Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd? is an album by Lana Del Rey that consists of 16 songs that artistically range from interludes to ballads. This album also has collaborations with other artists including Tommy Genesis, SYML, Jon Batiste, Father John Misty, RIOPY, Judah Smith, and Bleachers. Del Rey poured a lot of her emotions and past into this album’s lyrics and meanings. To really look at the feelings behind these pieces, one must look at the most popular songs of the album to see what people are relating to.
The most listened-to song in this album is “A&W.” Del Rey expresses the patriotism and mistreatment of women that seem to come together more often than not. It expresses how younger women are deemed negatively, pushed aside, and unheard in our present society. The first half of the song is softer and considered somewhat meek, but as it progresses, it’s as if Del Rey finds her voice. The music and lyrics get louder, clearer, and more powerful.
The second most popular song, the opener, is “The Grants.” Grant is Del Rey’s actual family name, and as such, her family is one of the main themes of this song. The most important subject is the religious, Christian theme as the song starts in a gospel-style to put the listeners in the setting. Then, the tone turns melancholic and slower. She details how her beliefs describe how only your memory is taken with you to heaven, and how she is going to take memories of her loved ones and beautiful moments of life with her. Del Rey also writes how she tries to honor her ancestors in everything she does, whether in her work or personal life.
The third and final song of this review is called, “Grandfather please stand on the shoulders of my father while he is deep-sea fishing.” However, most fans opt to simply call it “Grandfather.” My favorite song out of the three, “Grandfather” is about Del Rey calling up to a higher power in need of a sign to prove her success isn’t all fake and unearned. She herself believes that she deserves her fame in the beginning but her self-confidence wavers at the end as comments from the people around her start to get into her head. Del Rey phrases that if people are doubting her, they should search the lyrics and rhythms of her songs to feel what she feels.
These songs are only 3 out of 16 amazing songs that you can listen to in her album. The reason many people like Lana Del Rey is because of how relatable her songs are. I find this to be true, but there really only is one way of knowing. You can find all of her albums and songs on Spotify. Now, get to listening and feel the emotions of Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd.?
