Breaking into the music scene this September with her debut album, “Pure Heroine,” Lorde has established herself as a rising figure in alternative music through the success of her top-charting single, “Royals.”
Ella Yelich-O’Connor, who goes by the stage name, Lorde, started singing and songwriting at a very young age. She grew up in Auckland, New Zealand, and was signed onto Universal Records at age 12. She is only 17 years old and is still attending grammar school in her hometown.
Before “Pure Heroine,” Lorde released “The Love Club EP” consisting of five songs, two which are also included in “Pure Heroine,” giving a brief view of her unique style.
Lorde’s musical style has been compared to the likes of Lana Del Rey, The XX, and Florence + the Machine. Her songs encompass a combination of deep, thumping bass backgrounds that drive the songs and light, clear vocals that emphasize the messages behind her lyrics.
The content of Lorde’s lyrics are one of the most distinguishing characteristics of her music. While most singers today sing of lavish, wasteful extravagance and glorify our materialistic society, Lorde sings about the lives everyday people lead and rebels against what pop culture has told us to value. The name “Lorde” itself, a feminized version of the title for nobility, mocks the established class system and our need to pretend to live “the high life.”
Lorde’s most popular single “Royals” incorporates all of these elements unique to Lorde’s style. The song has an upbeat, bass-heavy background track that catches listeners’ attention. Lorde follows this beat with clearly-sung lyrics about being content where you are and not aspiring to be what popular music has depicted as the norm.
“That kind of luxe just ain’t for us. We crave a different kind of buzz.” Lorde sings in the chorus of “Royals.”
The reception to “Pure Heroine” reception has been fairly positive. The album itself hit the number one spot on Australia and New Zealand’s charts, and hit the third spot on US charts. Lorde’s top three singles, “Royals”, “Tennis Court”, and “Team” all made the Billboard Hot 100 chart as well, with “Royals” reaching number one.
Overall, Lorde has made a strong impact in today’s popular music. Since she is only 17, we can expect great things from Lorde in the future as her music style evolves and matures.
