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2023 TIME's Person of the Year Taylor Swift is one of the most famous pop stars in the world right now, especially after her immensely successful Eras Tour. The concert tour began on March 17, 2024, and had already grossed over $1 billion by the end of 2023. Many celebrities, such as Selena Gomez, Karlie Kloss, Katy Perry, etc., attended the Eras Tour.
Many of these big names have been friends with Swift for a long time, and fans call her inner circle Taylor's 'squad.' Her 'squad' has included a barrage of big names over the years, and 'legacy artist' Lana Del Rey has been one of her closest in the industry.
Swift won Album of the Year in the 2023 Grammys. Besides announcing The Tortured Poets Department, the Blank Space singer had a few words for her evening's date, Lana Del Rey.
The Grammy winner called Lana Del Rey a 'legacy artist' and torchbearer for other artists to follow. Their friendship has been going strong for the last 12 years and is still at its peak.
Exploring Taylor Swift's friendship with Lana Del Rey
Here is a brief timeline of the major events in the evolution of Taylor Swift's bond with Lana Del Rey:
November 11, 2012: Taylor Swift meets Lana Del Rey for the first time
Taylor Swift met Lana Del Rey for the first time in 2012 at MTV EMAs in Germany. Taylor won the Best Female Artist Award, which was handed over by Lana Del Rey, along with a hug.
October 11, 2022: Taylor Swift's Snow On The Beach features Lana Del Rey
Taylor Swift's fourth song on Midnights album, Snow On The Beach, featured Lana Del Rey's background vocals. Taylor Swift announced the news of the collaboration in an Instagram video.
"Track number 4 on 'Midnights' is 'Snow On The Beach' featuring Lana Del Rey and I can't get through that sentence without grinning because I am such a fan of Lana Del Rey", the 14-time Grammy winner stated.
The 14-time Grammy winner further gushed about Lana Del Rey and called it an honor to collaborate with her. She also described Lana as 'one of the best musical artists ever.'
"Lana Del Rey is in my opinion one of the best musical artists ever, the fact that I get to exist at the same time as her is an honor and a privilege and the fact that she would be so generous as to collab with us on this song is something I am going to be grateful for for life - absolutely love her," Taylor continued to praise Lana Del Rey in her announcement video.
So far, the song has been played more than 178 million times on Spotify, and its lyric video on YouTube has reached 27 million views with more than 8,000 comments!
May 2023: Taylor and Lana hit the studio to re-record Snow On The Beach
In the original Snow On The Beach track, Lana Del Rey sang the background vocals and helped produce the song. However, Swifties wanted more, and the two singers fulfilled the fans' wishes!
Taylor and Lana recorded Snow On The Beach all over again and included more vocals of the latter. In the announcement post on X on May 24, 2023, Taylor Swift shared—
"You asked for it, we listened: Lana and I went back into the studio specifically to record more Lana on ‘Snow on the Beach.’ Love u Lana."
2024: Taylor and Lana attend the Grammys together
Lana Del Rey and Taylor Swift were seen sitting together at the 66th Grammys ceremony. Taylor won Album of the Year for the record fourth time, and Lana Del Rey went to the stage with the 34-year-old.
In her acceptance speech, Taylor lauded Lana Del Rey and called her an inspiration for young musicians and a 'legacy artist'.
"I think so many female artists would not be where they are and not have the inspiration they have if it weren't for the work that she's done," she declared.
In 2024, Lana and Taylor were also seen attending the Super Bowl and standing together as they cheered Travis Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs. They were accompanied by Swift's parents and other friends. Swift was sporting an all-black outfit, while Lana was seen wearing a maroon jacket and black pants.
Fans hope that their friendship remains strong so that they can be treated to more collaborations and live duets in the future.
