VAMPIRE
Mai Lan
French-Vietnamese artist Mai-Lan Aquarella Morgane Chapiron, known simply as Mai Lan, brings the wickedness of Dracula to French pop music. Self-described as “a joyful, festive threat ,” "Vampire" offers an enticing juxtaposition of vampiric themes and catchy tunes.
LYRICS
Lone lone love
Gonna hit some pom pom
All we need is get some
Of it need to get drunk
I'm here to say hello
Watch above and below
Guns under pillows
Never have just call your mama
We'll drink all of it
Don't need a plumber
We're gonna empty it
Just like a vampire
Lonely limps gonna eat you
Yum yum
Chew you like a gum gum
Drink your blood like a soda
I'm here to build up an empire
Cause I’m a vampire
Better hide in a bunker
Gonna cook you with pepper and lime
Watch your former jawline
Got a need to be filled up
And if you run I will walk we will always find you
And if you climb up walls I can always reach you
I'm here to build up an empire
Cause I’m a vampire
Cause I'm a vamp
You - you found your place in it
Got a huge stomach
It'll be warm and sweet
Lime and coconut
Is it an exodus
You can't escape from this
Get used to this
Get in your timing
Just call your grandmama
And all the friends you got
I'm the new Dracula
I need a hangover
I'm gonna fill this cup
With some of your ketchup
And gonna drink you up
Until the final drop
I'm here to build up an empire
Cause I’m a vampire
Better hide in a bunker
Gonna cook you with pepper and lime
Watch your former jawline
Got a need to be filled up
And if you run I will walk we will always find you
And if you climb up walls I can always reach you
I'm here to build up an empire
Cause I’m a vampire
Cause I’m a vamp
Lone lone love
Gonna hit some pom pom
All we need is get some
All we need is get drunk
We'll drink all of it
We're gonna empty it
Gonna eat you yum, yum
Chew you like a gum, gum
I'm here to build up an empire
Cause I'm a vampire
Better hide in a bunker
Gonna cook you with pepper and lime
Watch your former jawline
Got a need to be filled up
And if you run I will walk we will always find you
And if you climb up walls I can always reach you
I’m here to build up an empire
Cause I’m a vampire
Cause I’m a vamp
"Vampire" makes very explicit connections to both vampiric tradition, as well as Dracula specifically. The obvious broadly applicable elements are present— her intentions to “drink your blood like a soda” and her “need to be filled up” by cannibalistic methods— with a modern twist, e.g. the soda, the implication of turning this act into fine dining with the “pepper and lime.” Additionally, the references to Dracula’s abilities to scale walls, Mai Lan's “if you climb up walls I can always reach you,” as well as the declarations of vampirism, “I’m a vampire,” and being the “new Dracula” draw more direct comparison between Mai Lan and the Count.
Furthermore, Mai Lan makes repeated reference to her want of “[building] up an empire.” This harkens— Harkers? —back to Dracula’s intentions for purchasing a residence in London and traveling through England— to spread his vampirism. Mai Lan positions herself in this same warring position, with her opponents “[hiding] in a bunker,” which aligns to the empiric position in which Dracula placed himself.
These references all establish Mai Lan within the traditions of Stoker’s Dracula, while simultaneously adding a modernization to the characterization.
SONICS
Musically, Mai Lan plays on the performatively innocuous side of the Dracula character. When we are introduced to the Count in the novel, he is an upstanding and accommodating host, housing Jonathan Harker as they pursue negotiations on real estate. As Harker digs deeper and understands Dracula more than just superficially, he grows to understand the malevolence of the ancient being.
The sonic elements of this song operate in much the same way; the grooving, drive of the electro-pop sound backed by an ethereal whistling give an inviting feel one may settle into. It is only then that the unsuspecting listener—upon digging deeper, much like Harker and his foe—becomes aware of the true, monstrous nature of the song’s message.
