The new track is Halsey’s comment on the restrictions and expectations that society places on women, and to put it mildly, she’s not having it. “‘Come on little lady give us a smile’/no, I ain’t got nothing to smile about,” she sings.
And then there’s this line: “I’ve been polite but I won’t be caught dead/letting a man tell what I should do in my bed.”
In the chorus, she shouts, “I keep a record of the wreckage of my life/I gotta realize the weapon in my mind/They talk s**t but I love it every time, and I realize/I’m no sweet dream but I’m a hell of a night.”
In other words, about as far from “Boy with Luv” as you can get.
The new song comes complete with a powerful video directed by Hannah Lux Davis, who was behind the camera for Ariana Grande‘s high-concept “thank u, next.” This dark, occasionally bloody clip features an all-female cast, including model/actress Cara Delevigne and New Wave icon Deborah Harry of the band Blondie.
In the clip, Halsey is seen sporting several looks: tough punk rocker, leather-clad dominatrix, pin-up model in a wig and leopard print bodysuit, glammed-up femme in stockings, jewelry and lingerie, and masculine, with slicked-back hair, no makeup and a suit.
On Twitter, Halsey wrote, “Imagine getting onstage every night and seeing young women sweating mascara tears, lightning in their eyes, throwing elbows and raising fists, screaming till the veins in their necks raise under warm skin, and not being inspired by it. This song is about you, for you.”
No word yet on when we can expect a new album from Halsey.
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