Palace of Fontainebleau, France

Born to Die by Lana Del Rey

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Sometimes love is not enough
And the road gets tough
I don't know why Read full Lyrics
Fifty-five kilometres outside of Paris lies the sprawling forest of Fontainebleau. In the 12th Century, King Louis VII resided within the forest in chateaus built around a series of courtyards. It was only King Francis I in the 16th Century who became the first in a long line of French Monarchs to gradually transform the chateaus into one of the largest palatial structures in the country.

Palace of Fontainebleau<br>Photo: Graham BouldPalace of Fontainebleau
Photo: Graham Bould
The Palace of Fontainebleau has a checkered history, being the birth place of several Kings, including Louis XIII, the home of Christina of Sweden after her abdication, and was the residence of Bourbon kings and esteemed guests including Peter the Great from Russia. By the late 1700s the palace had fallen into disrepair and, during the French Revolution, many of the original furnishings were sold off as a way of raising money for the rebellion while assuring the Bourbon kings could not return to their home comforts.

A decade later, Napoleon Bonaparte transformed the palace once more, making the chateaus a symbol of grandeur. It is here that Napoleon first hosted Pope Pius VII and then held him prisoner. Today the Palace of Fontainebleau is home to Écoles d'Art Américaines, a school of music, art and architecture founded by General Pershing during WWI for students from the USA. It is here in the grand throne room and courtyards that American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey chose to shoot the video for her hit single "Born to Die" - a rather apt title given the palace's history.

Boulders in the Forest of Fontainebleau<br>Photo: UrbanBoulders in the Forest of Fontainebleau
Photo: Urban
"Born to Die" is the second single and titular track taken from Del Rey's second studio album, first released December 2011. The song was written by Del Rey and Justin Parker and is comparable in style and mood to her critically acclaimed song "Video Games." Both songs share a haunting, lugubrious quality, although "Born to Die" is the more apocalyptic and ironically upbeat of the two tracks. According to Del Rey, "Born to Die" is an "homage to true love and a tribute to living life on the wild side," perhaps evident in the song lyrics: Come and take a walk on the wild side,
Let me kiss you hard in the pouring rain, You like your girls insane
, especially considering the original version featured the lyrics let me f**k you hard in the pouring rain.

"Born to Die" was a commercial and critical success, catapulting Del Rey to stardom. The album sold more than 50,000 on the day of its release in the UK alone and went on to debut at #1 on the UK Albums chart. As of May 2012, the album had sold more than 500,000 copies in the UK. In the US, "Born to Die" sold more than 77,000 copies, debuting at #2 on the Billboard chart just behind Adele. The album also did phenomenally well in the rest of the world, selling almost 50,000 copies in France during its first week while spending 40 weeks in the charts in New Zealand. According to the IFPI (International Federation of the Phonographic Industry) "Born to Die" sold more than 3.4 million copies worldwide, making Del Rey's album the fifth best-selling of 2012 – quite an achievement for a relatively unknown artist at the time.

Palace of Fontainebleau<br>Photo: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/g-alain/5135246858/" target="_blank">@lain G</a>, via Flicker, CC 2.0Palace of Fontainebleau
Photo: @lain G, via Flicker, CC 2.0
Del Rey received a significantly larger budget from her recording company for the "Born to Die" music video. Given the extra cash, Del Rey opted for the opulence of the Palace of Fontainebleau, a perfect setting given the dark lyrics and nihilistic atmosphere of the song. The video begins with a topless Del Rey standing in the tattooed arms of model Bradley Soileau against a backdrop featuring the American flag in what is an animation of the single cover art. The story unravels from there, depicting an unstable relationship, which inevitably ends in tragedy, as one would expect given the song's title.

"Born to Die" marked a turning point in Del Rey's career, making her a household name and garnering her an international audience, while the eponymous song left an indelible mark on the world of pop music.

Suzanne van Rooyen
September 18, 2015
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