Lana Del Rey’s ‘Say Yes to Heaven’ Includes a John Lennon Reference

Lana Del Rey’s “Say Yes to Heaven” references a John Lennon song. Notably, the tune recontextualizes the title of one of John’s most famous solo songs. In the same vein, Del Rey has paid homage to many other classic rock icons.

Lana Del Rey’s ‘Say Yes to Heaven’ uses the title of John Lennon’s ‘Give Peace a Chance’

Looking through Del Rey’s catalog, she clearly has a healthy obsession with classic rock. Here catalog includes lyrical shout-outs to tunes by Elvis Presley, The Beatles, The Beach Boys, Elton John, David Bowie, The Mamas & the Papas, Lou Reed, Harry Nilsson, The Crystals, and numerous other great artists. She’s also covered tunes by Donovan, Nirvana, Nancy Sinatra, Sublime, and other rock stars.

In “Say Yes to Heaven,” Del Rey sings “If you dance, I’ll dance / And if you don’t, I’ll dance anyway / Give peace a chance / Let the fear you have fall away.” This is a clear callback to John’s “Give Peace a Chance.” Of course, Del Rey’s use of the phrase changes its meaning. 

John’s track was a protest against the Vietnam War. On the other hand, Del Rey turns “give peace a chance” into a piece of interpersonal advice. In “Say Yes to Heaven,” she uses the phrase to encourage her love interest to let go of his emotional baggage.

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Lana Del Rey doesn’t regurgitate the peaceful message of John Lennon’s song

Of course, “Say Yes to Heaven” is not an entirely peaceful track. In one of the later verses, Del Rey sings “If you dance, I’ll dance / I’ll put my red dress on, get it on / And if you fight, I’ll fight / It doesn’t matter now, it’s all gone.” Strangely, John might have been alright with that.

The book All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono includes a 1980 interview. In it, John discussed the meaning of “Give Peace a Chance.” “It wasn’t like ‘You have to have peace!’” he said. “Just give it a chance. We ain’t giving any gospel here — just saying how about this version for a change? We think we have the right to have a say in the future. And we think the future is made in your mind.”

How ‘Give Peace a Chance’ and ‘Say Yes to Heaven’ performed on the chart

“Give Peace a Chance” was a hit for the Plastic Ono Band. It reached No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100, staying on the chart for nine weeks. The track was originally a non-album single. Eventually, John released it on the compilation album Shaved Fish. That record reached No. 12 on the Billboard 200, remaining on the chart for 32 weeks.

On the other hand, “Say Yes to Heaven” is a more modest hit thus far. It reached No. 53 on the Billboard Hot 100, lasting on the chart for three weeks. The “Ride” singer has yet to include “Say Yes to Heaven” on any of her albums.

“Say Yes to Heaven” is a fascinating song and it shows John’s music is relevant to modern singers.