
Lorde Makes Shocking Admission About Her 'Gender Identity': 'I'm a Woman Except for the Days When I'm a Man'

Lorde revealed where she stands in her gender identity.
May 15 2025, Published 2:48 p.m. ET
Lorde is leaning into her gender identity with the help of fellow LGBTQ+ musician Chappell Roan.
The "Royals" singer, 28, revealed a candid moment where Roan asked her if she was nonbinary.

Lorde describes herself as 'in the middle gender-wise.'
"[Chappell Roan] asked me this," Lorde recalled to an outlet. "She was like, 'So, are you nonbinary now?' And I was like, 'I’m a woman except for the days when I’m a man.'"
The same lyrics are featured in Lorde's upcoming album, Virgin, to be released on June 27.
She admitted the answer she gave Roan was "not very satisfying," but a part of her was "really resistant to boxing it up."
Lorde described herself as "in the middle gender-wise." She still goes by she/her pronouns and renders herself a cis woman.
The Role of Lorde's Gender Identity in Her Upcoming Album

Lorde is releasing a new album this June.
In 2023, she recalled trying on a pair of men's jeans at clothing store C’H’C’M. She sent a photo to her Virgin producer and collaborator Jim-E Stack, who said, "I want to see the you that’s in this picture represented in the music."
The singer previously opened up to another outlet about the importance of "coming into [her] body" and "feeling the fullness of [her] power" before putting out another record.
"It’s cool to be back in that place of, like, the portal opening and the weight. I’m myself," she expressed. "All these parts of me are represented in a bunch of different ways. I’m not hiding from myself. I’m not stealing from myself."
Want OK! each day? Sign up here!

Lorde's new song 'What Was That' took over TikTok.
The New Zealand native said the April 24 release of "What Was That" was the "beginning" of her music "rebirth." At the time, she was coming out of a period of "great turbulence" following a breakup from her boyfriend of seven years, music executive Justin Warren.
"Becoming single, but also really facing my body stuff head-on, [I started] to feel my gender broadening a little bit," she explained. "Just being back in my house and feeling this big wave of grief. I just kept thinking, 'What was all of that?' Whether it was my seven-year relationship or a pandemic or sacrificing my body to my career since I was 16 or 17. This feeling of, 'Oh, my God, so much has moved through me.' And there’s so much mystery and pain. I just held the mic and sort of walked around the room and said it all. I didn’t write anything down, which was cool."
Lorde's 'What Was That' Music Video
Lorde explored NYC in her new music video
Lorde exuded her newfound freedom in the "What Was That Music" video, where she strutted through the streets of New York City and danced in Washington Square Park.
"All I said making it was just, max aliveness," she emphasized.