Let’s talk about Lorde. Lorde (birth name: Ella Yelich-O’Connor) is 17 years old, she’s turning the music industry inside out, she can’t give an interview without discussing feminism and anti-materialism and she’s now friends with Taylor Swift. She’s a very interesting young woman, basically. She’s also dating a 24-year-old photographer named James Lowe. He’s of Asian descent, and Twitter had a meltdown last week, with One Direction fans tweeting horrible, racist crap to Lorde and to James. Many of you seemed more upset that a 17-year-old was dating a 24-year-old… yeah. It bugs me a little bit, but I’ve read enough Lorde interviews where I kind of feel like she’s a lot older than her years. If there’s a 1 to 10 Creepy Scale, I’d give this relationship a 3 or a 4.
I was actually surprised that Lorde has a boyfriend. She’s made it clear that she doesn’t define herself through the male gaze, professionally or personally, and I just thought… well, she’s 17, maybe she just hasn’t gotten into boys yet. But Lorde’s feminism has more depth than that, as she described to V Magazine in a new interview. Lorde sees herself as a “sex positive” person who does not have a problem with anyone flaunting their sexuality:
Lorde on her rising star: “It’s pretty mental, really. I made this music in New Zealand at 15 years old with my producer, who was 28—just these two random losers, really. Now all these people like it, and they care about what I have to say, which is nice, because I’m the weirdo for sure. For the most part, people have been really supportive. I feel very grateful.”
Understanding the music industry: “I’ve been involved with record companies since I was 12, so I’m no stranger to sitting in the boardroom and telling a bunch of people way older than me exactly how things need to be. I think having almost grown up in that setting, having that being totally normal, has helped me be good at being assertive about the things that are important to me.”
Feminism is not slut-shaming: “People like to paint me in a certain way, but I’m a hugely sex-positive person and I have nothing against anyone getting naked. For me personally I just don’t think it really would complement my music in any way or help me tell a story any better. It’s not like I have a problem with dancing around in undies—I think you can use that stuff in a hugely powerful way. It just hasn’t felt necessary for me.”
She isn’t a music industry product: “The power and control is with the young people now. It seems like for a while the pop industry has been run by a bunch of 40-year-olds. I feel like maybe that’s about to change. There are young people doing such incredible things creatively at the moment. It feels good.
Is this hypocrisy? I don’t think so. Lorde has criticized artists like Selena Gomez in the past for having lyrics like “When you’re ready come and get it” because, in Lorde’s words, “I’m a feminist and the theme of her song is, ‘When you’re ready, come and get it from me.’ I’m sick of women being portrayed this way.” Lorde’s problem is with female passivity, (corporate, emotional, physical) submission. It seems like she’s all for women owning their sexuality and owning their power. Or maybe I just like this girl and I want to defend her…?
Photos courtesy of V Magazine.
I love her and will defend her to the death.
I like Lorde a lot but…
I really wish she would stop saying that she’s not going to get naked because she’s only 17, and if she plays her cards right she has a long career ahead of herself. I imagine these words coming back to haunt her when she’s 25 and on the cover of Rolling Stone in her underwear.
……and maybe I’m just a jaded cynic-maybe she’ll be one of the few that doesn’t go that route, which would be hugely refreshing. I just think she should tread lightly with the “my music doesn’t require me to be nude” stuff. She’s still so young and like a lot of pop stars before her, sometimes the drive to present a sexy appearance is (unfortunately) an easy way to revamp an image and get press.
That being said, I continue to be impressed with how she handles herself-I really enjoy her interviews.
@TOK You’re completely right. Wasn’t Miley pearl-clutching about getting naked all the time and doing Molly less than two years ago? The bottom line is that Lorde (however mature she she may be) is very young and life has a way of changing people.
completely agree with all this.. never say never cause it will bite in the butt.
Miley is EXACTLY who I was thinking of. I sort of feel like young women set traps for themselves by saying stuff like this. Maybe she should just say “up till now I haven’t felt a need to go that route but who knows how I’ll feel 5, 10 years from now.” Eh, at least she’s not outright condemning it….
