8 Things That Only Happen at a Lana Del Rey Concert
How’s this for the perfect person in the perfect place at the perfect time: On Friday night, as darkness descended on the Hollywood Forever cemetery, Lana Del Rey took the stage and performed, surrounded by her fans and the headstones of those old Hollywood legends she loves so much.
ETonline was in the crowd and here are eight things we saw happen that could only happen at a Lana Del Rey show:
1. You Get Pushed. A lot. This story could have been titled “34 Times We Got Pushed at the Lana Del Rey Concert.” Because Lana fans are passionate — we’d argue more passionate than any fans we’ve encountered recently — and if there is the opportunity to get even an inch closer to their idol, they will take it. And they won’t care if they run you over in the process.
WATCH: Lana Del Rey is the loneliest bride in ‘Ultraviolence’ video
2. You See People Interacting With Types of People They Normally Never Would. Those aforementioned fans? They come in all shapes and sizes. Seriously, we had a group of “yaaaasss”-ing twinks on one side, chain-smoking girls in flower crowns on the other, and a full-on biker gang in front of us. Leather motorcycle jackets and beards and all. And they all knew every word to “Born to Die.”
3. There Is a Mid-Concert Selfie Break. Lana sounds lovely from any seat in the house. But if you’re sitting in the back, you’ll get used to not actually seeing her from time to time, as she descends offstage to sing to the front row. And after the first song on the setlist — “Cruel World,” fyi — she stayed in the pit taking selfies with fans while her band played an epic, extended guitar solo.
4. There Is a Mid-Concert Gift Exchange. Every time Lana disappeared into the crowd, she resurfaced with an armful of presents she collected from fans. There were pink gift bags and flower crowns. There were homemade signs and other kitschy knickknacks. It was like Christmas in October. Except only for Lana.
5. Everyone Is Excited to Sing About “P*ssy.” Yes, you read that right: The crowd was most excited to sing along to “Cola.” Especially the first line, “My p*ssy tastes like Pepsi Cola.” And the second biggest cheer of the night came after Lana changed the words to “Born to Die” to “Let me f**k you hard in the pouring rain.”
PHOTOS: Find out who Lana Del Rey was caught kissing in Italy!
6. There Is a Stagehand on Cigarette Duty. At one point during the show, Lana said, “I want a cigarette.” Within seconds, a stagehand materialized with a cigarette. And when Lana needed it lit, her right hand cigarette man returned with a lighter. The cigarette seemed to be mostly for dramatic effect — like when she waved it around while singing “Body Electric — and when Lana didn’t want it anymore, she used her mic stand as an ashtray.
7. There Will Be Tears. Though maybe not when you’d expect: Halfway through the night, Lana started to have trouble with the volume of her earpiece. So she stopped the show for a second to check her sound. She stood center stage and started softly crooning — “Don’t be so blue my love...don’t be so strange my love…” — and we saw no fewer than six people start crying. In all fairness, it did sound beautiful.
8. If You Get Waved At, You’ve Made It. The biggest honor at a Lana Del Rey concert is if she waves at you. A cute, half wave that she does during the chorus of one song or as she’s walking across the stage between tunes. If she even waves kind of in your direction, that’s good enough. Maybe she really was waving at you. Nobody can prove otherwise.
And she waved at us.
So if you have the chance to see a Lana tour, we’d recommend it. 10 out of 10, would go again. And if you have the chance to see Lana in a cemetery — or a mausoleum, we’d even settle for a local morgue — take it.
Meanwhile, this is what Lana has to say about f**king your way to the top: