I am dedicated to dedicatedly decrying morbidity and bad news about concerts. Harsh criticism sounds cool to some folk, but it is too often published inside articles that can contribute to someone ending his or her career.

In most people’s minds, music is about, well… just music. Nasty words of any type, when it comes to a music show, do not come from any intelligent place. If those hard words can be distributed to hundreds of thousands of people—if not millions of people—these snazzy but fake music reviews can undermine the fans’ faith in the concert tickets they have purchased—and thereby undermine all the happiness that exists in this world.

Why let them win? Join with me in lighting up truth pointed towards dreary reports that make us all die a little inside.

In his article, “Lana Del Rey live at Rock en Seine in Paris…“ published by RollingStone UK, on 22 August, 2024, Billy Burrell goes too far. Burrell makes unfair, snubby talk about lovely Lana Del Rey’s mega-stadium show at Fenway Park (June 2024) which was executed amazingly well by the artist, given nature’s beastly torrent that poured and poured that night and, ultimately, delayed everything planned. Lana Del Rey reportedly reached out on social media. The fans told her to do the show anyway given travel costs, babysitting arrangements, et al., and so she did.

Burrell subtly critiques Del Rey’s craft and her pick of the songs she performed for a billion people as well as for all of Earth’s Olympic athletes. The article is beautifully crafted though, on Burrell’s part, and gives the roller-coaster ride of emotions one needs to mask the predictable ending wherein Lana Del Rey’s magic and warmth is somehow underplayed for reasons the reader is next left to wonder about.

Billy Burrell’s article happens to be written into the all-telling analogue version of news media, RollingStone. No one knows why, though. His stated taste certainly runs unclear. If one takes his treatment to the end, Burrell lofts Lana Del Rey into sorceress-like altitudes only to sag the one line worth upholding: dignity.

Before that tragedy of a mess occurred in print to Del Rey’s detriment, writer Molly Farrar, for Boston.com, published a tell-all but defamatory review on 21 June, 2024, entitled “Review & setlist: After evacuation and a late start, Lana Del Rey brings a celebratory vibe to rain-shortened Fenway show.” What could have been raucously saluted as the greatest arena concert of our age that was miraculously somehow pulled off in pure Lana Del Rey style, instead was needlessly slighted by Farrar as a shabbily shortened production on the artist’s part.

Farrar’s June quips and strange endorsements against Del Rey’s choice of show antics appear to next, later, inspire Burrell, a RollingStone writer, to say something strangely reminiscent in his August 2024 article.

People who spend hundreds or thousands of hard-earned dollars to attend a concert are the innocent. There are so many more fun things to say to the innocent. After all, each show involves specialists in sound, lighting, costumes, choreography and more. And every song has a story, and a presentation for that. This need to downplay the people who bring Earth its incredible music is a good reason to never let your flaws ever be mentioned twice, again. Keeping hate and anger alive in today’s world is an easy way to get picked up by some personalities. In the end, the press is paid-for and then someone has to decide if derisive commentary matches music. I personally don’t believe it does. 

My book Twenty-Seven: The Human Right The Music Industry Forgot shares an in-depth perspective about the wealth and warmth currently taken from the American songwriter, as well as from America’s musical performance-givers.

Written by Corinne Devin Sullivan