Turns out, it’s actually quite zen
@Dave Benett/Getty Images for De Beers Group / EBPR
Lily Allen’s new album has finally landed – and it’s masterpiece.
From addiction to non-monogamy, and heartbreak to healing, Lily’s West End Girl is a perhaps her most honest album yet. Although she’s said the album is a blend of fact and fiction, it’s thought to be heavily inspired by her marriage breakdown from Stranger Things actor David Harbour.
From ‘Relapse’ to ‘Madeline’, several songs have already got people talking. But there’s one lyric on ‘Pussy Palace’ that’s raised several questions. Just what is a ‘dojo’?
Our mention of a dojo comes in the single ‘Pussy Palace’, which suggests Lily’s partner may have a sex addiction after she walks into his apartment to find an abundance of NSFW items. ‘Duane Reade bag with the handles tied/ Sex toys, butt plugs, lube inside/ Hundreds of Trojans,’ she sings.
The discovery comes as a shock to baffled Lily. ‘I didn’t know it was your pussy palace, pussy palace,’ she sings, continuing, ‘I always thought it was a dojo, dojo.’
Ultimately, the song leaves Lily questioning everything she knew about her former lover: with the lyrics asking, ‘Am I looking at a sex addict?’
While the meaning of ‘pussy palace’ is pretty explanatory, it’s not quite as obvious what a dojo is…
What is a dojo?
While it does hark back to Ken’s Mojo Dojo Casa House from 2023’s Barbie, a dojo actually has roots in martial arts.
According to Google, a dojo is a ‘Japanese term for a hall or room where martial arts (such as Judo and Jiu-Jitsu), meditation, or other physical and experiential learning takes place.’ Literally translating to ‘place of the way,’ a dojo is considered to be a space for ‘personal growth and discipline, beyond just a physical location.’
Sprinkling in some modern context, it’s also said dojo has been adopted by some businesses to describe environments for team learning and skill development. Clearly Lily’s album has piqued interest, with an increase in people searching for dojo room bookings…
Now, it’s important to note that Lily’s album isn’t based entirely on fact. As with any artist, Lily certainly drew on her own experiences when writing this album – admitting it was heavily inspired by her ‘deep-rooted issues with rejection and abandonment.’ She also explained, ‘There are definitely some things that happened in my real life that are reflected on this record,’ but highlighted that it’s not ‘all gospel.’
Aside from acting, Lily’s ex-husband David is a skilled martial artists. He’s trained in jiu-jitsu and Greco-Roman wrestling, particularly for his role in the 2022 movie Violent Night. Opening up about his skills, David previously shared, ‘[I’m] trained in wrestling styles and jiu-jitsu. I did a movie with Liam [Neeson] after the Taken series. He marvelled at it. When you’re in your twenties, in your prime physically, nobody’s really interested in you doing that. And then you get to be a little old and crotchety and incapable, and they get very interested!”
Charlotte Roberts is a writer at Grazia UK, specialising in SEO. She spends her days covering everything celebrity, culture, and entertainment – from film review roundups to cast explainers.
