Halsey’s rollout for The Great Impersonator is nothing short of brilliant. As they geared up to release their fifth studio album on October 25, Halsey impersonated a range of music icons in spot-on photoshoots throughout the month.
Starting with Dolly Parton, Halsey recreated iconic photoshoots and album covers of Cher, PJ Harvey, David Bowie, Amy Lee, Kate Bush, Stevie Nicks, Bruce Springsteen, Britney Spears, Aaliyah, Fiona Apple, Joni Mitchell, Tori Amos, Björk, Marilyn Monroe and even Halsey themself as a tribute to their debut studio album Badlands. Along with each post, Halsey included a snippet of a song from the upcoming album.
The Great Impersonator standard cover reads, “Witness the uncanny ability of a woman who can become anyone, anything your heart desires. Friend, lover, foe. She transforms before your very eyes, her voice and visage a reflection of your deepest dreams and darkest fears, but beware, for she is not just a master of disguise but a spirit of transformation, slipping between the cracks of reality . . . One moment a beloved friend, the next a shadowy nightmare. She is the queen of the uncanny, the mistress of metamorphosis. Beware of the great impersonator!”
Halsey has described the album as a confessional concept album that explores the types of music they would have made if they had debuted during different decades, as heard in songs like “Lucky,” a 2000s-inspired track that samples Britney Spears’ song of the same name, and “Lonely is the Muse,” a 2000s-inspired heavy rock track.
This summer, Halsey released the first single of the album “The End,” which revealed their private battle with Lupus LSE, a chronic autoimmune disease that can affect the brain, kidneys, skin, lungs, and nervous system, and then a rare T-cell lymphoproliferative disorder.
“After 2 years, I’m feeling better and I’m more grateful than ever to have music to turn to,” Halsey said in an Instagram post. “I can’t wait to get back where I belong: With you all. Singing and screaming my heart out.”
The Great Impersonator is out now.
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