July 9, 2023
BST Hyde Park, London
Few artists are as prolific as Lana Del Rey; emerging in 2012 with her major-label debut, ‘Born To Die’, the US superstar has released an epic nine albums, including this year’s chart-topper, ‘Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd’, equipping the singer-songwriter with a lofty catalogue of hits.
But in stepping out onto the stage at London’s Hyde Park for the final show of the British Summer Time (BST) series, it was recent track A&W that marked her entrance, with Lana adorned in a green floral gown and flanked by a troupe of all-female dancers.
“God damn, this is a big crowd,” she smiled during the opening moments of the set, before slipping into a long, flowing white train for her 2012 ‘Great Gatsby’ soundtrack single, Young And Beautiful, for the first of many singalong moments of the evening.
Not known for her elaborate stage productions, Sunday’s presentation was a step up from the past, with various props setting the scene, including a fairy light-adorned tree under which was positioned a dressing table, where she sat to get her hair re-done while singing 2019 album cut, Bartender, in a not-too-subtle nod to her infamous Glastonbury performance weeks prior.
The Worthy Farm show was cut short when organisers pulled the plug mid-set when the singer arrived onstage 30 minutes late, which she went on to reference further ahead of Diet Mountain Dew, when she paused to announce, “this is where I got cut off last time, sorry about that”, and during the extended outro to the title song from her latest LP, insisting: “Even if you get the power cut, it’s worth it!”
Clocking in at a total 19 songs, the setlist was littered with classics such as Blue Jeans, Ride and Summertime Sadness, along with recent singles Chemtrails Over The Country Club (featuring pointed new lyrics directed at an ex), Arcadia and The Grants.
But it was the deep cuts, like ‘Ultraviolence’ (2014) song Pretty When You Cry, Norman Fucking Rockwell from her 2019 album of the same name and ‘Lust For Life’ (2017) deep cut Cherry that not only proved the unwavering quality of Del Rey’s material alongside her better-known singles, but the staunch commitment of a fanbase that sang them back word-for-word.
One of the largest headline crowds of her career to date, at times she seemed somewhat overwhelmed, but despite signs of nerves and the occasional sound issue that seemed to cut off her mic prematurely, nothing could hold back one of the finest lyricists and voices of the past decade from delivering a career-defining show,
Rounding out the night, Lana launched herself over the edge of the stage and above the crowd while perched upon a giant rope swing adorned in flowers and vines for a soaring rendition of her breakout hit, Video Games, with the 60,000-strong crowd doubling as a choir for one of the classic anthems of the 2010s.
Steeped in hits from across the eras and visually stunning, with the screens drawing on footage dating back to her Tumblr years, the superstar delivered a celebration of her career to date, and in returning to the city she called “a second home for a very long time”, Lana seemed perfectly at ease by the end of the set as she announced with a twinkle in her eye: “It’s only up from here!”
Setlist: Lana Del Rey – BST Hyde Park, London
1. A&W
2. Young And Beautiful
3. Bartender
4. Chemtrails Over The Country Club
5. The Grants
6. Cherry
7. Pretty When You Cry
8. Ride
9. Born to Die
10. Blue Jeans
11. Norman Fucking Rockwell
12. Arcadia
13. Ultraviolence
14. White Mustang
15. Candy Necklace
16. Diet Mountain Dew
17. Summertime Sadness
19. Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd
20. Video Games
