Lana Del Rey’s “The Grants” Lyrics Meaning

“The Grants” is a song that Lana Del Rey fans have been aware of, in name, since the songstress publicized the playlist of her album “Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd” in mid-January, 2023.

This particular track serves as the LP’s opener and was released on its own, via Polydor and Interscope, on 14 March 2023, as the project’s third single in advance of the full issuance of the project. Besides Lana herself, the song’s other writers and producers are:

• Mike Hermosa
• Zach Dawes
• Drew Erickson

WHO ARE ‘THE GRANTS’?

To note Lana Del Rey, a native of New York City, is legally named Elizabeth Grant. Furthermore both of her parents, Robert and Patricia, have the same last name, as well as her siblings, Caroline and Charlie, etc. So the title of this song is actually a reference to her family.

And it is the bridge especially where she gives a couple of her relatives a shoutout. Or as implied, there are certain family members, such as her “sister’s firstborn child” and Lana’s “grandmother” who inspire(d) Del Rey to the point that she wants to retain aspects of their character.

Lana’s uncle, David Grant, is also noted, in a similar regard in the chorus, albeit indirectly, as someone whom she looked up to or intends to emulate. He passed away while hiking the Rocky Mountains, a fact that Del Rey, once again in a roundabout way, does acknowledge in the passage.

THE THESIS SENTIMENT

The primary statement of this piece revolves around the vocalist asserting that she’s “going to take mine of you with me”, with said “you” being the addressee(s). As we have pointed out numerous times in the past, Lana Del Rey’s lyrics are rarely straightforward and in many instances, such as this one, can even be deemed somewhat confusing. 

But from a logical perspective, we will once again take it that what she’s getting at is a concept such as making a conscientious effort to remember the addressee. In other words, said person may no longer be around. But she intends to retain the memories of this individual, even apparently into the afterlife.

So one way of possibly interpreting this song is as being bereavement based, in a manner of speaking. In other words, during the second verse Lana puts forth that she’s hard on the grind in the name of doing justice to her “family line”. 

We already know that her uncle who is referred to is dead, and the bridge also implies that her grandmother too has passed away. However, it does not appear that her sister has ever lost a child. 

So putting two and two together, it appears what Lana is saying is that besides being inspired to strive for greatness by her forefathers if you will, she also derives inspiration from the up-and-coming generation of her family, such as her niece, to establish a proper foundation for them. That would not explain who she is addressing in the first verse though – someone who reads like he may be a romantic interest. 

“And I wanna take mine of you with me
I’m gonna take mine of you with me
Yeah, I’m gonna take mine of you with me
Like ‘Rocky Mountain High’
The way John Denver sings”

Going back to Lana’s unconventional artistry, there’s no reason to believe that, if so desired, she could switch from one subject (i.e. romance) to a completely-different one (the influence of her family) in a single song. Indeed, we have come across Del Rey tracks in the past which have read as if they are based on more than one topic.

But conclusively and for the most part, religious and romantic-sounding lingo aside, we will take The Grants, as with its namesake, as being primarily centered on the songstress’s family.  However, is it not so in the sense that she sings about her relative per se.  Instead, it is more along the lines of acknowledging their indirect influence in making her one of the most-prolific A list artists in the music industry.

Singles from “Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd”

• “Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd”
• “A&W”