Video Games (song)


"Video Games" is a song recorded by American singer and songwriter Lana Del Rey for her second studio album and major label debut, Born to Die. It was first released to the Internet on June 29, 2011, was later released on her extended play, Lana Del Rey, and re-released as the lead single from her second studio album, Born to Die on October 7, 2011, through Interscope Records. The song was produced by Robopop while the lyrics were written by Del Rey and Justin Parker. "Video Games" is a baroque pop ballad that speaks of the protagonist who, despite being ignored by her significant other, resolves to love him regardless.
"Video Games" has received several accolades from critics since its release. The song has been considered Del Rey's "breakthrough hit" and was a commercial success, peaking at number one in Germany, Iceland and Luxembourg, reaching a top ten position in Belgium, France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom and peaked at 91 on Billboard Hot 100 chart and was certified Gold. The song's accompanying music video was directed and edited by Del Rey herself, combining scenes of her performing the song filmed on a webcam with clips of archive footage. The song won an Ivor Novello Award for "Best Contemporary Song" in 2012 and was nominated for several other awards shortly after release. In the Q Awards 2019, the song has been named as the song of the .
"Video Games" was also included in the book 1001 Songs You Must Hear Before You Die.

Recording and production

"Video Games" was written and composed by Del Rey and Justin Parker in the key of F minor, and was produced by production duo Robopop, composed of Daniel Omelio and Brandon Lowry, at BMG Studios in New York City. The demo version of the song included Del Rey's vocals accompanied by piano chords. The vocals and piano were re-recorded with Lowry. Omelio then took the re-recorded session and added all other instrumentation and layers, including strings, harps and synth arpeggios. He did so in one studio session spanning from 8pm to 2am, stating "It was a kind of being in the zone thing. I locked myself in the room, switched off the lights and went full into it". Omelio mixed the song as he went along, and that version was released as the single.

Music and lyrics

"Video Games" is four minutes and 42 seconds long. Set in time signature of common time with a tempo of 123 beats per minute, Del Rey's vocal range spans from E3 to A4. Lindsey Johnstone of The Scotsman described the song as an "ode to being ignored and the exquisite pain of clutching at an illusion of happiness". Alexis Petridis of The Guardian praised how Del Rey's vocal performance, against ballooning orchestration and pizzicato strings, overlapped the subdued theme of an aloof, beer-drinking boyfriend figure. Del Rey described her music and day-to-day style as "gangsta Nancy Sinatra", with contemporary critics noting the song as a doom-filled ballad that unapologetically displays vulnerability.
Prominent lyrics in the song include, "I heard you like the bad girls, honey, is that true?"; "Heaven is a place on earth with you/ Tell me all the things you want to do"; and "open up a beer... and play a video game?" In an interview for British online magazine The Quietus, Del Rey stated that the inspiration for the song came from her ex-boyfriend, commenting, "I think we came together because we were both outsiders. It was perfect. But I think with that contentment also comes sadness. There was something heavenly about that life – we'd go to work and he'd play his video games – but also it was maybe too regular." The singer also stated that she used lower vocals for "Video Games" because she felt that the public did not see her as a serious artist. Thematically, the lyrics have been labeled as antifeminist. Of the musical composition, MTV lauded the cinematic atmosphere of the song, adoring its feathery violins, echoing electronic thumps, and melancholic crescendos — wound into a dramatic exhibition.

