Lana Del Rey talks swimming with Gators and pushing her country album to 2026
The singer-songwriter also revealed the one song she's written so far about her husband, Jeremy Dufrene, an airboat captain and alligator tour guide
By Jon Blistein
Lana Del Rey discussed the one song she’s written about her husband, swimming with alligators in the Louisiana bayou, and why her long-awaited country album, now called Stove, has been delayed in a new interview with W.
The chat is one of the most extensive interviews Del Rey has done since she married Jeremy Dufrene — a Louisiana-based airboat captain and alligator tour guide — last fall. Del Rey called Dufrene “the most impactful person in my life,” and said she wrote the song “Stars Fell on Alabama” about him. (Del Rey hasn’t officially released “Stars Fell” yet, though it’s become her go-to show opener.)
“He’s quiet in public, but around me he talks all the time,” Del Rey added of Dufrene. “It’s strange: Jeremy and I have what we call ‘parking-lot time.’ We spend so much time in parking lots, just reading or talking in the car. Sometimes, in life, you think you’re the only one in the world who loves a particular thing, like sitting in an empty Macy’s or Home Depot parking lot. You might be really weird to some people, but then you find another soul who feels the same way.”
Since marrying, Del Rey has largely relocated to Louisiana, though she still spends some time in Los Angeles. Discussing her husband’s work, Del Rey cracked that Louisiana “has nicer alligators than Florida,” and says that Dufrene “swims with the alligators,” too.
“I swim in the bayou also, and the alligators are there, but I don’t swim alone,” Del Rey said.
As for her new music, Del Rey said that she now expects her next album, Stove, to arrive in January 2026. She’s been working on the country-inspired album for several years now, even spending time in Nashville with country producer Luke Laird (Eric Church, Carrie Underwood, Little Big Town) and longtime collaborator Jack Antonoff. Stove was originally set to arrive this past spring, but Del Rey said it was pushed after she decided to add six more songs.
“They were more autobiographical than I thought, and that took more time,” Del Rey said. “The majority of the album will have a country flair. Eight years ago, when I was looking to make a country record, no one else was thinking about country. Now everyone is going country! I’ve asked myself, Should I retire all my snakeskin boots? Should I put my cowboy hats in storage?”