• Clayton Johnson is competing on The Bachelorette Season 22 with Taylor Frankie Paul.
  • The Nashville-based singer used to be engaged to Lana Del Rey.
  • Clayton has been in multiple celebrity music video, including DNCE's "Cake by the Ocean."

Today in "reasons why I could not be more seated for Taylor Frankie Paul's Bachelorette season," it looks like Lana Del Rey's ex-fiancé, Clayton Johnson, is competing on the show. So...what's the deal? WHERE! TO! BEGIN. There's a lot of lore to go over, so let's get into it as we mentally prepare for the "Secret Lives of Mormon Wives x Lana Del Rey" crossover we never knew we needed.

First Up, Clayton and Lana’s Whole Thing...

These two met on a dating app sometime in August of 2020, and got engaged just a few months later in December. So yes, things were hot and heavy for a moment—and their engagement lasted almost a year! Alas, they ended up breaking things off in September 2021, when a source explained to the The Mirror, "Lockdown had its struggles and they have sadly gone their separate ways."

TBD on if Clayton and Lana are still in touch, but they were on good terms as of July 2024, when Clayton posted on Instagram "Back in January, Lana and I sat in Nashville free styling songs on an acoustic guitar about imaginary animals and Oliver’s chew toys. I showed her a few songs I had been working on, and played her a song idea from a different session. She had a vision for it. Her and Jack gave me a call when she got home and asked if we could rework this voice note idea that I sent over for 'Tough.'"

He Was in the Video for “Cake by the Ocean” by the Jonas Brothers

And in the video for "Good Time" by Paris Hilton

He Played Guitar for Sabrina Carpenter

Clayton connected with Sabrina in L.A. and he played for her at the Disney Music Awards. The more you know.

He’s a Singer Based in Nashville

In case you didn't pick up on that fact from all of the above ^^^ you can check out his music here:

FYI, Clayton recently told Country Now, "My career and my path has not been…. a straight path. It hasn’t been an easy path. It’s been a lot of — I find myself trying to find where I feel the most at peace and where I feel the most like myself. It’s taken me to different places of exploration with acting, other genres, living in different places. I’m in my mid-30s now and I feel like, as a kid, you have to fall off of a bicycle a couple of times and scrape your knee and feel that pain."

He also chatted about growing up in California and moving to Nashville, saying "Ever since I moved and was visiting Nashville years ago, I’ve always felt a calling to be here. I had a Facebook memory pop up 15 years ago that said, 'I can’t wait to move to the South' and sure enough, here I am years later. I finally made it happen. But, I’ve always felt at peace and at home here. California will always be my home. My parents still have their little ranch out there. We’ll go out there for the 4th of July, which will be nice, but I feel like this is where I’m supposed to be right now."

He Had a Boy Band With His Brothers

Who will presumably show up on The Bachelorette if Clayton makes it to hometowns. Also, here's this, enjoy:

He’s Super Close to His Parents

Clayton told Country Now that their relationship inspires his music, saying "I have parents that have been married for almost 40 years and I see the kind of love they have and I’m a single man. So writing songs that are inspired by them and the love they have, it’s been great to put everything I’ve gone through into this EP."

He Recently Opened Up About Dating

Back in May, Clayton went on a podcast and chatted about dating, confirming that he's single (in other words, no secret girlfriends!) and saying that he's trying "not to put too much pressure" on dating.

Can't wait to see if he and Taylor vibe once The Bachelorette starts (by the way, it's filming now).