The Art for Halsey’s New Album Beautifully Celebrates Motherhood

The album is all about the "joys and horrors of pregnancy and childbirth."

Halsey fans have been waiting a long time for this one. On July 7th, the “Without Me” singer announced that her fourth album, titled If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power, will be available for listening on August 27th. She also revealed the album cover art in a Met Gala-themed 13-minute video shared to YouTube. In the video, Halsey is shown walking the halls of The Met Fifth Avenue in NYC, barefoot and pregnant, periodically stopping to admire the artwork portraying a mother and child. It concluded with Halsey unveiling her own Met portrait of sorts: her album cover, an ode to pregnancy, postpartum, and breastfeeding. 

This album is a concept album about the joys and horrors of pregnancy and childbirth, she penned on Instagram after the unveiling. It was very important to me that the cover art conveyed the sentiment of my journey over the past few months.

She further explained that the purpose behind the artwork was to demonstrate “the idea that me as a sexual being and my body as a vessel and gift to my child are two concepts that can co-exist peacefully and powerfully.” Halsey shared that after years of her body “belong[ing to the world in many different ways,” she’s reclaiming her “autonomy” and establishing her “pride and strength as a life force for my human being.”

Halsey is using her upcoming album to put an end to the “dichotomy of the Madonna and the Whore.” The portrait captures her sitting atop of her throne in a floor length long-sleeved gown with her right breast exposed, ready to breastfeed the young child on her lap. It’s a direct correlation to where Halsey is at her own life right now as a soon-to-be parent.

“This cover image celebrates pregnant and postpartum bodies as something beautiful, to be admired. We have a long way to go with eradicating the social stigma around bodies & breastfeeding. I hope this can be a step in the right direction!” she concluded on Instagram.

Halsey has always been someone who continuously uses her platform for only good, and her advocacy for breastfeeding will only fuel the fire to end the social stigma around something so beautiful and humane. 

Emily Weaver
Emily is a NYC-based freelance entertainment and lifestyle writer — though, she’ll never pass up the opportunity to talk about women’s health and sports (she thrives during the Olympics). Read more
Filed Under
 •  •