50 interesting facts about Lana Del Rey: Had several stage names, studied metaphysics

Lana Del Rey is a talented singer and song-writer known for her orchestral, retro-'60s-sounding pop that showcases her sensuously husky singing style. Here are 50 interesting facts you may not have known about this gorgeous singer.

1. Lana Del Rey's real name is Elizabeth Woolridge Grant.

2. Del Rey is of Scottish descent, and has two younger siblings

3. She was born on June 21, 1986 in New York City to former Grey Group copywriter turned entrepreneur, Rob Grant, and former Grey account executive, Pat Grant.

4. She grew up wealthy and spent a lot of time the Chateau Marmont in L.A. and travelled around the world with her parents.

5. Her first introduction to singing was in the church choir which she enjoyed and her interest for music peaked.

6. Del Rey grew up in Lake Placid, New York until age 15, when she was sent to Kent School, a boarding school in Connecticut, for three years to deal with her alcohol dependence. "I was a big drinker at the time. I would drink every day. I would drink alone. I thought the whole concept was so f******* cool. A great deal of what I wrote on Born To Die is about these wilderness years. When I write about the thing that I've lost I feel like I'm writing about alcohol because that was the first love of my life. My parents were worried, I was worried. I knew it was a problem when I liked it more than I liked doing anything else. I was like, 'I'm f*****. I am totally f***** . Like, at first it's fine and you think you have a dark side - it's exciting - and then you realise the dark side wins every time if you decide to indulge in it. It's also a completely different way of living when you know that...a different species of person. It was the worst thing that ever happened to me," she said in an interview.

7. She attended Fordham University in the Bronx, New York where she studied metaphysics which is a branch of philosophy. She chose it because "it bridged the gap between God and science. I was interested in God and how technology could bring us closer to finding out where we came from and why," she said in an interview.

8. She eventually dropped out because she wasn't good at math. She began focusing on art, writing, and video editing.

9. While in New York, she started performing at small, local clubs. "I was always singing, but didn't plan on pursuing it seriously. When I got to New York City when I was 18, I started playing in clubs in Brooklyn-I have good friends and devoted fans on the underground scene, but we were playing for each other at that point-and that was it."

10. Her father, Rob Grant, bankrolled her first independent studio album. The album was called Sirens and she recorded it under the name "May Jailer".

11. In 2007, Del Rey signed a record contract for $10,000 with 5 Points Records while still a senior at Fordham University and moved into Manhattan Mobile Home Park, a New Jersey trailer park.

12. Her original debut album, which was officially released in 2010 under her real name, Lizzy Grant, was produced by David Kahne (Regina Spektor). However, it did not perform well.

13. Lizzy Grant was almost ready to give up making it in the music business as a singer when she released a song called "Video Games" under the stage name Lana Del Rey on the internet in January 2010. "To be honest, it wasn't going to be the single but people have really responded to it. I get very sad when I play that song. I still cry sometimes when I sing it," she said.

14. "Video Games had over 20 million YouTube views in its first 5 months.

15. The song was a hit and Del Rey signed a joint deal in October 2011l with Interscope Records and Polydor.

16. "Video Games" won the prize for best contemporary song at the 57th Ivor Novello Awards. The awards are one of the highest regarded within the UK music industry as they are voted for by songwriters and composers.

17. Her debut single, "Video Games", attained worldwide success, reaching number one in Germany and top-ten positions in Austria, Belgium, Netherlands, Ireland, Scotland, Switzerland and the United Kingdom (as of December 2011).

18. Del Rey performed under various stage names, such as Sparkle Jump Rope Queen, May Jailer, and Lana Rey Del Mar.

19. She finally decided to go with "Lana Del Rey" because it "reminded [her] of the glamour of the seaside.

20. Del Rey identifies herself as a Roman Catholic.

21. Amongst her musical influences, Del Rey cites several contemporary artists such as Elvis Presley, Antony and the Johnsons, Frank Sinatra, and Eminem.

22. Del Rey's music has been praised for its cinematic sound and its references to various aspects of pop culture, especially that of the 1950s and 1960s Americana.