I immediately thought of Miley as well. Lorde is obviously a very smart girl, and I hugely like her. However, I think that perhaps she doesn’t have the foresight to avoid saying things like this. I can see how it paints her into a corner, but I give both Miley and Lorde a pass on these kinds of statements. At 17, it’s very easy to say “I will never do “XYZ”, because at that moment in time, you can’t imagine doing it, or even the need for doing it. But as you get older, your thoughts and feelings change and suddenly “XYZ” seems like a great idea.
I don’t fault teenagers for making sweeping statements – things can seem very black and white at that stage, and she wholeheartedly believes what she says at that moment.
Oh, I don’t fault her at all. I just wish her PR people would protect her a bit, because there are plenty of people just waiting to jump all over her.
I gave props to Cumby for saying something similar about Twitter. He didn’t condemn it. He basically said it’s not for him at this time and he doesn’t have issues with other people/celeb joing social media. He added one day he might join the game. Even if deep down inside he feels that Twitter is a social cesspool, he didn’t take the Clooney route of calling celebs idiots for using it. Cumby is smart enough to know that one day he might feel differently about Twitter and choose to join. His comment will not come back to kick him in the ass; he left the door open.
Lorde might one day feel differenly about showing a little skin. However at this point in her life she probably is being honest about never taking her clothes off and has convinced herself that she never will. At one time in my life I made the mistake of saying no matter the circumstances I will never ever do something. A few years later it came back to bite me in the but. At that time I was convinced that I would never do it.
Well, it certainly doesn’t seem to haunt Beyoncé, who sang at the top of her lungs 10 years ago that girls wearing dukes, booty out should be ashamed, should put some clothes on, were nasty, skanky etc..
Apparently, her twenty something self couldn’t stand the view of “pants hangin’ low” and was very vocal about it. At 30 she thinks otherwise, and nobody faults her for that . Global fawning everywhere.
Maybe it will be the same for this girl.
In the entertainment industry there’s pressure on young girls to present themselves as sexually pure. In order to do this, some starlets will make comments either in interviews or in their music that basically proclaim to the world, “I’m not ‘That Kind of Girl’. I’m on the respectable, lady-like, role-model, Virgin side of the dichotomy, not the whore side.” Some will even make statements about how they will be virgins until they marry.
Part of the reason why young female starlets feel the need to do this is because our culture definitely teaches that a female entertainer’s status as a role model is mostly determined by her sexual modesty. Some people who even consider themselves to be more ‘liberal’ and not anti-feminist promote this message. But when it’s a girl who’s parents have more conservative roots, the pressure is even greater. Miley Cyrus has talked about how when she was younger, she felt pressured to promote things that she didn’t even necessarily believe in herself.
I don’t think that’s what’s going on with Lorde, though. I think right now, she just doesn’t want to b e nude.
I don’t really see her as saying anything absolute. There is no “never” in what she is saying…she said that she doesn’t think it will help her tell the story or compliment her music. In my interpretation of what she is saying, by leaving out the “never” or other absolutes and by saying that she has no problem with people getting naked, she leaves open the possibility of changing her mind in the future as her music and story change.
I think it’s sad and offensive to assume someone wouldn’t stick to her beliefs. Especially when, as we’ve seen repeatedly, she’s pretty much nothing like any other pop star out there.
Oh, well I’m sorry for (really?) “offending” you but I stand by my point that how you feel at 17 is not necessarily how you feel 5, 10, 15 years later. That’s really just factual, not opinion-based. It’s called human development (physical, cognitive, emotional) and none of us can escape that.
“Especially when, as we’ve seen repeatedly, she’s pretty much nothing like any other pop star out there. ”
Yeah….she’s been on the scene for what… a whole year now?
Let’s give it some time before we steadfastly proclaim how resolute she is in her beliefs.
You have your opinion, but it’s still reducing someone to an incredibly simplistic point to say that “obviously she will change her mind”, when you don’t know that. So let’s give it some time before we proclaim that she’ll inevitably sexualize herself to make money and stay relevant.
Am I the only one giving a little side-eye to the “I’m a hugely sex-positive person” comments coming from a 17 year old? I mean, I realize she’s mature for her age… but she’s still only 17 (and recently turned 17, correct?) Is this something we are deciding is refreshing to hear… a 17 year old calling herself hugely sex-positive? I am not a prude but that’s enough to make me do a double-take….
