Carmen (Lana Del Rey song)

"Carmen" is an indie pop song by American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey, taken from her second studio album Born to Die. It was released as a single in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland on January 26, 2012. A music video, directed by Del Rey, was released on April 21, 2012. During reviews for the album, "Carmen" garnered high acclaim from critics, most of whom praised Del Rey's lyrical abilities.

Background and composition
"Carmen" was written by Del Rey and Justin Parker, and produced by Emile Haynie with additional production by Jeff Bhasker. When Del Rey was interviewed by The Sun, she stated that the song is a "cautionary tale of a doomed woman who sells her body on the streets [...]" She carried on saying "[Carmen] is a song I can't say too much about because it's so close to my heart. It's the song on the record I relate to most closely. It's set partly in Coney Island, a place that's been important to me throughout my New York City career."

According to Del Rey, she said the song features a main protagonist, a 17-year old who suffers from substance abuse, similar to Del Rey's drinking addiction she had when she was in her late teens.

Critical reception
"Carmen" was acclaimed by most critics for its ability to tell a story and haunt with its intense lyrics of the downside to fame. Noted as a cautionary hint of any downside to such a debauched lifestyle that Del Rey portrays on her album, Andy Gill of The Independent describes the song as a metaphor used by Del Rey for her "synthetic life experience." Alex Denney of NME described the song as "a winner" with Del Rey’s richly suggestive tones conjuring the ghosts of Lauren Bacall’s classic femme-fatales. While reviewing the album and describing the song as the point where "things start to pick up," John Capone of Prefix Magazine described the song as a "three-Xanax-and-gin-martini-cocktail broken-hearted baroque ballad." Angela Okhumoya of Addictmusic showed appreciation for Del Rey's writing abilities on "Carmen" stating that it is "better than most of her contemporaries." Dom Gourlay of Contactmusic gave the song a positive review, stating "You want hip-hop beats? Check. Radio friendly choruses? Check. Singalong verses for the hen party and karaoke masses? Check." Rob Harvilla of Spin noted the song for its ability to "gently ascends/descends to Drake/Weeknd empty-hedonism poignancy." Billboard called the song a "poor man's version of far-superior (and hookier) anthems like "Roxanne".

Music video


On February 27, 2012, Del Rey revealed through her Facebook page that she just finished editing the music video for "Carmen". The singer premiered the music video on April 21, 2012. The video opens with Instagram-style snapshots of New York City, spliced together with scenes of old Hollywood paparazzi, a rose, and shots of Lana herself. Once the song begins, we see a dressed woman working a pole, then Lana on a city porch. The song goes on to feature black and white photo stills, animated food scenes, Lana riding the back of a motorcycle operated by the model Josh Rachlin and multiple references to drugs and troubled youth. In one scene, Lana is behind the camera interviewing Rachlin, asking him about his dream girl and giggling. The video ends with the Erik Satie's song "Gymnopédie No.1." and a woman dancing in a field until the word “fin” graces the screen.

Track listing

 * "Digital download"
 * 1) "Carmen" - 4:08