On March 24th, Lana Del Rey released her ninth studio album entitled Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd. The awaited album falls into the Americana and Alternative Pop genres containing sixteen tracks. The album is around 77 minutes long with features from artists such as John Batiste, Bleachers, Tommy Genesis, Father John Misty, SYML, and Judah Smith. Jack Antonoff, the producer of the album, is known for producing Taylor Swift’s Midnights and Del Rey’s sixth album NFR, which was a tremendous hit amongst her fans and her latest work emulates a similar style.

In 2019, Lana Del Rey shared her album NFR with the world. It’s one of her most cherished works by fans and many have been drawing comparisons between it and her latest release. Ramapo Senior Colby Koutrakos explains that “There Is A Tunnel… feels like a continuation of many of the themes explored on NFR.” He says that, although “the musical arrangements are sparser here, her lyrics are far more ambitions, dealing with themes of family, religion, and sexuality in a way surprisingly mature for Lana.” He ends by claiming that the album is “a return to form after two creatively unfocused releases” that “proves that Lana is one of the best songwriters in pop music today.” The most popular songs on the album include the title track, “A&W”, “Paris, Texas”, “Let The Light In”, and “Peppers”, which are all perfect examples of this focus on lyrical ingenuity. Although many of these songs are personal, her most introspective songs are “The Grants” and “Fingertips” in which Lana expresses her hopes, desires, and fears. 

In “Fingertips” she references her family directly, calling them out on their behavior and discussing some dark topics that may have been difficult to share with the world. The album as a whole is one of Del Rey’s most intimate. As one of the more mature women in the music industry, she expresses a feeling of expendability that some of her fans can relate to, or at the very least sympathize with.

The gospel-influenced album has received praise from many people. Metacritic, an entertainment review website, gave it an 81% and fans online have been talking about it every chance they get. Alexa Topolski, a Ramapo Senior, explains that “Del Rey’s latest and long awaited album managed to provide a countless number of tracks that succeeded your average 3-minute song, yet made it worth your time.” Her favorite track off the album was “Peppers,” not because of “ how catchy it is, but because of how unique it sounds.” She concludes by saying, “Lana’s new album is definitely worth the listen and is especially good for listening to while driving, doing homework, or multitasking as well if you want a chill experience.” Overall, the album has been adored by fans and casual listeners. People appreciate the raw and vulnerable nature of these tracks, and if that interests you, Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd may be worth listening to.