Teenagers have been having sex for thousands of years. The truth is, teens are sexual beings. I know that’s hard for a lot of adults to accept, but I’d much rather hear a 17 year-old proclaiming and promoting progressive, sex-positive values than engaging in the virgin/whore, I’m-a-good-girl-and-that makes me better game.
I definitely support Lorde. It’s a brave move for a young, female public figure to say that she’s sex positive. If more teens were like Lorde, we’d probably hear less stories about teens being depressed and suicidal because of homophobia and slut-shaming. She’s a breath of fresh air.
I think it is a great frame of mind, honestly. She isn’t putting it in that frame of being a prude/slut etc.
Agreed with Leila, as off-putting as it is for adults to think about teenagers having sex, it does commonly happen and I think it’s a good thing she’s not shaming people for having sex. The age of consent in New Zealand is also 16 and that’s the case in many countries so I think it’s fine for someone in their late teens to discuss sex.
I realize that 17 year olds have sex (lost my virginity around that time so I’m not putting them down for it)… let me see if I can try to articulate what I’m thinking about this though.
It’s not the idea that she’s having sex, or thinking of sex in a positive way that is making me uncomfortable. I’m more thinking of many of the impressionable teenage girls who may be Lorde’s age or younger, who may not be as emotionally stable or mature, who may take her comments as promoting having sex, which may push them toward it before they are ready to accept the consequences (whether that be emotionally or physically.) At 15, 16, 17, not everyone is at a place developmentally where they should be having sex. So hearing a 17 year old pop star proclaiming that she is hugely sex-positive (which to me, in order for that to be the case, she would have to be comfortable and mature in her own sexuality which doesn’t happen overnight… so was she having sex at 14? 15?) makes me concerned for the other teenagers who might take that message and run with it.
I guess I feel like a better message coming from a 17 year old would be to talk about sex positively, but also promoting safe sex and waiting until you are ready. Just because she is a self-proclaimed feminist who is wise beyond her years, doesn’t mean every teenage girl this message reaches is the same.
@ Brown: True. I see your point. Not all teens are mentally or emotionally ready for sex. But at 14, I wouldn’t have interpreted the meaning of her words as saying, “go have sex,” or, “you need to be having sex at this point of your life in order to be sex positive.” I would have taken as her telling us to be more tolerant and open-minded when it comes to sexuality and nudity. And I do think that that’s a message that preteens and teens need to hear, because it’s not always the one that they’re surrounded with, and it shows in the way they view and treat other people, as well as their own sexual decisions sometimes.
Age of consent here in NZ is 16, so it wouldn’t be an issue if she had had sex at that age.
I’m with Leila, I think you’ve kinda misunderstood the phrase sex-positive.
If you’ve never heard the phrase, it’s a totally understandable to assume it means: “sex is great, go have it”. (Which wouldn’t be an ideal message from someone with a largely young audience.)
But it’s actually an old feminist term, that came about in the 80’s when some feminists were saying things like porn, prostitution, stripping, female nudity etc., were intrinsically anti-feminist. The basic sex-positive message is: sex, experimentation, sexuality, nudity etc., are all fine – as long as you are fully informed and in control of what’s going on. (Note: There is a huge emphasis on safe-sex, as it’s a basic part of being informed and/or in control, but there’s also room for abstinence. It’s all about being open-minded.)
Anyway, it’s far broader concept than just sex (intercourse), and in this context, I think Lordes was talking specifically about nudity. By saying she’s sex-positive, she’s simply saying “I’m not one of those feminists who thinks female nudity is automatically wrong”. (Contrast to say, Sinead’s letters to Miley after the MTV hoorah. Sinead is an old-school feminist: she assumed that Miley’s near-nudity/hyper-sexuality meant Miley was being exploited.)
It was probably a poor choice of words; most people would’ve missed the reference. But I’m not going to critique her for not quite targeting her audience, I’m too busy being impressed by her knowledge of feminist issues/lingo. Where IS a 17 year old pop-star picking this up? She talks like a women’s studies major.
Lorde is awesome. I love her fiercely. What’s with these people who bemoan many pop stars but bitch when a fierce intelligent one comes along? Women need more options, period. Stop trying to restrict them . Men don’t have to be the definitive representations of their gender, let our young female stars carve out their own niche. Lorde is the best.
“Stop trying to restrict them.Men don’t have to be the definitive representations of their gender, let our young female stars carve out their own niche.”
