Lauren Sanderson recruited a nü-metal god, trashed the algorithm, and made the diner video nobody will forget. LAUREN isn’t an era. It’s a confession.
Lauren Sanderson had the most crazy week imaginable; she hosted a Grindr Takeover on Friday morning where she brought her new album ‘LAUREN’ to the one place literally no one finds music, yet that made perfect sense; Friday afternoon, she was standing beside the stage of Download as she prepared to go out on stage in front of a heavy metal crowd with Fred Durst (who wasn’t a metaphor but literally was).
Even though all of these things seem contradictory, there isn’t a contradiction, at least none that aren’t clearly made by Lauren.
“Balls out, confrontational, rock ‘n’ roll with f*** you attitude.”
The collaboration with Durst was not a result of the label putting them together or some wild idea by a publicist – it started as a DM to Durst’s account on the social media site Instagram. There was some back and forth about a few lines, but nothing seemed serious until the results were released. Now, it’s already achieved over one million streams on its own; “COME SAY SUM” is a song that was created after hearing Limp Bizkit‘s “Break Stuff,” not an inspiration as much as a direct challenge. The remix does not mask anything about it, but rather enhances the original song’s message.
In the video, Durst and Sanderson can be seen running a diner that appears to be designed to make someone want to report the place to health officials for violation of health codes. The video is unhinged in that it’s ridiculous on purpose and full of arrogance. Finally, it really took itself seriously.
LAUREN is the name of the record that fits its name exactly – Internet relationships, stolen partners, what it’s like to be at a bar and feel as if it is happening to someone else; it’s all in here. Eclectic and hilariously irreverent at times, it then suddenly becomes very relevant in a way that shocks you. It is much more difficult to do than it sounds.
Sanderson has been working towards this for many years; the queer rock niche she created does not have very many other residents in it, which does not seem to bother her whatsoever. The new-metal edge, pop sensibility and rap-star style all do not appear to be contrived moves to create a new sound for her. They are the sounds of someone who has listened to everything and has made a decision to use them without worrying about being judged.
The headlining tour is coming. So are a handful of Limp Bizkit dates in Nashville. The Medium Sized Backyard session she dropped recently is worth watching if you want to understand what that live show is going to feel like, controlled chaos, which is its own kind of discipline.
The DM to Fred Durst was the smartest thing she did. Not because of the numbers, though 5.5 million combined views in a week is hard to argue with, but because of what it said about how she moves. No waiting to be invited. No asking if the genre fits. Just a message sent, a track made, a stage shared.
She didn’t need permission. She never did.
The Hollywood Six 