Summertime Sadness

Summertime Sadness, the fourth single from Lana Del Rey's 2012 album Born to Die, arrived on June 22 via Interscope Records. Co-written with Rick Nowels and produced by Nowels and Emile Haynie, the song blends pop with trip hop, its lush, melancholic production and Del Rey's wistful vocals capturing a bittersweet summer romance. In Europe it topped charts in Poland, Ukraine, and Armenia, and reached the top 10 in Austria, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Luxembourg, and Switzerland. The original's U.S. chart run was modest, but a remix by French DJ Cedric Gervais, released mid-2013, turned it into a sleeper hit, climbing to number six on the Billboard Hot 100 and securing Del Rey's first number one on the Dance/Mix Show Airplay chart. That remix also won the Grammy for Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical in 2014.

The official music video, directed by Kyle Newman, stars Del Rey and actress Jaime King as a doomed couple. Its dreamy, filtered aesthetic drew comparisons to Instagram, and the clip racked up substantial YouTube views. Critics praised the song's production and tone, and Rolling Stone later ranked it number 456 on its 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list. Over the years, Summertime Sadness has become one of Del Rey's signature tracks, spawning covers and entering the cultural lexicon as a phrase for end-of-summer melancholy. Its enduring presence on streaming playlists and social media speaks to its lasting appeal. [edit]