"National Anthem" 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 r ...

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 released as a single on June 15, 2012 through

Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture with Atlantic Records of Warner ...

. The song serves as the album's fourth single. The music video for the song premiered on June 27, 2012. It is directed by

Anthony Mandler Anthony Mandler (born April 18, 1973) is an American film director, music video director, television commercial director and photographer. As a music video director, his most notable and frequent collaborator is Rihanna. The two have worked on si ...

. It depicts Del Rey as

Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...

and

Jacqueline Kennedy Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American socialite, writer, photographer, and book editor who served as first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A p ...

and

ASAP Rocky Rakim Athelaston Mayers (born October 3, 1988), known professionally as ASAP Rocky ( ; stylized as A$AP Rocky), is an American rapper, music producer and record executive. Born and raised in Harlem, he embarked on his musical career as a membe ...

as John F. Kennedy. It portrays the

assassination of John F. Kennedy John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, was assassinated on Friday, November 22, 1963, at 12:30 p.m. CST in Dallas, Texas, while riding in a presidential motorcade through Dealey Plaza. Kennedy was in the vehicle with ...

. Positive reviews noted the song's critical evaluation of lavish lifestyles, noting its contribution to the lyrical and thematic structure of the album as a whole.

Composition

In the

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

, Del Rey sings, "Tell me I'm your national anthem / Red, white, blue's in the sky / Summer's in the air, baby, heaven's in your eyes." At the close of the recording is a multi-layered narrative treatment. The introduction features the classic rendition " Happy Birthday Mr. President" as performed by

. Unlike the other songs on ''Born to Die'', Del Rey employs an alternative

rapping Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

technique, hip hop

beat Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery (c ...

and heavy basslines, similar to that of " Off to the Races" and " Diet Mountain Dew". ''

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog. Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...

'' said the rapping technique was almost "chatting".

Critical reception

Vocally, '' NME'' observed that Del Rey sings like a "perfect mannequin" on "National Anthem", criticizing the track for baldly revisiting the beat-driven chorus of "

". Further, ''NME'' praised certain elements of the track, saying: "As she sings of a relationship of a well-heeled man and a blank canvas woman, she invokes not only the dreamland of the monied classes (

The Hamptons The Hamptons, part of the East End of Long Island, consist of the towns of Southampton and East Hampton, which together comprise the South Fork of Long Island, in Suffolk County, New York. The Hamptons are a popular seaside resort and one o ...

) and their could-be motto 'Money is the anthem of success' but also invokes the spectre of

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...

with a reference to 'The Queen Of

Saigon , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

'."

Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television programmes, ...

called the running theme of ''Born to Die'', "demonic Stepford moll", which "National Anthem" fit into. The track was praised for having a: "laconic, anaesthetised vocal that conjures up images of her swigging from a bottle of Hendricks. There's a deep sadness underneath the sweeping string section and gangster hip-hop beats, but it's the chorus's fleeting glimpse of euphoria that'll keep you coming back." On the

Fourth of July Independence Day (colloquially the Fourth of July) is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the Declaration of Independence, which was ratified by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing the United States ...

, the song gains more attention due to its name being reminiscent of the American National Anthem. In 2017, the song received 58x times the amount of normal daily views on July 4.

Music video

Marilyn Monroe Happy Birthday Mr President 1962

Background and development

The music video for "National Anthem" was directed by

in May 2012. It premiered on June 27, 2012. Mandler stated the concept was Del Rey's and that she was "really interested in exploring this loss of innocence, this idea that what you think you're experiencing is maybe not what it's always going to be. Because when you say 'Kennedy,' that immediately evokes something, just like when I say 'It's a

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with ''Ham ...

story.' So I think using that power, that pedigree of the story is a really fascinating place to show the loss of something, the breakdown of something." Mandler described the video as being seen "through nassis'eyes, seeing this kind of castle crumble in the moment, and that shot where she's coming up out of the car, and the pain in her eyes, that destruction, it's like the whole castle is crumbling around her." Del Rey cited the video as "definitely the most beautiful thing" she's ever done. Del Rey wrote the treatment for herself and ASAP Rocky saying "he'd be really perfect to star in it." The video was premiered on June 27, 2012 through ''Noisey'' magazine's YouTube channel.

Synopsis

The video begins with Del Rey performing as

in a re-enactment of Monroe's infamous 1962 performance of "

Happy Birthday, Mr. President "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" is a song sung by actress and singer Marilyn Monroe on May 19, 1962, for President John F. Kennedy at a gala held at Madison Square Garden for his 45th birthday, 10 days before the actual date (May 29). The eve ...

". The rest of the video depicts Del Rey as

and rapper

as John F. Kennedy in re-enactments of home videos during which they party on yachts, lay out by the pool, and run on the beach with their three small children. The video ends with a re-enactment of the infamous

Zapruder film The Zapruder film is a silent 8mm color motion picture sequence shot by Abraham Zapruder with a Bell & Howell home-movie camera, as United States President John F. Kennedy's motorcade passed through Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas, on November ...

showing Kennedy's assassination and Del Rey reading from a love letter addressed to Kennedy, which is written from the perspective of Onassis reflecting on her and Kennedy's relationship, saying “And I remember when I met him, it was so clear that he was the only one for me.” As well as his charm and personality, saying “When he walked in… every woman’s head turned, everyone stood up to talk to him.” This monologue is often misattributed to be a real Onassis letter, but was written by Lana Del Rey.

Reception and impact

In January 2015, ''

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 adverti ...

'' named the video as one of the 20 best music videos of the 2010s (so far). In December 2019, the magazine listed the video as the 11th greatest music video of the decade. ''Pedestrian'' magazine called the video "the best music of the decade". ''Harper's Bazaar'' ranked the video the sixth "most fashionable video of all time".

Track listing

*Digital download # "National Anthem" – 3:50 # "National Anthem" (Fred Falke Remix Edit) – 3:46 # "National Anthem" (Tensnake Remix) – 3:43 # "National Anthem" (Afterlife Remix) – 3:48 *Picture disc # "National Anthem" – 3:50 # "National Anthem" (Breton Labs Remix) – 5:23

Credits and personnel

* Lana Del Rey –

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 withou ...

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...

* The Nexus – songwriter, vocal producer * Justin Parker – songwriter * Penny Foster - songwriter * Emile Haynie – producer,

drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a ...

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 * Mu ...

s * Jeff Bhasker – additional production, additional keyboards,

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 string ...

* James Bauer-Mein,

David Sneddon David Sneddon (born 15 September 1978) is a Scottish singer, songwriter, musician and music producer of contemporary pop music. He began his career performing on stage and television, singing lead roles in stage musicals in Glasgow. In 2002, h ...

, Emilie Bauer-Mein –

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are ...

* Larry Gold, Dan Heath – string arrangement, conductor * Steve Tirpak – string assistance * Manny Marroquin –

audio mixing Audio mixing is the process by which multiple sounds are combined into one or more channels. In the process, a source's volume level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated or enhanced. This practical, aesthetic ...

* Erik Madrid, Chris Galland – audio mixing assistance Credits adapted from ''Born to Die'' liner notes.

Charts

Certifications

Awards

Release history

References

External links

* * {{authority control 2012 singles Lana Del Rey songs Song recordings produced by Emile Haynie Music videos directed by Anthony Mandler Works about the assassination of John F. Kennedy Songs about Marilyn Monroe Songs written by Lana Del Rey Songs written by Justin Parker 2011 songs Interscope Records singles Polydor Records singles Cultural depictions of John F. Kennedy Cultural depictions of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Songs about socialites Pop ballads