Skip to content
Premieres

Lorde Age-Truthers Surface 17-Year-Old’s Birth Certificate

Lorde Age Birth Certificate James Blake Cover Video

Lorde had a helluva run at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards, but the widening spotlight surrounding the New Zealand star brings with it some unwanted attention, too — specifically from tongue-in-cheek “truthers” who call her age into question. But The Hairpin has put that to rest by obtaining the young artist’s birth certificate. Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O’Connor came into this (cruel, accusatory) world on November 7, 1996. So yeah, she’s 17. Also: not M?ori, if you were wondering.

Now that the matter is settled, the rest of us can continue to feel woefully under-accomplished as we watch footage of Lorde’s homecoming show at Auckland’s Silo Park on Wednesday, January 29. Above, she covers Best New Artist nominee James Blake to her rapturous audience. In her hands, “Retrograde” sounds excellent as always. Below, she takes on a more obscure cut: “Easy” from Lanterns by New York producer/composer/singer Son Lux. Watch her zombie-rock to this:

//www.youtube.com/embed/x9aCT593Csk?rel=0