Can Lana Del Rey Make Malls Cool Again?

Lana Del Rey, the singer-songwriter who inspired a whole generation of women to don flower crowns and paved the way for the indie sad girl genre that’s given us Billie Eilish and Halsey, is nothing short of a trendsetter. From Tumblr to “cherry emoji Twitter,” her influence has only grown, but could she save a doomed institution heading for eventual distinction? Could she save the suburban American mall?

She may be trying to. After having one of the most critically acclaimed albums of 2019, she decided to forgo designer duds on the Grammys red carpet by buying her dress off the rack.

LANA BOUGHT THIS AT THE MALL BYE pic.twitter.com/5zIyxNQQx9

— edgar (@ivorycricket) January 27, 2020

“So, I actually had another dress and then my boyfriend and I were getting a belt for him at the mall,” Del Rey said in a red carpet interview with Entertainment Tonight. “And I saw this, and I loved it.”

Despite its accessibility in institutions equipped with food courts and Cellairis kiosks, the dress is textbook red carpet. The silver Aidan Mattox gown is covered in beaded fringe and finished with trendy cape sleeves. It’s sold on Saks Fifth Avenue’s website for $595 and at Dillard’s website for $441.

If there’s one thing that has been stable about Del Rey’s ever-changing personal style, it is the presence of classic Americana. From 2012 motorcycle denim to 1960s glam, the singer’s career is a living American fashion history course — and what’s more American than a shopping mall?

This isn’t the first time she’s been financially savvy, especially during her current California cool girl style era that accompanies her recent surf rock album, “Norman F*cking Rockwell.” In a recent music video for her cover of Sublime’s “Doin’ Time,” she stomped around Los Angeles in a Brandy Melville sundress that cost under $40. She even wore a school kid staple, white Keds Champion sneakers, in a recent shoot for Billboard.

She isn’t the only celebrity to openly wear mall fashion recently either. Priyanka Chopra made headlines last month by wearing a $100 jacket and skirt set from H&M, Kate Middleton wore a Zara dress last week and Blake Lively recently admitted to wearing Forever 21 on the red carpet for years.

These stars’ embrace of fashion items available at your local suburban mall certainly isn’t radical per se, but it is odd compared to current nationwide trends. As Instagram brands and online shopping rise in popularity, retail stores relying on foot traffic have started shutting down quickly.

Last year, mall staple brand Charlotte Russe went bankrupt completely. Shortly after, Forever 21 announced their similar fate. Major department stores have fallen out of fashion too, with Macy’s and J.C. Penney shutting down several locations.

According to a report by Credit Suisse, 20 to 25 percent of malls are projected to shut down by 2022, and can we really be surprised? Online shopping is convenient. Who wouldn’t want to shop for anything they could desire from the comfort of their own couch? However, there will be something missed about chomping down on an Auntie Anne’s pretzel while window shopping or strolling around your local Dillard’s to test out perfume samples.

While Del Rey and other celebrities may not be the valiant saviors here to restore suburbia to its former crash the mall glory, they may make malls a little cooler again (even if just for a few weeks). After all, Del Rey’s dress already sold out at Saks online.