This! I think if more feminists thought like you, it would be less misunderstood in general and the Taylor Swifts, Katy Perry’s, and Lady Gagas wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss it.
Speaking of Lady Gaga, she and Christina Aguilera performed on the voice tonight. Tessanne Chinn is the winner, by the way.
Love love love this kid, her head is on straight AND She is scrappy and smart
She is like the female Noel Gallagher.
YES. THIS. 100%.
Two people who are more than aware of the bulls**t and hypocrisy that exists within this shallow industry and society in general. And who aren’t afraid to speak their mind on it.
Makes me love both of them even more.
Hats off to you for this comparison.
Cheers!
Yes!
Love her album, love her music… love her. I quite like it that she’s outspoken and says what she thinks, and can articulate it in a smart way.
My take on this is, you can be a sexual person without feeling that you got bought for the hour. You can be a strong women with a healthy sense of self worth and still want to have sex and lusted after. I think as long as the feeling is mutual instead of being treated as a sexual toy for someone else’s enjoyment, then it’s cool.
You said it better than she did.
Totally agree. Some of the most empowered and ass-kickingest women I know are the ones who totally embrace their sexuality. And there usually the ones with the biggest inner freaks lol. Wanting to be lusted after and just wanting to be wanted is nothing to be ashamed of.
Exactly. Too bad most of society disagrees, even within groups that are known to be more tolerant and open-minded.
She take herself wayyyyyyy too seriously…
You know how “celebrities” always say “I’m the weirdo” “I’m the only one to..” “I live on a different level, ’cause I’m so different and bla bla bla”
OMG you’re just a human like the rest of us, stop the self-involvement and narcissism !!!!
I have this feeling that she wont last long in the music industry.My intuition is mostly right
I have to agree with you. She is going to wear out her welcome very fast.
I totally agree with you. I think I’m the only one that doesn’t like her song “Royals”. It’s ok… I really was shocked when I heard it played on the urban radio stations here in NYC. She’s the cool/talented teenager for now. But here we go again, we base talent off one song.
I have had the feeling she’s going to be huge for a couple of albums, the “it” girl in that genre, and then start fading. and become more of a niche artist, with smaller albums. That’s more the norm for many that hit it big. They really are only good for two big hit albums and can’t sustain it. Norah Jones’ first album sold 26 million albums. Her subsequent albums were just over a million sold each. I don’t know what her last album sold. So that’s a huge difference in visibility and album sales and hits. She’s sill in the business with a solid following, especially in the jazz world, but no where close to that first album and when her songs were everywhere on commercial radio crossing over.
I totally agree, I’ve been getting this same feeling from her. Like she needs a serving of humble pie. She might seem like an old soul but the fact is she’s 17 and she can’t possibly know it all like she is portraying. She should enjoy the ride and appreciate it and stop trying to convince is that she’s a prodigy.
Patricia, exactly! Her song Royals is good, but she need to work on her attitude.
Take a leaf from Fiona Apple who is now embarrassed she was always going off on everybody and everything when she was young because she was young and beautiful and talented and had no reason to be so effin angsty.
She’s a smart and self-aware seventeen year old: Knowing more than most people her age and not realizing the limitations of what she knows is exactly the combination of traits that would be expected from someone like her.
gg: Do you know anything about Fiona Apple’s background?
I kind of agree with this. I don’t DISLIKE the girl, but I just can’t like her. Her petulant comments regarding David Guetta annoyed me.
She just strikes me as someone who is soooo contrived to be different. It doesn’t seem like it’s super natural or anything, it seems like she’s purposely crafting her image just as much as any of the other popstars.
I was going to avoid this post due to being accused of not liking Lorde but I agreed with a poster yesterday that something is off putting about her. She is a talented bright young lady, I will not take that away from her. But there were things that bothered me about her as well. She talked about her dislike of photoshopp but yet pics of her were photoshopped. That David Guetta comment annoyed me as well but yet she goes on to let Rick Ross remix Royals.
I can agree that she does seems a bit more mature beyond her years but she is still only 17. If this was another young teen who started dating a guy who was 24 while she was 16 people would be calling her out on it. Being mature doesn’t change your age. You can call me a broken record but I will continue to say we defend the celebs we adore, no matter what.
Agreed, V4Real; on all points.
