Lana Del Rey Talks New Album and Finding Love

“There’s something so romantic about New York City in the summer,” said Lana Del Rey, as she settled into breakfast on the patio of a restaurant in the West Village of Manhattan. It was a beautiful morning: midseason sunny, clear sky, a light breeze. “I’m thinking of sitting on fire escapes and writing in my journal. The mood in the summer is so lazy and engaging.” Del Rey was wearing jeans, ballet flats, and a short red cardigan buttoned over a white tank top. Her long honey brown hair was in loose curls. She was with her husband, Jeremy Dufrene, whom she met in his home state of Louisiana, where he gives boat tours through the bayou for visitors to see alligators. (She went on one of his excursions in 2019; they reconnected several years later, and married in September 2024.) Like many people who work with large, dangerous beasts, Dufrene has a calm, strong presence. “When we met,” Del Rey told me later, “I realized pretty immediately that I loved him, but that it might get difficult because of what I was bringing to the table. Jeremy said, ‘I work with alligators—I have tough skin.’ And he is a man of his word. All the things that made me upset—and there were so many!—he would just listen and say, ‘You be you—and I’ll just love you more.’ ”