Lana Del Rey On Her Kanye West Call-Out: “You Never Feel Better For Having Written Something Like That”

Lana Del Rey’s new single, “The Greatest,” contains a pointed reference to Kanye West and the rapper’s public support of President Trump, but the singer-songwriter wasn’t trying to get a reaction out of him. In a new interview with The New York Times, Lana explained that she had complicated feelings about the song, but felt it was a necessary topic to address.

On the song’s bridge, she sings about feeling like the public lost Kanye after seeing him bleach blond standing next to Donald Trump:

Kanye West is blond and gone

As she told The New York Times, she felt compelled to speak out.

“Here’s the thing: I don’t want to elicit a response. You never feel better for having written something like that,” she said. “But Kanye just means so much to us. And by the way, I’m grateful to be in a country where everyone can have their own political views. I’m really not more of a liberal than I am a Republican—I’m in the middle. But it was more like the mood and the vibe around, Yo, this man is the greatest! Really? The greatest? It hurt me. Did I have to say anything? No. But it’s more just a line that represents a lot of things.”

The singer performed at Kanye’s wedding to Kim Kardashian in 2014 and has cited his music as an influence on her career. Lana further explained that this generation needs new protest music in response to what she views as a dark chapter in our country’s history:

One portion of the dots that people are connecting is: ‘Is it possible that this presidency is engendering this idea that it’s O.K. to be more violent?’ And a lot of people are saying yes. Someone who says ‘grab ’em by the pussy,’ that does make someone else feel a little bit more entitled to bring his rifle to school. If there wasn’t a time for protest music, there absolutely is now.

She contrasted this to the Obama era, where she thought people felt safer to focus on non-political matters. “I think there was a great period of not being sure what was going on,” she said. “I was there when Obama got elected in Union Square. Under that administration, it felt like a dream had come true-ish and we could focus on the arts and it was a time of reprieve and we didn’t have to talk about certain things. But of course there was a lot going on.”

“The Greatest” isn’t her only political song this year. She also released “Looking for America” in response to a pair of deadly mass shootings earlier this month. “I’m always upset when I hear about anything remotely violent. But I was extremely upset,” she said. “There’s something extremely wrong. I like to stay on the periphery, but when you have back-to-back shootings like that—should I say that’s when it’s time to say something? It certainly was for me.”

On the track, she paints a dream of a different America:

I’m still looking for my own version of America
One without the gun, where the flag can freely fly
No bombs in the sky, only fireworks when you and I collide
It’s just a dream I had in mind

Her last album, Lust for Life, also featured political lyrics on “Coachella – Woodstock In My Mind” and “When the World Was At War We Kept Dancing.” “The Greatest” will appear on her new album, Norman Fucking Rockwell, which drops this Friday, August 30.

Read her full New York Times interview here and catch up on all the lyrics to “The Greatest” on Genius now.