"Money Power Glory" (or "Money, Power and Glory" and referred to as "Money & Power") is a song by Lana Del Rey written with Greg Kurstin. It was released on her second major-label studio album, Ultraviolence.
Background[]
On May 3, 2014, the title was revealed in an interview with a French magazine as "Money, Power & Glory". The interview said the song would have hip-hop beats that American radio stations would love.
A demo snippet leaked on June 25, 2018, featuring different vocals and instrumental. The full version leaked on September 20, 2018, and was produced by Dan Auerbach, who reworked it during his sessions with Del Rey for Ultraviolence. Ultimately, Del Rey ended up using Kurstin's original 2012 version on the album instead.
An alternate version of the song, mixed by Robert Orton, is registered on PPL Repertoire.[1]
Writing and inspiration[]
"Like, if all that I was actually going to be allowed to have by the media was money, loads of money, then fuck it … What I actually wanted was something quiet and simple: a writer's community and respect."
Del Rey talked about writing "Money Power Glory" in a track by track commentary of Ultraviolence, stating she wrote the song at a time when she felt really frustrated. She felt like the most anybody was going to allow her was, if she would be lucky, money and power, in the form of infamy, rather than fame. She described the song as "a sarcastic response, psychologically, just to what I felt was going on".[3] On June 12, 2014, when asked by The New York Times about the track, she said "I learned that whatever I did elicited an opposite response, so I’m sure ‘Money Power Glory’ will actually resonate with people as being what I really do want. I already know what's coming, so it's okay to explore irony and bitterness".[4] On July 1, 2014, in a controversial interview with The Guardian, Del Rey discussed being in "more of a sardonic mood" while writing the song.[2]
On July 22, 2014, producer Greg Kurstin was asked by NME about writing and producing the track, and said the song "was one of the earlier songs written on the album and it stuck around". Discussing its inclusion on the track list, Kurstin explained:
- "I wasn't really sure what was going to happen because we did it so early and I know she went through a lot of writing after that point. It's interesting that what ended up on the album is actually the original mix that we finished that day; we didn't re-cut or re-record anything. But it was great when I finally heard where she went and I think it was really cool that she went organic with live musicians. It was unexpected, but also a logical step for her. I really love that album; it's one of the albums that I listen to over and over again."[5]
Remix version[]
A snippet of an unofficial remix featuring vocals from The Weeknd was played on August 14, 2020, during Episode 9 of his Memento Mori radio show. It is unclear if a full version was recorded or if he was an original featured artist on the track. The Weeknd's vocals and lyrics are very similar to the ones of Del Rey's in the leaked demo of the song.
Live performance[]
Del Rey performed "Money Power Glory" live for the first time on July 15, 2014, during Live at the Marquee festival in Cork, Ireland.
Cross-references[]
- Dope and diamonds are referenced in the third demo of "Diet Mountain Dew", where she sings "gimme them, gimme them dope and diamonds".
- "The sun also rises" is possibly referencing the 1926 novel by Ernest Hemingway of the same name; this is another of several literary references throughout her songs.
- The phrase "this bitch" also appears in "In My Feelings".
- References to diamonds appear in many Del Rey's songs, most notably "Last Girl on Earth", "National Anthem" and "Young and Beautiful".
- The lyrics "I wanna take you for all that you got" are similar to "You know that I want what you got" from "Big Bad Wolf" and "Hot Hot Hot".
- Del Rey sings "hallelujah" in "Ben", "Cherry" and "Religion".
- Money is also mentioned in "Dealer", "Dance for Money", "Money Hunny", "Religion", "Swan Song", and "Pawn Shop Blues". It's referred to as cash in "Hundred Dollar Bill" and "Old Money".
- Power is also referenced in "Earthquakes".
Official versions[]
- Album version — 4:30
- Instrumental version — 4:28
- Demo version (produced by Dan Auerbach) — 4:21
- Remix version (snippet) — 1:41
Lyrics[]
Album version[]
You say that you wanna go
To a land that's far away
How are we supposed to get there
With the way that we're living today?
You talk lots about God
Freedom comes from the call
But that's not what this bitch wants
Not what I want at all
I want money, power, and glory
I want money and all your power, all your glory
Hallelujah, I wanna take you for all that you got
Hallelujah, I'm gonna take them for all that they got, baby
The sun also rises
On those who fail the call
My life, it comprises
Of losses and wins and fails and falls
I can do it if you really, really like that
I know what you really want, b-b-b-b-baby
I can do it if you think you like that
You should run, boy, run
I want money, power, and glory
I want money and all your power, all your glory
Hallelujah, I wanna take you for all that you got
Hallelujah, I'm gonna take them for all that they got, baby, baby
Dope and diamonds, dope and diamonds, diamonds
Dope and diamonds, dope and diamonds, that's all that I am
Dope and diamonds, dope and diamonds, diamonds
Dope and diamonds, dope and diamonds, diamonds
I want money, power, and glory
I want money and all your power, all your glory
Hallelujah, I wanna take you for all that you got
Hallelujah, I'm gonna take them for all that they got, baby
Demo version[]
You say that you wanna go
To a land that's far away
How are we supposed to get there
With the way that we're living today?
You talk lots about God
Freedom comes from the call
But that's not what this bitch wants
Not what I want it all
I want money, power, and glory
I want money and all your power, all your glory
Hallelujah, I wanna take you for all that you got
Hallelujah, I'm gonna take them for all that they got
The sun also rises
On those who fail to call
My life, it comprises
Of losses and wins and fails and falls
But I can do it if you really, really like that
I know what you really want, b-b-b-b-baby
I can do it if you think you like that
You should run, boy, run
I want money, power, and glory
I want money and all your power, all your glory
Hallelujah, I wanna take you for all that you got
Hallelujah, I'm gonna take them for all that they got
Dope and diamonds, dope and diamonds, diamonds
Dope and diamonds, dope and diamonds, that's all that I am
Dope and diamonds, dope and diamonds, diamonds
Dope and diamonds, dope and diamonds, diamonds
I want money, power, and glory
I want money and all your power, all your glory
Hallelujah, I wanna take you for all that you got
Hallelujah, I'm gonna take them for all that they got
Remix version[]
[Snippet]:
[The Weeknd]:
The sun also rises
For those who fail the call
My life, it comprises
Of losses and wins and fails and falls
But I can do it if you think you really like that
I know what you really want, baby, baby, baby
I can do it if you think you really like that
You should run, baby, run, baby, run
[Lana Del Rey]:
I want money, power and glory
I want money and all your power, all your glory
Hallelujah, I wanna take you for all that you got
Hallelujah, I'm gonna take them for all that they got
Baby, baby
Baby, baby
Credits[]
Personnel
- Lana Del Rey — vocals, songwriting
- Greg Kurstin — songwriting, production, mixing, guitar, bass guitar, drums, keyboard
- Alex Pasco & Julian Burg — additional engineering
- John Davis — mastering
Technical
- Mastered at Metropolis Studios, London
References[]
- ↑ ISRC: GBUM71402016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 https://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/jun/12/lana-del-rey-ultraviolence-album
- ↑ https://soundcloud.com/ldrfancom/ultraviolence-ldr-commentary
- ↑ https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/15/arts/music/lana-del-rey-still-stirs-things-up-with-ultraviolence.html
- ↑ https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-blogs/chart-ruling-super-producer-greg-kurstin-guitar-music-is-at-an-all-time-low-767524
 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||