Halsey continues to present her next album and today she releases ‘Lucky’ immersed in an aesthetic inspired by 2000s teen-pop and the era of tabloids. If Britney Spears comes to mind as an icon of that era, ‘Lucky’ ups the ante and appropriates the chorus precisely from ‘Lucky’, Spears’ classic from 2000.
Halsey puts a personal spin on “Lucky,” the second single from “Oops!…I Did it Again,” so much so that it shifts the point of view of Spears’ song from third to first person. “I’m so lucky, I’m a star, why do these tears come in the night?” the chorus now goes.
In the lyrics of ‘Lucky’, Halsey reflects on her own fame, singing that she is “not made” for it, looking in some ways to Spears as well. And she introduces meditations on her illness or her experience as a single mother, and even ruminates on her own death: “When I die I won’t have time to spend my money, but I hope you still love me.”
To express this series of personal reflections, Halsey chooses a dirty, mock-up aesthetic, appropriating little more than a guitar and a drum machine. Halsey also turns the teen-pop gloss of Spears’ ‘Lucky’ on its head, showing us the dark and less pleasant side of fame.
Halsey has revealed that she was only able to release ‘Lucky’ with Spears’ approval. She says that, in order to win Britney’s sympathy, she wrote her “the longest, cheesiest crazy fan letter” and that Spears gave her the thumbs up. The music video, directed by Gia Coppola, is released this afternoon.
Charging …