I think a lot of people are just looking for something bad to say about her because she’s different. And smart. And unlike everyone out there.
How is she unlike anyone else out there; she had one hit song.
She’s not the only smart girl in the business. My fav Emeli Sande was offered a recording contract around the age of 16 but decided to get her education first in order to have something to fall back on. Now that’s smart. How many 16 year olds you know would turn down a music career for an education.
Yeah, you are right. She’s definitely just like Katy/ Miley/Britney/Gaga/Beyonce. Because being in the music industry and being credible and relevant is all about how many hit songs you have.
Also, I know plenty of people who have dropped out of school (high school and college), and now they make more money than me, and always will. Including my significant other. So I would save your judgments on that note.
@anna. Yeah, you’re right. Because being intelligent, educated, grounded and enlightened is all about how much money you make.
Is that what I said? Strange. I was under the impression that I was telling someone not to judge what others want as far as education goes, because it cannot provide all for some people.
she 17. she smart. Usually that’s a recipe for taking yourself a little bit too seriously. She’ll grow out of it.
Agree. I think most everyone goes through a smug know-it-all phase somewhere between 16 and 25. I certainly did, but fortunately, no one was interviewing me at the time.
After reading the interview above, I have to agree with you. I really enjoy her music and her thoughts on feminism, but the rest reads a little too self-important for my taste. She IS young, and most of us at that age were know-it-alls without any life experience behind us, so maybe she will grow up… But for every older than her years comment she makes, she makes a comment about how “above it” she is. I do hope she has longevity, because it is nice that there is someone out there who is a true singer/songwriter.
And yes, a 17 year old dating a 24 is creepy, but likely when it comes to maturity, they are on the same level.
Is it weird that she reminds me a bit of Fiona apple? In that she is hugely talented, unconventional, critics love her and she lashes out against the mainstream? I could see her going that way- huge popular success followed up by a successful career, though with a smaller niche fan base rather than on pop radio.
By the way, I love her music and think her interviews are a breath of fresh air from a musician her age. If she is a bit pretentious it is also likely due to her age- at 17 you think you know everything. I know I did! Age and experience might temper that tendency- once you are in your thirties you realize how little you really know!
I like her a lot and I do find the fact that the speaks her mind refreshing. But as some of the posters above said, I’m not too sure about whether her career will have longevity. I think she’s got one of the most genuinely interesting albums to have come out this year but I wonder if she can progress beyond that particular sound and how the general public will respond. She recently released a new single but it doesn’t seem to be doing very well at the moment.
It’s not a new single, it’s a previously unreleased track that didn’t make it onto her album.
A previously unreleased song that’s been released as her latest single, yes.
Nope, still wrong. It’s not a single.
Anna honey, I think it’s funny that you are persistently wrong. It’s an old song that’s been released as a new single and it will be featured on the extended version of Pure Heroine. Its listed on itunes as “No Better – Single”. Not an EP, not an LP, a single. It’s not a matter of opinion, it’s fact so stop pretending like you know what you’re talking about and get over it. Feels like I’m replying to a flippin’ toddler.
@Tiffany I agree that it’s picking up steam but I feel that “Royals” will mostly overshadow the other singles (even though there are a number of good songs on the album, including the other singles).
I think it funny that you are consistently responding to me! It’s just merely not meant for airplay, which is usually what singles are. Just because it’s listed as a single, doesn’t mean that it’s listed that way for commercial performance. Tons of other songs are listed as such, from other artists, and are not intended as singles.
Her 2nd single is “Team”, which is moving up the charts quicky (only been out two weeks).
From Billboard:
She follows her debut nine-week Hot 100 No. 1 “Royals” (3-4) with her second top 40 hit. Following the release of its official video on Dec. 3, “Team” (57-32) scales all three of the Hot 100’s component charts, entering Streaming Songs at No. 42 (1.4 million, up 87%) and Hot 100 Airplay at No. 44 (28 million audience impressions, up 33%, according to BDS), while re-entering at a new peak (No. 37) on Hot Digital Songs (32,000, up 32%, according to Nielsen SoundScan).
Lol Tiffany, I’ve said before how you’re one of my favourites on here but that is simply not true. “Team” was released on September 13th and has been on the charts for 11 weeks and has so far peaked at number 32. Last week’s position was 57.