Critical reception

The song received critical acclaim from music critics. Following the release of the single, Ian Cohen dubbed the song "Best New Music" on Pitchfork commenting, "on her stirring debut single, New York singer-songwriter Lizzy Grant transforms into the more bombastically named Lana Del Rey and absolutely wallows in it." Digital Spy writer Robert Copsey noted Del Rey "combines a near-identical vocal with her own fascination for the tragically glamorous — or 'Hollywood sadcore' as she succinctly labels it." Lewis Corner, also of Digital Spy, said, "New York-born, London-based Lana Del Rey is currently working on her debut album, but if this newly released preview track/video is anything to go by, it's going to be avant-garde pop at its very best." Alexis Petridis of The Guardian considered "Video Games" the best song of 2011 and added, "it's tempting to say with a song that good it doesn't matter who sings it, but that's not strictly true. As pop divas who collaborate with Eg White go, Lana Del Rey sounds hugely understated."
In a poll performed by NME, readers ranked it as the tenth best song of the year. Maura Johnston of The Village Voice, however, called the song and the accompanying music video overproduced, while New York magazine contributor Amanda Dobbis commented that "it's hard to totally separate Del Rey's looks from the criticism that's been bubbling around her." In responses to this controversy, Pastes Luke Larson said, "when 'Video Games' first hit the web, people weren’t freaking out about Lana Del Rey or fake lips or Lizzy Grant. People were freaking out because they had stumbled upon a fresh voice and a beautifully written song and ultimately, does the rest really matter?" Krystina Nellis of Drowned in Sound said the single reminded her of something from a David Lynch movie.
Additional, Drowned in Sound wrote of "Video Games":
Above all the noise of the internet, ‘Video Games’ still works and is magical; I still have to listen on quiet because whenever I do I become convinced something absolutely terrible is about to crash through the window; it might as well be sung by Laura Palmer and be about the Bobs at the end of your bed. Either way, it is a brilliant, beautifully-executed pop song, a proper shivery, proper classic.

The Village Voices Pazz & Jop annual critics' poll ranked "Video Games" at number seven of the best music of 2011, tied with Britney Spears's "Till the World Ends". The British magazine NME named "Video Games" the best single of 2011.
In 2019, NME, Pitchfork, Uproxx, Stereogum, and Consequence of Sound ranked the song as the third, ninth, fifteenth, twenty-sixth, and thirty-sixth best song of the 2010s.
At the 2019 Q Awards, the track was awarded "Song of the Decade".
From over 35 outlets, global critic aggregator Acclaimed Music went on to rank "Video Games" as the third greatest song of the 2010s.

Critics' lists

Commercial performance

"Video Games" attained commercial success across Europe, reaching number one in Germany and top ten positions in Austria, Belgium, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The song was also voted number six in Triple J's Hottest 100 songs of 2011.

Music video

The music video for "Video Games" was directed and edited by Del Rey. It features video clips of skateboarders, cartoons and shots from old movies, as well as paparazzi footage of Paz de la Huerta falling down while intoxicated. These are interspersed with shots of Del Rey singing, which she filmed herself using a webcam. When asked if she would change anything about the video's production, Del Rey stated, "Had I known so many people were going to watch the video, I'd have put some more effort into it. I would have got my hair and make-up done and tried not to be so pouty, seeing as everyone talks about my face all the time. And I'd have put more of a storyline into it." The singer also revealed that she was "trying to look smart and well turned-out, rather than 'sexy' . Of course I wanted to look good, but 'smart' was the primary focus."
New York magazine contributor Amanda Dobbins noted the music video "predictably garnered some attention" from the public. Rya Backer of MTV questioned Del Rey's originality, saying, "it's hard to know what to make of Lana Del Rey at first glance. Is she as Jools Holland once dubbed her an 'Internet phenomenon' worth no more than a few salacious blog posts? Or is she a legitimate chanteuse wrapped in the hyper feminine, yet innately American image she's projected in videos for such tracks as 'Video Games' and 'Blue Jeans'?" Pitchforks Ian Cohen commented that the music video "fits between surrendering to romance and depression, moving with the elegant wastefulness of the kind of day drunk that's a true privilege of the beautiful, idle class."
Directed by Ben Coughlan, Del Rey filmed a second video for the song, titled "Video Games ". Uploaded to her official Vevo account on October 18, 2011, the song features Del Rey in jean shorts and a white T-shirt, singing into a microphone barefoot, while accompanied by a pianist. The Huffington Post wrote that the video was "loaded", indicating that the title was a contradiction and not, in fact, a live performance whatsoever. Additionally, they wrote: "we understand the takedowns of her hype, but that doesn't change the fact that "Video Games"—the tune Lana's singing live this time—is one helluva song." Aside from criticizing her pillowy lips and long fingernails, The Guardian applauded Del Rey for amping up on the coquettish glances and hushed vocals as she devastatingly delivers the line, "I heard that you like the bad girls, honey, is that true?"

