Lorde’s ‘Solar Power’ Cover Art Has Two Versions: One Oddly Leaves Out Her Butt
Video screenshot via Lorde
To adhere to media censorship guidelines, designers of Lorde’s cover artwork for her new single Solar Power have created a second version that bafflingly takes a crack at the track’s name.
In most parts of the world, listeners of streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music would be shown an image of the singer, photographed from below, at the beach and leaping to the other side of the frame. In line with the title, there’s a soft backlight from the sun.
A similar variation is presented on music services of mainland China, the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, Japan, and Saudi Arabia—but with the singer’s rear behind being bleeped out with “solar power” instead, VICE discovers.
The censored image became the butt of mockery on Chinese social network Weibo. “What did we do to deserve the same cover art as the one shown in the Middle East?” one jaded user questioned.
Spotify, Apple Music, and Universal Music have not responded to queries about the alternative cover as of yet.
The sun does shine there in certain parts of the world, it seems.
In China #SolarPower Lorde‘s new album cover is censored by stronger solar power…
— 巴丢草 Badiucao (@badiucao) June 11, 2021
first pic is the original cover
the rest are from music providers in China.
by the way Chairman Mao is refered as SUN in China. pic.twitter.com/M8pl0s3fRi
Solar Power cover art in China
— mauro (@mauro60816318) June 11, 2021
#Lorde pic.twitter.com/Yu8dOFIlr1
[via VICE, cover image via Lorde]
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