Lorde’s Ups and Downs Over the Years: Music, Friendships and a Mysterious Black Eye

Lorde has been given the green light to rock the music industry.

Ever since wowing fans with her debut studio album, Pure Heroine, in 2013, the Grammy winner has earned her space on any stage.

But nearly three years after Lorde released her last album Solar Power, followers have been waiting patiently to find out what’s next.

In September 2024, Lorde raised eyebrows when she deleted everything off of her Instagram profile except for new black eye photos. “DYHTS? © 𝑳ĿŁု⑷♶⚤.” she wrote via the social media app on September 30, 2024, with a photo of a hat that read “Do You Have the Stones?”

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While the bruises may appear troubling to some, some fans didn’t appear to be too concerned about the “Royals” singer. Instead, they hoped the caption’s initials, which match the words on her hat, were a sign of new music on the horizon.

“She’s hinting that she has a ‘hit’ coming,” one fan speculated in the comments section. Another user suggested, “Excellent way to re-enter social media. Lead with the black eye and the enigmatic baseball cap. I like it, Lorde. I like it. Keep these people on their toes.”

As fans wait for more information, take a look back at all of Lorde’s highs and lows as she navigated the music industry in the spotlight:

Lorde’s Grammy Wins

The 56th Grammy Awards was a night Lorde won’t soon forget. In addition to performing on music’s biggest night for the very first time, the singer picked up Song Of The Year and Best Pop Solo Performance for “Royals” at the show. “This is the one thing that I did not expect the most about tonight,” Lorde shared when accepting her awards in January 2014. “Thank you to everyone who has let this song explode. It’s been mental.”

Lorde’s Friendship With Taylor Swift

In the middle of touring all around the world, Lorde and Swift have been able to maintain a friendship. In fact, the “Shake It Off” singer threw Lorde a 20th birthday party in 2016.

During an interview with The Guardian, Lorde spoke out on the difficulty of maintaining a close friendship with someone as famous as Swift. “It’s like having a friend with very specific allergies. There are certain places you can’t go together. Certain things you can’t do,” she said in June 2017. “There are these different sets of considerations within the friendship. It’s like having a friend with an autoimmune disease.”

After fans pointed out that Swift’s friend, Selena Gomez, has lupus, Lorde apologized for the remarks. “Didn’t mention taylor, but regardless, i f—ed up & that was really insensitive,” she wrote via X. “I’m sorry.”

Lorde’s Private Dating Life

Throughout her career, Lorde has tried to keep her romantic life outside of the spotlight. In February 2018, however, Lorde addressed the rumors that she was dating Jack Antonoff following his split from Lena Dunham. “Guys, no! Jack and I are not dating,” she said during an Instagram live Q&A with fans. “I love him. He’s awesome, but we’re not dating!”

Lorde’s Bad Luck With the MTV Video Music Awards

Although Lorde was initially announced as one of the highly anticipated performances at the 2021 Video Music Awards, MTV confirmed that the “Solar Power” singer’s set was canceled. “Due to a change in production elements, Lorde can no longer perform at this year’s show,” the official VMAs Twitter account announced in September 2021. “We love Lorde and cannot wait for her to perform on the VMA stage in the future! 💛”

During the 2017 VMAs, Lorde caught the flu before her performance, but was determined to go on. Instead of singing her single “Homemade Dynamite,” she did an interpretive dance while the recorded track played.

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Lorde’s Personal Letter to Fans 

In September 2023, Lorde opened up about her challenging year in a candid letter posted via Tumblr. “I’m living with heartbreak again. It’s different but the same,” she shared. “I ache all the time, I forget why and then remember. I’m not trying to hide from the pain, I understand now that pain isn’t something to hide from, that there’s actually great beauty in moving with it. But sometimes I’m sick of being with myself.”

Lorde said she was staying in London where “things feel clear” and planned on returning home to New Zealand for some time. “Don’t worry about me, I still laugh every day, it’s all moving, even when it goes slow,” she added. “I’ve accepted the mission — I have a self to recover.”

Lorde and Charli XCX’s Collaboration

Charli and Lorde released the studio version of their “Girl, So Confusing” collaboration in June 2024, shortly after Charli’s sixth album, Brat, debuted.

The duet also came after rumors circulated that the pair were more competitors instead of friends.

When the song was released, however, Lorde explained in a verse on the track that she turned down Charli’s previous invitations to go out because she was afraid of being photographed. “I was trapped in the hatred / And your life seemed so awesome,” Lorde sang. “I never thought for a second / My voice was in your head.”