I feel extremely fortunate to be able to attend live music shows, as it’s one of the few things that breaks through my anhedonia.
I’m usually a rock’n’roll girly, but you can’t convince me Halsey ain’t a rock star, and she’s probably one of the best contemporary lyricists, imho.
Last night, I attended her anniversary tour concert, Back to Badlands, in Brisbane Australia. She came out early, sang for 2.5 hours, talked to the audience and put on a f*cking spectacle! I had a blast.
In addition to her concert being therapy (I bawled my eyes out during a song, ya’ll—not a reaction I expected from myself!), it was also inspirational from the perspective of someone making art professionally.
Halsey has always been open about her mental health struggles and the BS that goes down in the music industry. But last night, she spoke about how wild it is to be on the other side of the world, singing her debut songs which she wrote over a decade ago in her bedroom.
And I want to use this as a reminder to my fellow debut authors: It can feel like the party’s over once the new release hype dies down, but ten years from now, someone will be writing a post like this about your book and how it changed their life. Cos the party’s never really over once your art is out in the world.
I only discovered Halsey about 5 years ago, BTW, unlike most of the bands I listen to, which have been with me since my teens. And a lot of people at the show have never been to a Halsey concert before. Art has longevity!!
She also spoke about how hard the past year has been for her professionally. How uncertain she felt about her career and whether she’ll be able to continue making music. And that despite this, she’s got so much more left to give and she’ll make it happen one way or another.
And if you don’t know, the background is that she got dropped by her record label. After four successful studio albums she was dropped for taking creative liberties on her last album! (It kicks ass, by the way—she’s a real genre-bender).
And again, that is so translatable to publishing. Sh!t can go wrong at any stage in your career—good books die on sub, contracts get cancelled, publishers go bust. That is the precarious business reality—which sucks—but none of it is a creative death sentence. It’s a reminder to stay grateful and be so f*cking tenacious! Because we all have much more to give and can claw our way out of any dumpster fire.
Halsey also shouted out other artists (and performed songs with Kesha and The Veronicas), and spoke about how much she enjoys going to concerts and festivals as a listener, highlighting the importance of community and recharging your creative battery.
The show was visually stunning and Badlands has such a Blackjack vibe— the stars, the deserts, the dive bars and the neon lights! Nod if you read Galaxy Grifter.
Like I said, I had a blast and hope we get much more of Halsey and other artists taking creative risks. It’s what makes life liveable.
P.s. I went with my 9-year old. This was her first concert and she’s still buzzing. Also— she was doing the filming, hence the quality of the footage on IG🤣
P.p.s. In addition to singing along to Halsey, my 9y.o. also pointed out “the guitarist was such a slay queen!” And she was. Two of the latest shows I’ve attended had female guitarists and one had a female drummer and they are totally slay queens.
And so are you, dear reader.
A. ZAYKOVA 