The Ballad of Mona Lisa

"The Ballad of Mona Lisa" (commonly referred to as simply "Mona Lisa") is a song by American rock band Panic! at the Disco, released February 1, 2011 as the first single from the group's third studio album, Vices & Virtues (2011). Vocalist Brendon Urie wrote the song to express personal struggles and convictions many years prior to its official production for Vices & Virtues.

The song has received positive critical reviews upon its release.

Background

"The Ballad of Mona Lisa", written by lead singer Brendon Urie, was one of the first tracks composed for the band's third album, Vices & Virtues. As a song written before the band even began recording their second album, Pretty. Odd., it proved to be an inspiration for the production of Vices & Virtues. "A few of the ideas — like "The Ballad of Mona Lisa", specifically — was from an idea I had probably four years ago, before we even started touring on Pretty. Odd., and it was just sitting in my laptop collecting figurative dust on my hard drive, not really doing much," said Urie. "That ended up being a really good intro to the whole process." "I showed the band a couple times," said Urie, "but it just fell to the wayside, we never did anything with it. Other ideas beat it out or whatever reason it was.” He wrote the song dealing with his own personal convictions and struggles. "On the surface it can seem like just the story of drama between a guy and a girl," explains Urie. "But it's really about what I've been going through, an inner-struggle within myself, and fighting the dualities of my personality -- the side that fucks everything up and destroys everything and the other side that tries to pick up the slack. It's all growing pains." The song was also inspired by Urie's move from Las Vegas, Nevada, where he's lived his entire life, to Santa Monica, California with Panic! drummer Spencer Smith. Urie notes that the move was "a huge part of growing up."

Mona Lisa

The Mona Lisa (/ˌmoʊnə ˈliːsə/; Italian: Monna Lisa [ˈmɔnna ˈliːza] or La Gioconda [la dʒoˈkonda], French: La Joconde [la ʒɔkɔ̃d]) is a half-length portrait of a woman by the Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci, which has been acclaimed as "the best known, the most visited, the most written about, the most sung about, the most parodied work of art in the world".

The painting, thought to be a portrait of Lisa Gherardini, the wife of Francesco del Giocondo, is in oil on a white Lombardy poplar panel, and is believed to have been painted between 1503 and 1506. Leonardo may have continued working on it as late as 1517. It was acquired by King Francis I of France and is now the property of the French Republic, on permanent display at the Louvre Museum in Paris since 1797.

The subject's expression, which is frequently described as enigmatic, the monumentality of the composition, the subtle modeling of forms, and the atmospheric illusionism were novel qualities that have contributed to the continuing fascination and study of the work.

Lisa

Lisa may refer to:

People

Films

Places

Panic! at the Disco

Panic! at the Disco (stylized for a time as Panic at the Disco) is an American rock band from Las Vegas, Nevada, formed in 2004 and featuring the current lineup of vocalist Brendon Urie, accompanied on tour by bassist Dallon Weekes, guitarist Kenneth Harris, and drummer Dan Pawlovich.

Founded by childhood friends Ryan Ross, Spencer Smith, Brent Wilson and Brendon Urie, Panic! at the Disco recorded its first demos while its members were in high school. Shortly after, the band recorded and released its debut studio album, A Fever You Can't Sweat Out (2005). Made known by the top ten lead single, "I Write Sins Not Tragedies", the album eventually was certified double platinum in the US. In 2006, founding bassist Brent Wilson was fired from the band during an extensive world tour, and subsequently replaced by Jon Walker.

Influenced by 1960s rock bands the Beatles, the Zombies and the Beach Boys, and preceded by the hit single, "Nine in the Afternoon", the band's second studio album, Pretty. Odd. (2008), marked a significant departure from the sound of the band's debut, and ultimately led to the departure of guitarist and principal songwriter Ryan Ross and bassist Jon Walker, who favored the band's new direction. The duo subsequently formed a new band, the Young Veins, leaving Brendon Urie and Spencer Smith as the sole remaining members of Panic! at the Disco.

Mona

Mona (and variant written forms) may refer to:

Arts and entertainment

Art

Music