Lorde's Not Feeling 'Royals' Anymore

Lorde won her first two Grammy awards a few weeks ago — one for "Royals" as Song of the Year. The catchy-as-hell song has been played on the radio and talked about for months, and Lorde even sang it at the Grammys — however, the 17-year-old New Zealand native doesn't think it's her best work. In a new interview, Lorde tells Australia's The Music magazine that "Royals" isn't indicative of what she can really do, because how much she's grown since she wrote it.

I definitely don’t think 'Royals' is my best song, Lorde says. I understand why it worked and why it was kind of a hit, I can see those qualities in it, but at the same time there’s part of me that’s like, 'These melodies are just not as good as something I could have written now’, or like ‘I definitely wouldn’t have written this lyric this way if I had’ve written it now.’ But I was 15 when I wrote it and I’m 17 now, so I think you grow a lot in that period. It definitely feels like a bit of a relic now.

Oh Ella, you perfectionist, you. You can critique it all you want, but we'll keep singing it until the cows come home. The singer admitted that she wasn't even planning on releasing an album, but once "Royals" became a hit, that was the next step.

Before I put The Love Club EP out I was just planning on releasing EPs and messing around and putting stuff on the internet until I finished high school and then I would kind of look at it more seriously, Lorde says. But obviously things went kind of crazy and, what happened to the music once it left my hands was, like, just this insane thing. So I had to rethink and decide when I wanted to write [Pure Heroine]; it was important to me that I followed up this big song with material that I felt was relevant to me right now and which felt kinda fresh and did come at the same time as that song, I guess. It wasn’t a plan that was thought out well in advance.

Lorde was allowed to take time off school to write Pure Heroine, her first studio album — which sounds like the coolest and most fulfilling extracurricular activity you could ever have. I wish I would have been talented enough to write an album instead of being on the newspaper staff.

I was so for it, I was kind of freaked out, but I really wanted to do it. It was pretty much down to my parents, because obviously I had to take three months out of school, Lorde says. They came home from this meeting with my manager and said ‘We’re gonna let you make the record’ and I was like ‘YEEEEAHHH this is gonna be awesome!'

And as for being considered a role model, she's honored to be one — if you accept her flaws.

Obviously I am 17, I’m going to fuck some stuff up at some point, because I think that’s a natural part of becoming an adult, Lorde says. But as long as people are willing to accept me as an imperfect role model, then I guess I’m honoured.

Lorde, you're the coolest. We accept you. Can we be friends?