Lana Del Rey says she only writes for herself

The Summertime Sadness star has dismissed the idea her songs - which sometimes seem to hint at issues like abusive relationships - should be written with commercial success in mind, because she writes about "whatever" she wants.

She told the Sunday Times Magazine: "It's not meant to be popular. It's not pop music. The only thing I have to do is whatever I want, and I want to write whatever I want.

"I just hope people don't ask me about it. So I don't feel a responsibility at all. I mean, I just don't. I feel responsible in other ways, community wise, to be a good citizen, abide by the law."

She also shrugged off the idea of worrying about how the public read her lyrics, and confessed she was "selfish" in that she only writes for herself.

She added: "I just don't want [the public] to hear it at all. I'm very selfish. I make everything for me, kind of. I mean, every little thing, down to the guitar and the drums.

"It's just for me. I want to hear it, I want to drive to it, I want to swim in the ocean to it. I want to think about it, and then I want to write something new after it. You know?

"It's just (...) I don't want them to hear it and think about it. It's none of their business."