"Radio" (originally titled "Cinnamon"[citation needed]) is a song by Lana Del Rey that is featured on her debut major-label studio album, Born to Die. It was written with Justin Parker and was produced by Emile Haynie.
Background[]
A demo version of the song produced by Justin Parker leaked on June 7, 2012, along with several other demos from Born to Die. The original file leaked on December 23, 2023.
Writing and inspiration[]
Speaking about the song in a 2012 televised interview with Italian paper Corriere della Sera, Del Rey stated:[1]
- "People always said...people will come out of the woodwork and change their mind about you. They'll start to like you because you're on the radio. And it is true, but I don't really mind 'cause I'd rather have people be nice to me, so I liked it. I don't really care why people are nice to me, I just like it when it's easier. So, I just wrote it when this guy that I used to know came back into my life...so...'now my life is sweet like cinnamon', 'cause he came back."
Live performances[]
Del Rey performed the song live for the first time at Òran Mór in Glasgow, Scotland, on November 5, 2011, then continued to play it at various stops on the Born to Die Tour in 2011 and 2012 and on the Paradise Tour in 2014. Del Rey performed the song live for the first time in nearly four years on January 26, 2018, at Bryce Jordan Center in University Park, Pennsylvania, during a stop on the LA to the Moon Tour.
The song was a part of a session done by Del Rey's live touring band in preparation for her Paradise Tour performances. The full rehearsal session, which featured Del Rey's pre-recorded vocals and were created with the intent of aiding the tour's videographer, leaked on October 15, 2020.
Cross-references[]
- The American dream is also mentioned in "Damn You" and "Without You", among other songs.
- Cinnamon is also referenced in "Summer of Sam", "Candy Necklace", and "Cinnamon Girl".
- The phrase "sing it to me" is used in "Beautiful Player".
- The lyric "how do you like me now?" is also used in "Get Drunk".
- The word "paradise" also appears in "Coca Colla", "Every Man Gets His Wish", "Television Heaven", "Velvet Crowbar", and the two songs of the same name, among others.
- "Lick me up and take me like a vitamin" is similar to "lick you up and make you crazy" from "Paradise".
- Mention of a radio can be found in "Put the Radio On", "Roll with Me (On the Radio), "Terrence Loves You", "Fuck It I Love You", and "Tomorrow Never Came".
- The word "sweet" is also mentioned in "Venice Bitch", "Trash Magic", "Without You", "Serial Killer", "Meet Me in the Pale Moonlight", "Fuck It I Love You", "West Coast", "This Is What Makes Us Girls", "Living Legend", and in the song of the same name, among many others.
- Having a "sweet" life is also a topic in "Without You" and "Dark but Just a Game".
Official versions[]
- Album version — 3:34
- Instrumental version — 3:33
- Demo version — 3:31
- Clean version — 3:34
- Paradise Tour rehearsal session — 3:37
Lyrics[]
Not even they can stop me now
Boy, I be flyin' overhead
Their heavy words can't bring me down
Boy, I been raised from the dead
No one even knows how hard life was
I don't even think about it now, because
I finally found you (A-sing it to me)
Now my life is sweet like cinnamon
Like a fucking dream I'm livin' in
Baby, love me 'cause I'm playin' on the radio
(How do you like me now?)
Lick me up and take me like a vitamin
'Cause my body's sweet like sugar venom, oh yeah
Baby, love me 'cause I'm playin' on the radio
(How do you like me now?)
American dreams came true somehow
I swore I'd chase 'em 'til I was dead
I heard the streets were paved with gold
That's what my father said
No one even knows what life was like
Now I'm in L.A. and it's paradise
I finally found you (A-sing it to me)
Now my life is sweet like cinnamon
Like a fucking dream I'm livin' in
Baby, love me 'cause I'm playin' on the radio
(How do you like me now?)
Lick me up and take me like a vitamin
'Cause my body's sweet like sugar venom, oh yeah
Baby, love me 'cause I'm playin' on the radio
(How do you like me now?)
Sweet like cinnamon
Like a fucking dream I'm livin' in
Baby, love me 'cause I'm playin' on the radio
(How do you like me now?)
Sweet like cinnamon
Like a fucking dream I'm livin' in
I finally found you (A-sing it to me)
Now my life is sweet like cinnamon
Like a fucking dream I'm livin' in
Baby, love me 'cause I'm playin' on the radio
(How do you like me now?)
Lick me up and take me like a vitamin
'Cause my body's sweet like sugar venom, oh yeah
Baby, love me 'cause I'm playin' on the radio
(How do you like me now?)
A-sing it to me
Now my life is sweet like cinnamon
Like a fucking dream I'm livin' in
Baby, love me 'cause I'm playin' on the radio
(How do you like me now?)
Lick me up and take me like a vitamin
'Cause my body's sweet like sugar venom, oh yeah
Baby, love me 'cause I'm playin' on the radio
(How do you like me now?)
Credits[]
Personnel[a]
- Lana Del Rey — songwriting, vocals
- Justin Parker — songwriting, additional production
- Emile Haynie — production, keyboards, guitar, drums
- Larry Gold — strings arrangement, strings conducting
- Steve Tirpak — strings assistance
- Dan Grech-Marguerat — mixing
- Duncan Fuller — mixing assistance
- John Davis — mastering
Technical
- Published by EMI / Sony ATV (ASCAP)
- Mixed at Miloco's Engine Room, London, United Kingdom
- Mastered at Metropolis Mastering, London, United Kingdom
References[]
- ↑ Lana Del Rey Addiction (August 28, 2014). "Lana Del Rey - Entrevista Legendada para a TV Italiana (2012)". YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alJqRB9V2ZY. Retrieved September 25, 2024.
Notes[]
- ↑ Adapted from the album's liner notes.
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