HELLO, HALSEY

A thumb thoughtfully placed against her upper lip while she cradles a cigarette between her fingers, her jaw jutting forward as if on the verge of unhinging, her hand casually dangling by her crotch as she clutches the neck of a guitar. A modern pop and rock star who’s long embraced the fluidity of her gender, Halsey knew exactly what she was doing when she conceptualized a photo shoot to pay homage to a handful of male rock icons who have influenced her style and bearing. The singer of hits like “Without Me,” “Bad at Love,” and “Strangers,” Halsey grew up listening to the music of Bob Dylan, Mick Jagger, David Bowie, and Jimi Hendrix.

For the project embodying the stars in a cover shoot for The Advocate, Halsey not only meticulously studied their gestures but also their essence. Then she carefully crafted the makeup and look for the male personas she would inhabit. The result is a series that speaks to the influence of those men on popular culture, while encapsulating Halsey’s commitment to detail and fearlessness in excavating the facets of her identity.

Halsey was in the middle of placing the finishing touches on her third album, , winning an American Music Award for Favorite Song Rock/Pop for “Without Me,” and touching down in Australia, Japan, Boston, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles for various gigs and appearances when in late 2019 she took a day off for the