And her most recent single is “No Better” which will most likely feature on the extended version of Pure Heroine.
I’ve been following Lorde’s music for a long time and I like her, trust me, I’m not a hater.
Ah, you are right! 🙂
I am not really concerned about the charting right now…a lot of it is based on streaming and radio play, and it looks like stations held on to Royals for a long time and are now just switching over to Team. I hadn’t heard Team on the LA radio stations until just recently, but I heard it several times this weekend. I feel like it is only just now gaining steam, which makes sense because they just released the video (which contributes to streaming data if done through Vevo, etc.).
Deleted!
I like her music and she seems really bright and mature for a 17 year old but DAMN some of those tweets actually made me chuckle.
Chuckle? Those tweets were pretty appalling IMO.
Thank you TheOriginalKitten , I find it INCREDIBLY disgusting. Specifically because my boyfriend is Asian, I didn’t know it was in any way wrong to date an Asian. And I’m Black, even if my friends and family accepted him, with open arms (his vice-versa) people we meet aren’t all that lovely..
Although the age difference, between Lorde and her boyfriend, IS a bit bothering.
STFU you’re only 17!
I really like this kid. I like her music and love her voice. She is waaay more mature at 17 then I was that is for sure.
I love her. She’s smart, talented, grounded, and drop-dead beautiful to boot.
I like her, too, and I don’t think she contradicts herself at all. I think when people say nuanced things and don’t just speak in simplified soundbites, much of the public can’t follow along and lose interest. If it’s not black and white, superficial or dumbed-down, people think it’s contradictory.
The biggest issue I have with Lorde is that she criticizes everyone and kind of talks a lot of shit but then when she gets confronted about it, she backtracks and tries to “explain it”..
Like I would rather her stand by her comments… If she can’t, she shouldn’t even say it in the first place.
I HATE the song Royals, but I love Bravado, I’ve been playing that song for months.
I do wish she would stop doing that same look in all her pictures.. It reminds me of Lena Dunham (ugh)
Thank you. I hate Royals, too.
..or maybe she just genuinely feels like that?
I honestly don’t see the contradiction. It’s kind of like me saying I don’t want to walk around in a Band-Aid skirt and thigh-high boots because I’m not really comfortable with it, nor am I comfortable with the judgments that *some* people will make about me for dressing that way. That being said, I have zero problem with other women choosing to dress like that, particularly if they find it empowering on some level. *shrugs* It’s a personal choice.
To me, she’s saying “it’s not right for me but I’m not trying to tell other women how to behave”. I think that’s a pretty typical 21st century attitude.
I think the issue is more that people have difficulty differentiating between a personal opinion and outright condemnation. For instance, I might have an opinion about another female’s behavior in terms of my own personal choices, but that doesn’t mean I don’t support her right to behave the way that she chooses to.
FREEDOM. FEMINISM. Get at it.
“I think the issue is more that people have difficulty differentiating between a personal opinion and outright condemnation.”
I agree, well said!
I think sometimes when a person expresses their opinion, it can be easy for others who think differently to see it as an attack on their own perspective, when that isn’t what it is.
Royals will be her biggest hit. She won’t be around much this time next year for sure
Well, when someone is 17 years old and “turning the music industry inside out,” it’s difficult for me to see them as refreshing or all that different. The simple fact is that it takes a lot of juice to make that kind of impact–juice that can only come from the machinery of the corporate music industry. Yes, her music is interesting and, yes, she’s talented, but I won’t be raving about how different she is just yet because she’s still a product of corporate packaging, even if that packaging is “anti-product.”
But I do wish her luck, because being a teenager under that spotlight is not going to be easy. And the more she gets to hang out with people like Swifty, the harder it’s going to be for her to stick with that “I’m just such a regular person, I can’t relate to those ‘opulent’ lyrics” persona.
Bigger joke than Miley Virus. I’m looking forward to her next pronouncement from her 15,000 sq ft house and fleet of eco-limos. Phlease.
I desagree with the criticisim about the difference in age on relationships. So you think she’s mature so it’s ok to have a bf almost ten years older and her being a teenager at the time but since from a photo you totally know how mature is Joaquin Phoenix’s gf THAT age difference is wrong? Either you side-eye all relationships where there’s an age gap or you don’t. I don’t by the way, if some couples get together they must have their reason and who am I to judge?
