Lana Del Rey has released a new single, Looking for America, a reply to the recent mass shootings in
Dayton, Ohio, and El Paso, Texas. She posted a video of the song on her Instagram a few days prior to the release. “In light of all of the mass shootings and the back to back shootings in the last couple days… I just wanted to post this video that our engineer Laura took 20 minutes ago… I’m singing love to the choruses I recorded this morning. I’m going to call it ‘Looking for America.”
A delicate guitar melody from Jack Antonoff accompanies Lana Del Rey as she tenderly longs for scenic drives and the dream of the US without guns, bombs, or mass murders. Looking for America is exactly what the title provokes, the struggling search for our country to feel safe from public violence, and to pursue your ambitions without fright. The heartbreaking reality of “We used to only worry for them [children] after dark,” and now today’s schooling system prepares their students for the possibility of mass violence.
Lana dreams of an America that was not even true to her own childhood, growing up in the 90’s did not have nearly as high rates of shootings or violence, but was not perfect nonetheless. But now, like she sings heartbreakingly, there’s “so many things that I think twice about before I do.”
Lana Del Rey once again delivers her divine vocals, with sorrowful lyrics. A tender tale of the dream of a safe American country, “where the flag can freely fly,” Looking for America is a song you should definitely know in light of the violence within the country.
Written by Stephanie Regan
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