer Bummer feat. A$AP Rocky and Playboi Carti
In My Feelings
Beautiful People Beautiful Problems feat. Stevie Nicks
Heroin
13 Beaches
Tomorrow Never Came feat. Sean Lennon
God Bless America -- And All the Beautiful Women in It
Lust for Life feat. The Weeknd
Change
Off to the Races
Gods and Monsters
Freak
Serial Killer
