Lana Del Rey just made a highly-controversial fashion statement. On Friday, the singer surprised fans at The Grove in Los Angeles with a signing and reading of her new poetry book, Violet Bent Backwards Over the Grass, and she showed up to the event in a sparkly mesh mask that defeated the purpose of wearing one at all.

As a reminder, paper and fabric face coverings have been proven to slow the spread of COVID-19, however, open mesh masks like Lana's provide little to no protection against the virus. This is something fans gently reminded the singer-songwriter in the comments section of a video she posted to Instagram, live-streaming from the event. "You make it so hard to stan please wear a proper mask," one user urged. Another added: "I love you sis but please wear a real mask, it gives a bad message."

Many critics weren't as forgiving when photos began to surface on the internet of Lana posing for selfies with fans, and at one point, pulling down her mask entirely while reading an excerpt from her book. On Twitter, some branded her as a "Karen," while others created memes incorporating the title of her album Born to Die.

Lana has yet to respond to the backlash, but according to The Independent, her sister, Caroline Grant, hit back at critics on social media, stating that the musician had "tested negative" before attending the event. Another defense theory floating around the internet is that there was a translucent layer underneath the mesh, which doesn't make a lot of sense.

In any case, Lana — please do everyone a favor and wear a real mask next time.

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