23. On October 24th 2011, it was announced that Del Rey had won the Q award for "Next Big Thing".

24. Del Rey has the letter "M" tattooed on her left hand which references her grandmother Madeline whom she was very close to while growing up. She has the word "paradise" tattooed on the same hand.

25. Her right hand is tattooed with the phrase "trust no one".

26. She also has the phrase "die young" tattooed on her right ring finger.

27. Del Rey has been in a relationship with Kassidy ex-member Barrie-James O'Neill since August 2011. He lives in London and she spends a lot of time there.

28. Among her many interests, she is fascinated with photography and collects stock footage and creates video collages. Her videos for Video Games and Carmen are self-made and very well made.

29. She references Tennessee Williams, Walt Whitman, and Vladimir Nabokov in her lyrics. She refers to William's A Streetcar Named Desire in Carmen ("relying on the kindness of strangers") and has a song named after Whitman's I Sing the Body Electric.

30. Not only is she a talented singer and song-writer, Del Rey is also a model. She signed a contract with Next Model Management under the same talent wing that also represents pop stars Ellie Goulding and Florence Welch.

31. Del Rey modelled and recorded a cover version of the popular 1950s prom anthem "Blue Velvet" for H&M's 2012 Autumn Campaign. She also did their 2012 winter campaign.

32. Del Rey has also done successful modelling campaigns for Jaguar F-Type.

33. Del Rey has two apartments, one in New York City and one in Los Angeles, where she lives with her sister and brother.

34. She loves her English soccer and is a supporter of the English Premier League team Liverpool and Scottish Premier League side Celtic.

35. Since she got her musical start from performing at clubs in Brooklyn and the Bronx in New York City, she is an excellent and entertaining live performer. However, her first performance on SNL led many music reviewers and bloggers to criticize her for appearing stiff and awkward.

    Lana Del Rey - Blue Jeans (Live on SNL) from Lanaism on Vimeo.

36. She was the second artist Natalie Imbruglia 1998, to perform on the popular late night show before the release of their debut album.

37. If you can't get enough of her music, you're in luck! Lana Del Rey has around 20 unreleased songs that you can find on YouTube or Sound Cloud. Although Del Rey released The Paradise Edition of her debut Born to Die with 8 songs, there are more tracks that didn't make it to the E.P. including Paris, Damn You, and Go Go Dancer.

38. Del Rey has an expansive contralto vocal range, which has been described as captivating and highly emotive, being able to transcend from sounding high and girlish in her timbre, down to a low and jazzy sound with great ease.

39. Talent runs in her family! Del Rey's younger sister, Chuck Grant, is a photographer who graduated from Parsons School for Design. Chuck takes beautiful pictures of her sister and had a cameo in Del Rey's video for Ride.

40. She is close friends with actress Jaime King.

41. Lana Del Rey loves reality television. She told VH1 that the hits shows Mob Wives and The Real Housewives of New Jersey are her favorites.

42. Lana Del Rey enjoys interacting with her fans and insist on keeping control of her social networking accounts, especially Twitter and Facebook. She says she'll never give them up to her management or record label because that would be "fu--ing weird."

43. She has described her look - auburn hair in Veronica Lake waves, full lips and permanently artistic talons - as "Gangster Nancy Sinatra" and "Lolita got lost in the hood".

44. Old photos of her as Lizzy Grant compared to her current lok have led many to speculate she has had some cosmetic surgery done to her face. However, she denies having anything done to enhance her look. It is a charge she vehemently denied in a recent interview. "I haven't had anything done at all... I'm quite pouty. That's just how I look when I sing," she insisted.

45. One of her main musical idols is Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain. In an interview with Sirius FM, she said. "When I was 11, I saw Kurt Cobain singing 'Heart-Shaped Box' on MTV and it really stopped me dead in my tracks. I thought he was the most beautiful person I had ever seen. Even at a young age, I really related to his sadness."

46. Del Rey is 5' 7" (1.69 m) tall.

47. Angelina Jolie handpicked her to perform the song "Once Upon a Dream" as the main theme for Maleficent.

48. She derives inspiration for her music from poetry and film noir.

49. Lana Del Rey's net worth is $8 million.

50. In 2014, she released her new single West Coast from the album Ultraviolence on April 14. The full album is slated to drop on June 2014.

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