Live performances and usage in other media

"Video Games" was performed by Del Rey in a number of live appearances, including for MTV Push, and at the Bowery Ballroom, where, according to Eliot Glazer of New York, "the polarizing indie hipstress brought her 'gangsta Nancy Sinatra' swag". Matthew Perpetua of Rolling Stone commented that, despite Del Rey being nervous and anxious while performing the song live, the singer "sang with considerable confidence, though her transitions from husky, come-hither sexuality to bratty, girlish petulance could be rather jarring". Del Rey also performed the song on Dutch television program De Wereld Draait Door, on British music television show Later... with Jools Holland, and in an intimate show at Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, California. On January 14, 2012, Del Rey performed the song on Saturday Night Live. Her performance soon came under scrutiny and was even criticized by NBC anchor Brian Williams. Williams referred to the performance as "one of the worst outings in SNL history". Actor Daniel Radcliffe, who hosted the show the night Del Rey performed, quickly came to her defense, stating that criticism toward her was less about the performance and more about "her past and her family". On February 2, 2012, Del Rey performed the song on The Late Show With David Letterman where according to Rolling Stone she gave a "much more controlled and dramatic performance than on SNL." Del Rey performed "Video Games" live at ECHO Awards in Berlin, March 22, 2012.
"Video Games" has been covered by several artists, including Boy George, TYP, John Mayer, Rasputina, Bristeil, Ben Howard, Maverick Sabre, Tyler Hilton, Amanda Palmer, Patrick Stickles of Titus Andronicus, Patrick Wolf, Tom Odell and English rock bands Bombay Bicycle Club and Kasabian. The song was featured in the Ringer "If You Ever Want a French Lesson..." episode from its first season. It was also featured in the sixth episode of the fifth season of Gossip Girl. A remix of the song was featured in "The Dead Don't Stay Dead," an episode of 666 Park Avenue. On February 25, 2012, Masha covered "Video Games" on her popular YouTube channel.
A choral a cappella version of "Video Games" was used as part of the Royal Shakespeare Company's 2017 production of Othello in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, within Shakespeare's Globe, London. Used in place of Desdemona's "Weeping Willow" song, it was performed by live choir at various points in the production in an Elizabethan style, framing key moments of the play, as well as being used as the opening overture.

Formats and track listings

  1. "Video Games" – 4:01
  2. "Blue Jeans" – 3:31
  1. "Video Games" – 4:44
  1. "Video Games" – 4:01
  2. "Blue Jeans" – 3:31
  1. "Video Games" – 4:44
  2. "Video Games" – 8:58
  3. "Video Games" – 5:14
  1. "Video Games" – 4:46
  2. "Blue Jeans" – 3:34
  3. "Video Games" – 9:00
  4. "Video Games" – 5:14
  1. "Video Games" – 4:03
  2. "Blue Jeans" – 3:33
  3. "Video Games" – 4:59
  4. "Video Games" – 7:33
  5. "Video Games" – 9:00
  6. "Video Games" – 4:51
  1. "Video Games" – 4:57
  2. "Video Games" – 3:42
  3. "Video Games" – 7:32
  4. "Video Games" – 5:14
  5. "Video Games" – 5:19

    Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Chart Position
Austria 27
Belgium 15
Belgium 16
France 7
Germany 33
Switzerland 23
UK Singles 87

All-time charts

ChartPosition
France 63

Certifications

Release history