I hate the song “Royals.” With a passion. But Lorde is simply a 17 year old child growing up in an industry that eats youth and spits it out. She’s finding her way and building up a persona that might protect her from that industry. When I was 17, I seemed much older than my years because of my childhood. I’m just glad there’s no permanent record of the crap that came out of my mouth at that age!
She’s fine.
her opinion is of a 17 year old who truly believes she ‘grew up’ in the ‘industry’ when really, she’s only been alive 17 years and making music in ‘the industry’ for 5…
does anybody really take the opinions of a 17 year old who didnt leave home until a few years ago without a grain of salt?
her opinions are young and they will always change, just like everyone else at any age, but especially at 17…
I think alot of people are looking to her for something new or fresh and I think people are going to put too much pressure on her to be the anti- something or the ‘new’ something else and they are going to ruin her.
i don’t think people are ‘letting her’ be whoever she happens to be, i think she’s being encouraged to feel a certain way so non-miley fans have another pop idol to hang onto…when really, we just need to let musicians be musicians…not leaders of feminism or any other -ism.
Since she’s a teen, I like that she has a defined sense of self, but I hope she and others leave room for her to grow and change her opinions over time.
This chick rubs me the wrong way and I don’t know why. She’s marketed as indie yet she seems so manufactured.
There is something about her that rub me the wrong way, I don’t hate her…just find her annoying I guess.
One thing I DO hate is her music. I have no idea why that Royals song was such a big hit. It drives me crazy every time I hear it.
Those pictures are stunning! The hair looks fantastic, as usual. And I will keep defending her, especially from everyone who bashes her for being an opinionated seventeen year-old. Teenagers are not stupid, you see. They may do stupìd things, sure. But the degrees of maturity are infinite. And to be quite honest, I think adults can often be even worse.
Her music is alright but she bothers me. She won’t go far in the music industry by bashing everyone else. That’s just rude and uncalled for and she does it in every interview.
I rather go see Selena Gomez in concert. At least it would be fun. Google Lorde singing live, she is really weird/awkward when she she sings.
You call that “bashing”? Really? Oh, by the way, Selena doesn’t even sing live. And God Forbid Lorde still feels a little unconfident about singing live.
I have so much respect for this girl. It’s refreshing to see a famous person who’s a little bit younger than me embrace being feminist and sex-positive. Yes, she’s only 17, but there are a lot of people a few years older than her, or even 2 or 3 times her age, who could stand to learn a thing or two from her- especially when it comes to feminism, being open-minded, not slut-shaming, and being tolerant. The first names that came to mind were Taylor Swift, Charlotte Church, and Sinead O’Connor were the first names that came to mind. And Zoe Saldana. She made a complete, sexist, puritanical ass out of herself yesterday. Clearly this mature 17-year-old could school that 30-something on feminism. Just because someone is in their 30’s or 40’s doesn’t mean they’re always right. Sometimes it’s us 20-somethings and teens who are in the right.
I also sounded much older than my years when I was 17. I was not. I just knew what to say. This guy is way too old for her.
And generally, I’m uncomfortable with everyone demanding to know what a 17-year old thinks about sex all the time. She’s only 17, ffs! I doubt she even knows what she thinks about sex. Girls don’t get to be girls any longer; as soon as we have our periods, our lives are apparently supposed to revolve completely around talking and thinking about sex 24-7. Can we allow this girl to talk about something else please?
Funny, now everyone claims to be a “weirdo”. It’s like a new tendency, just like 10 years ago media came up with the tomboyish/rocker girl when everyone was tired of dancing blonde girls. I don’t believe she’s genuine, still her stereotype is better than what we got now.
I don’t know this girl. It almost seems like she got famous over night. Who is she? Is she cool? Fame-whorish? Yay? Nay?
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with 17 and 24. IMO, it’s on the higher end of acceptable, but not creepy. It might be an Oceanic thing (I’m an Aussie, we have the same age laws as NZ). It’s not just the age of consent being lower, it’s the drinking age, the gambling age etc. At 18, you’re a full adult. There isn’t that 18-21 gap where you’re not a kid, but not quite a full adult, like there is in the US.
So if you’re somewhere with age-laws on the higher end of the scale, perhaps you should think of her more like a 20 year old? Someone who’d (both legally and culturally) be considered a full adult next year.