Lorde’s Audience Was Audibly Grossed Out As She Proudly Discussed Swimming In The Potomac River

The Potomac River is one of the largest rivers in the United States, but it also has the reputation of being one of our nation’s grossest (more on that later). So, when Lorde played in Washington DC (located on the river’s east bank) last night (August 29), she attempted to connect with her audience by revealing she took a swim in the river. However, fans made is hilariously clear how grossed out they were by that story.

Between songs, Lorde told her audience, “I was thinking today, I was lying in the Potomac River.” That got a cheer because people at concerts love when things about their area are referenced by the performer. Lorde went on to note that one of her band members, a local to the area, took her there. She continued, “I love getting to swim in water where I’m playing. It makes me feel like I know you a bit better, somehow.”

Not long after the word “swim” left Lorde’s lips, the fact that Lorde actually lowered her body into the river seemed to dawn on everybody in the audience at once, as disgusted groans and some laughter loudly took over the room, as a fan-shot video shows.

For context, the river has a long history of not being home to the country’s cleanest water. In the 1860s, Abraham Lincoln used to complain about the smell. It’s a common myth that former president Lyndon B. Johnson called the river a “national disgrace” and while that’s not exactly true, he did say something pretty close to that at the Water Emergency Conference in 1965: “It is disgraceful. I was out on it last night and you can hardly go down the river without reflecting and wondering why we have been so shortsighted these years.”

For a good while, things didn’t get much better with the Potomac. In 2007, environmental group Potomac Conservancy gave the river a grade of “D-plus” and made note of intersex fish, not typically a natural occurrence in clean water, being found in it. Things have improved since then, though: In 2020 the same group gave the river a B grade and noted, “Industrial and agricultural pollution are down, native fish and other animals are returning, and more families than ever are turning to the outdoors for fun and relaxation.”

So, while the Potomac certainly has a reputation, maybe Lorde taking a dip didn’t actually warrant the horrified reaction it received.