"Dark Paradise" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter

Lana Del Rey Elizabeth Woolridge Grant (born June 21, 1985), known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer-songwriter. Her music is noted for its cinematic quality and exploration of tragic romance, glamour, and melancholia, with frequent ...

for her second studio album, ''

Born to Die ''Born to Die'' is the second studio album and major-label debut by American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey. It was released on January 27, 2012, through Interscope Records and Polydor Records. The album was reissued on November 9, 2012, as an e ...

'' (2012). It was written by Lana Del Rey and

Rick Nowels Richard Wright Nowels Jr. is an American songwriter, record producer, multi-instrumentalist and arranger. He has co-written and co-produced over 90 hit singles with multiple artists Emile Haynie Emile Haynie (born July 13, 1980), often credited simply as Emile, is an American music producer from Buffalo, New York. His range of production includes alternative rock, hip hop, indie and pop music. Haynie has worked with several prominent ar ...

. Nowels and Devrim Karaoglu produced the radio mix of the song. The song was released on March 1, 2013, by

Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal ** Universal TV, a t ...

and

Vertigo Records Vertigo Records is a record company with United Kingdom origins. It was a subsidiary of the Philips/Phonogram record label, launched in 1969 to specialise in progressive rock and other non-mainstream musical styles. Today, it is operated by Uni ...

, as the sixth and final single from ''Born to Die''. The song received mainly mixed reviews from critics, many criticizing her melodramatic performance, also with the repetition of production and lyrical content. However, many believed the attraction of the criticism proved it as a highlight. Noticeably less successful than other singles from the album, "Dark Paradise" managed to gain some commercial success in Central Europe, becoming a top five hit on Polish airplay. It was also featured in an episode of '' The Originals'', a spin-off of ''

The Vampire Diaries ''The Vampire Diaries'' is an American supernatural fiction, supernatural teen drama television series developed by Kevin Williamson (screenwriter), Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec, based on the The Vampire Diaries (novel series), book series ...

''. The song was recorded by psychobilly band Tiger Army, released in 2018 on the EP of the same name.

Background and release

In an interview in June 2012, Del Rey said she would not release the song as a single but did plan to release a music video in September 2012. However, no music video was released, and on January 29, 2013, an official radio edit of "Dark Paradise" was serviced to German radio stations. On the same day, it was announced that the song would serve as the fifth single in Austria and Germany, and the sixth single in Switzerland. It was released as a digital download in the three countries on March 1, 2013.

Lyrics and composition

''Billboard'' said about the song's lyrics: "Del Rey once again declares her undying love for her bad-boy lover," adding that the song's melody "recalls late-'80s

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

Critical reception

The song garnered mixed reviews from critics. Most critical reviews came from the melodramatic tone of the song, along with the lyrical content and repetitive production. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' gave the song a negative review, saying that "fatigue sets in" when this song comes up on the album, and that the song "would be a subpar ballad for Del Rey" even if she had never released "

Blue Jeans Jeans are a type of pants or trousers made from denim or dungaree cloth. Often the term "jeans" refers to a particular style of trousers, called "blue jeans", with copper-riveted pockets which were invented by Jacob W. Davis in 1871 and paten ...

" or "

Video Games Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...

". Jaime Gill from ''

BBC Music BBC Music is responsible for the music played across the BBC. The current director of music is Bob Shennan, who is also the controller of BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 6 Music, and the BBC Asian Network. Officially it is a part of the BBC's Radio o ...

'' used the song as an example as why "Born to Die" isn't perfect, saying that "it slumps slightly towards the end, and the glossy

trip-hop Trip hop (sometimes used synonymously with "downtempo") is a musical genre that originated in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom, especially Bristol. It has been described as a psychedelic fusion of hip hop and electronica with slow tempos ...

production grows wearying on lesser thic melodramas like Dark Paradise."BBC – Music – Review of Lana Del Rey – Born to Die
/ref> David Edwards from ''

Drowned in Sound ''Drowned in Sound'', sometimes abbreviated to ''DiS'', is a UK-based music webzine financed by artist management company Silentway. Founded by editor Sean Adams, the site features reviews, news, interviews, and discussion forums. History ''D ...

'' said along with "Carmen" that they weren't the best tracks on the album, saying "The dreary fallen angel whimsy of ‘Carmen’ sums up precisely the unfocused drift that critics often use to malign her and on songs such as ‘Dark Paradise’, the caricature extends beyond our empathy." On the other hand, many critics believed that the criticism towards the song attracted it as a standout towards the album. ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' named it among the best tracks on the album along with "Video Games" and "

Summertime Sadness "Summertime Sadness" is a song by American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey from her second studio album, ''Born to Die'' (2012). The Pop music, pop ballad was released on June 22, 2012, by Interscope Records as the fourth single of the album. In ...

". ''MuuMuse'' highlighted the album as a standout, saying "Yet beneath the song’s gothic exterior lies an deeply romantic sentiment, suggesting that love trumps all circumstances–even death ..

Track listings

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''

'' and ''Dark Paradise''. ;Performance *

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

Maria Vidal Maria Elena Vidal (born August 1, 1960) is an American singer songwriter. She is known for her hit single "Body Rock", which reached No. 8 on the US Dance Charts, No. 48 on the Hot 100, No. 5 on the Springbok Charts in South Africa, and No. 11 i ...

- additional vocals ;Instruments *

Emile Haynie Emile Haynie (born July 13, 1980), often credited simply as Emile, is an American music producer from Buffalo, New York. His range of production includes alternative rock, hip hop, indie and pop music. Haynie has worked with several prominent ar ...

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

* Devrim Karaoglu - additional

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

, orchestral drums *

Rick Nowels Richard Wright Nowels Jr. is an American songwriter, record producer, multi-instrumentalist and arranger. He has co-written and co-produced over 90 hit singles with multiple artists guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

* Dean Reid -

pads Pads (also called leg guards) are a type of protective equipment used in a number of sports and serve to protect the legs from the impact of a hard ball, puck, or other object of play travelling at high speed which could otherwise cause injuries t ...

* Patrick Warren - chamberlain strings ;Technical and production * John Davis - mastering * Chris Galland - mixing assistant * Larry Gold - string arrangement, conductor * Emile Haynie -

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

* Devrim Karaoglu - production * Erik Madrid - mixing assistant *

Manny Marroquin Manny Marroquin (born September 21, 1971) is an American mixing engineer.Daley, Dan (May 2005).Manny Marroquin. ''Sound on Sound''. Retrieved February 10, 2007 He has received ten Grammy awards for his professional audio work. Life and career M ...

- mixing * Rick Nowels - co-production ; production * Steve Tirpak - string assistant

Charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{authority control 2010s ballads 2012 songs 2013 singles Lana Del Rey songs Interscope Records singles Song recordings produced by Emile Haynie Song recordings produced by Rick Nowels Songs written by Lana Del Rey Songs written by Rick Nowels Torch songs