Lana Del Rey | Born To Die (Deluxe) | lyrics

Dark Paradise

lyrics:

—
all my friends tell me I should move on
I'm lying in the ocean singing your song
ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah
that's how you sang it

loving you forever can't be wrong
even though you're not here
won't move on
ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah
that's how we played it

and there's no remedy for memory
your face is like a melody
it won't leave my head
your soul is haunting me and telling me that everything is fine
but I wish I was dead
(dead like you)

every time I close my eyes
it's like a dark paradise
no one compares to you
I'm scared that you won't be waiting on the other side

every time I close my eyes
it's like a dark paradise
no one compares to you
I'm scared that you won't be waiting on the other side

all my friends ask me why I stay strong
tell 'em, "when you find true love it lives on"
ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah
that's why I stay here

every time I close my eyes
it's like a dark paradise
no one compares to you
but there's no you
except in my dreams tonight

oh, oh, oh, oh
ha, ha, ha, ha
I don't wanna wake up from this tonight

there's no relief
I see you in my sleep
and everybody's rushing me but I can feel you touching me
there's no release
I feel you in my dreams
telling me I'm fine...
—

analysis:

my thoughts

Dark Paradise is the seventh track of Lana Del Rey's debut LP Born To Die. Most would say it is a sequel to National Anthem in the story, with the perspective of Jackie after her lifetime lover John. F Kennedy was shot by a terrorist while they were waving in a car at a parade. Although, the (literal) dark, deathly meaning of the lyrics could be a metaphor for the darkness one experiences after a breakup, when a person who you have loved so dearly like a part of yourself is ripped away from you, and you are left feeling like a naked soul with a broken heart and no one else who understands.

The song sounds vaguely suicidal, which is understandable given the song's storyline, with lines such as "I wish I was dead (dead like you)" cutting through our souls, and describing "closing her eyes" as something of a "dark paradise", because she can pretend her lover is still there and see him in her mind, or dreams when she sleeps, haunting her in a peaceful way that gives her relief.

The song has a melody that recalls late 80s Madonna, with her calling like a broken swallow over blipping beats and drums that switch tempo throughout the song.

However, insiders claim that Born To Die was not written for an ex-boyfriend, but rather for her boyfriend that died a couple of years prior. Perhaps she lost him to drugs or alcohol, judging by the lyrics' meaning in many of her songs, but this is just a guess.

Jackie Kennedy herself not only had to deal with this immense loss and pain, but also had to face the flashing cameras and paparazzi every time she went out, begging for details on how she was feeling after this traumatic event. It's not doubt that Lana found her tragic story so inspirational. A dark paradise it is indeed.

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