Lorde breaks silence on status of age-gap romance as she goes makeup free in skimpy bra to cover Rolling Stone

Daily Mail​

15-05-2025

Lorde is finally opening up about her once-secretive age-gap romance —confirming in the latest Rolling Stone that she's split from longtime boyfriend Justin Warren.
The pop star, 28, had been linked to the 45-year-old music executive since 2016, though the pair hadn't been spotted together since March 2023.
Speculation about their relationship status ramped up in October, when Lorde was seen on a rare public outing with American musician and producer Jim-E Stack in New York.
The New Zealand native looked cozy with Stack—who was rumored to be working with her on her new album Virgin—as they strolled through the city.
Around that time, she also told fans in a letter that she'd been 'living with heartbreak again.'
Now, in her striking new Rolling Stone cover shoot—where she goes makeup-free in a lace-and-diamond bra—Lorde confirms what many had suspected: she and Warren have gone their separate ways.
'I went through a breakup,' she said. 'It was so painful, as they are, but there was real dignity to it and grace and a lot of respect. It continues to be a relationship that I cherish.'
Reflecting on her past, the singer opened up about a recurring pattern in her relationships—often seeking out older partners or mentors to fill a void.
'I had this feeling that I had never been alone. There'd always been someone, not even necessarily a romantic partner. And often that was an older person. I was always choosing someone to be God. It was a pattern I found myself repeating,' she explained.
'I think because of leaving home so young and not quite being ready to be on my own. But I had this very acute sense that I needed to be alone to really meet myself.'
She admitted that the transition wasn't easy, describing the experience of solitude as 'really f****** difficult'—but said she eventually embraced it.
Lorde and Warren reportedly first met in 2009, but it wasn't until years later that rumors of a romance began to swirl.
They were first photographed together in 2016, seen laughing and splashing in the ocean during a beach outing.
At the time, Warren dismissed speculation that they were dating.
Still, over the years, the pair appeared increasingly close—traveling the world together, with Warren even spotted near Lorde's $2.8 million villa in New Zealand.
The Rolling Stone cover comes after Lorde sent fans into a frenzy with her jaw-dropping new album cover and a series of topless photos that left little to the imagination.
The songstress stunned fans when she unveiled the cover art for Virgin, which featured an X-ray of what looked to be her pelvic area, showcasing her hip bones, belt buckle, and zipper.
The T-shaped object in the image, appearing to be an IUD, also sparked a wave of speculation that the inclusion was a bold political statement.
On her website, Lorde revealed the album was '100% written in blood' and will be released on June 27.
But the shock factor didn't stop there.
Less than 24 hours later, the Royals hitmaker upped the ante, sharing eye-popping topless snaps on Instagram, seen here.
Posing with her arms crossed over her chest in front of a window, as well as another shot sitting topless and hugging her knees, Lorde captioned the post with, 'Hanging out with Martine for @documentjournal,' hinting the nearly nude images were part of a magazine shoot.
Another snap in the carousel showed Lorde sporting black Calvin Klein briefs paired with a sheer black top, offering a striking contrast to the more intimate shots.
This follows Lorde releasing her first new music in four years, the song What Was That.
She released the song on April 25 along with the music video which was partially filmed during her bike ride into Washington Square Park in Manhattan ahead of her pop-up performance of the track.
What Was That is Lorde's first major release in almost four years, following 2021's Solar Power album.
Lorde is one of the highest-selling New Zealand singers of all time and her 2013 song Royals reached number one in America, eventually being certified 14 times platinum.