Lorde may be a long-established pop name, but she’s said that if you run into her in real life, she’d rather you use her actual name than the moniker tied to her public persona.
Plenty of famous people try to draw a line between their working identity and their off-hours, though many also prefer that their private life stays private — including what they’re called when they’re not “on.”
Chappell Roan, for instance, sparked conversation when she explained she didn’t want fans approaching her and using her real name, Kayleigh.
Her point was that listeners may feel close to the character they see on stage, but that doesn’t mean they know the person behind it in a personal way.
Lorde seems to view it differently, closer to how Rihanna has spoken about being called Robyn when she’s away from the spotlight — treating it as a sweet, more human kind of familiarity.
For the 29-year-old New Zealander, being addressed by her given name is something she’s comfortable with.
Back when she was 17, the Grammy winner told ABC News Radio: “I much prefer being called Ella.”
Born Ella Yelich-O’Connor, she’s previously acknowledged that she didn’t always feel connected to her birth name — which played a role in her choosing a separate identity for her music career.
Still, that doesn’t mean she dislikes it.
As she explained: “I basically chose Lorde because I wanted a name that was really strong and had this grandeur to it. I didn’t feel that my birth name was anything special. I always liked the idea of having, like, a one-named alias.”
And for anyone who sticks with her stage name, she’s not bothered — it’s “that’s fine, too”.
Recently, though, a different nickname has been doing the rounds online for a far more NSFW reason.
Artists often talk about putting everything into their work, but Lorde appeared to take that idea in a more literal direction with the imagery around her Virgin album.
The record, released on June 27 last year, arrived three years after her previous release, Solar Power, in 2022.
But one particular visual detail gave “baring all” an entirely new implication.
She flashed her ‘Lordeussy’.
The vinyl edition included multiple cover images, and one of them showed a vagina beneath transparent plastic trousers.
Lorde hasn’t confirmed who the genitalia belongs to, but online commenters quickly assumed it was hers — and started referring to it as her ‘Lordeussy’.
A fan wrote of the revelation: “Just got the virgin vinyl, I opened it and first thing I saw was Lorde’s hairy ***** hun I wasn’t ready for that jumpscare lmaooo.”