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Listen: Cat Power “Woman” ft. Lana Del Rey

For those of you here because of the mention of Lana Del Rey, I have some bad news for you, Lana is only here doing backup vocals. If you are not paying attention you will miss her, and even her usual style of baby girl 60’s dream pop isn’t quite present on this Cat Power track.

Initially, the idea of a Lana x Cat Power collab had me reeling, what do these two women have in common other than being near legendary indie musicians? But after listening to “Woman,” off the album Wanderer, out on October 5th, it’s immediately clear what attracted Lana to the song and vice versa. Both artists are women who are fiercely in control of their own image and their own sounds, despite any conflicting perception perpetuated by a snidely commenting fandom or male-dominated media platform. Both women have been slandered in ways that could emotionally destroy a weaker person.

Charlyn Marie “Chan” Marshall of Cat Power has been called “crazy,” following an infamous show at the Bowery Ballroom in which the musician broke down in tears after asking what it would be like to be hit with a machete.

Lana Del Rey, due to her Lolita-like persona and penchant for crooning about her sugar daddies has been called a “slut” and the authenticity of her musical personal routinely questioned.

Both situations basically add up to our societies inability to handle women who are less than perfect pillars of beauty and confidence unless locked up in the privacy of their own bedrooms. Through “Woman” a soulful track that showcases Chan‘s vocals in all their gritty perfection, also reclaims the idea of female identity, of honesty through music, and of course, of the ongoing relevance that is Cat Power.



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