2

Move over pop chart drama. There is a feud brewing that is dripping with shade, obsession, and deleted posts, and it involves two of music’s most enigmatic stars: Lana Del Rey and Ethel Cain. What started as innocent admiration turned into years of passive-aggressive attacks, shady internet behavior, and cryptic lyrical jabs. Buckle up, because this one is messy, dramatic, and absolutely unmissable.

2015–2017: From Fangirl to Secret Obsession

Believe it or not, Ethel Cain was once a Lana stan. In 2015, she listed Lana as a favorite on an old DeviantArt page, the first public clue that the young singer had big love for the baroque queen of pop.

Fast forward to 2017, and Cain uploaded a cover of Born to Die to the internet, later scrambling to erase it. She even covered Mariners Apartment Complex that year, cementing what looked like pure adoration.

But the stage was quietly being set for a dramatic pivot.

2018: Controversial Posts Spark Tension

By 2018, Ethel Cain was posting on CuriousCat, an anonymous Q&A site, and things got messy. She referenced Lana in a post that raised eyebrows, drawing enough backlash to prompt an apology. What seemed like a minor blip would later become a thread in a much larger, decades-long saga.

2020: The Shade Begins

Admiration curdled into rivalry by 2020. Cain began making sly posts comparing herself to Lana, sometimes outright shading her music and persona. One tweet, now deleted, reportedly took aim directly at Lana. No screenshots survive, but the whispers were loud.

2022: Prison Pics, Deleted Posts, and Wikipedia Wars

July 8, 2022: Lana posts a striking photo with boyfriend Jack Donoghue at a Chicago prison. Cain fires back with a shady post, then deletes it immediately. That deleted jab is now immortalized in a snippet from Lana’s upcoming album.

That same year, Cain allegedly vandalized her own Wikipedia page multiple times, surgically removing any mention of Lana Del Rey from her influences section. Fans called her out, and by 2023, the account responsible went dark. Rumor has it, Lana learned about Cain’s antics through Donoghue, who at the time was friends with Cain.

The Diss Track Is Born

Lana, never one to take subtlety lying down, allegedly turned the tea into art. The feud allegedly sparked a diss track titled All About Ethel, a savage, Bette Davis-inspired swipe at Cain, playing on the 1950 classic All About Eve, the tale of an ambitious younger woman scheming to take down her idol.

2023: Waffle House Shade

In a move that had fans scratching their heads, Lana worked a shift at Waffle House in Alabama. Random? Perhaps. Shady dig? Very likely. Many believe it was a response to an Ethel Cain interview headline dubbing her the most famous girl at the Waffle House. Lana’s Instagram snippet confirms the subtle burn. Cain is now the second most famous girl at the Waffle House. Legendary.

2025: The Block Heard Around the World

Fast forward to August 13, 2025. Lana shares the first official snippet of track 13 from her Jack Antonoff–produced album.

“Ethel Cain hated my Instagram post.”

Cain claims Lana blocked Cain her on Instagram:

Lana went even further, speaking directly about Cain’s years of body-shaming:

“I didn’t know who Ethel was until a few years ago, when someone brought to my attention the disturbing and graphic side-by-side images she would often put up of me next to unflattering creatures and cartoon characters making constant comments about my weight, I was confused at what she was getting at. Then when I heard what she was saying behind closed doors from mutual friends and started inserting herself into my personal life I was definitely disturbed.”

Ouch.

Related