Lana Del Rey has been around the music scene since 2005 but broke into mainstream media prominence with her second album, Born to Die, which centered around the themes of sex, love, and an ode to Americana culture of the 1950s and 60s.

Since then, the singer has made a niche for herself with her smoky, ethereal voice and her poetic lyrics that invite nostalgia for an era long gone. But while it’s tempting to think that Lana sprang fully formed out of the 1950s, in truth, her beginnings are far more mundane.

Where did Lana Del Rey actually grow up?

Currently, the singer resides in Los Angeles – a common home for the rich and famous. But before she was a household name, the singer (real name Elizabeth Woolridge Grant) was an East Coast girl.

According to a biography in British Vogue, Lana was born and raised in New York. Originally she lived in Lake Placid, a fairly famous small village in the very north of New York state.

She then had a stint in Connecticut when she was a teenager, as her parents sent her to boarding school in an attempt to help treat her alcoholism.

The program worked! Admirably, Lana isn’t just open about her experiences with addiction, but she also, according to a GQ interview, worked in an outreach program for those who had trouble with drugs or alcohol.

New York will always be Lana Del Rey’s hometown

New York seems to have captured Lana’s heart for most of her youth. When she was nineteen, she moved to Manhattan to pursue a college degree in metaphysics, but (fortunately for all of us) decided that singing was more her passion.

While she now resides in Los Angeles, there is always a chance she’ll take time to visit New York every once in a while.