It's her best album imo. At first, i was like, "Oh. Mmhm. It's good. It's good. But this isn't what i need right now, but I'm rooting for her." By the 3rd listen, which only happened because i loved lonley is the muse, i was singing all the songs. My favorite girl, and i can't help but belt out the great impersonator at the end. Even more than that, lol, funnily enough, i really needed it but didn't know. I needed the honesty. Lol, almost like it's cleansing me from empty music just like a green juice fast. Idk how to explain, but yhe more i listen, the more i feel like I'm coming apart and then coming back together right, like healing. Like untwisting all the lies i tell myself to get through life. So grateful for her effort and nakedness.
self indulgence isn’t even on the table to describe this album when it was, in her mind, the last album she was ever going to make and thought she was going to be dead.
Sometimes it feels like a lot of art is brushed aside because it comes from a female perspective, or that the listener just lacks any personal context that they can use to relate to it, then deems the art unworthy because it did not resonate with them. I found The Great Impersonator a great piece of art in part due to how it resonates with me as a woman with persistent struggles, and human existential thought, as well as how I don't relate to Halsey's experiences but appreciate the art she has created from them. Plus it can also be both. For example: Halsey being a muse but feeling reduced to being a body in a bed. I've probably never influenced someone writing a song, nor have I experienced fame, but I do relate to being or feeling objectified or minimized as a female. "Lucky" resonates a lot with me not due to any likeness of our lives but for the shared human experience of distress and struggle that most people are not aware of, hidden because we have to keep going amidst a variety of social pressures. In the realm of not relating, I absolutely have not felt some of the same kinds of dread or feeling that out of place socially - like in "Darwinism" - but neverthess Halsey paints such a beautiful portrait of her own feelings and philosophizing on the state of existence. I do not have to relate to appreciate it. I do not have to experience something personally to recognize that others do and that it is important to get to share these experiences and perspectives. Clearly the references are homages and not literal recreations, and I feel like they were done well. The Vevo video for "Panic Attack" was exceptional and felt perfect in both song, set, performance, and makeup and costuming for the period. I wasn't alive then, but spent most of my childhood listening to my parents music selection, and the 70s stuff is spot on. From when I was growing up I can say that the 90s and 2000s imitations feel spot on too. What I'm trying to say is that as someone who does have context for most of the artists Halsey homages or imitates, that it feels done well and respectfully. I also say this as someone who only recently has gotten into Halsey, without arguably less potential bias. I only knew a few of her songs, (albeit including a long time love of "Colors",) until recently listening through most of her discography before the release of The Great Impersonator, and I do like almost every song so far. (Ironically have not listened to Manic yet but am looking forward to it, once I can get myself off of only wanting to listen to this current album when I'm putting music on). A side note on terminology: I think what Halsey did for "Lucky" was interpolate Britney Spear's song, where she wrote new lyrics, sang, and recorded all new pieces, whereas sampling involves using part of the original recording. Nevertheless, I feel kind of shocked how much some of these reviewers seem to be missing some of the themes of the album, and appreciate your counter-review. 🫶 Edit: typo Second edit: Realized I forgot a point that is now added in, and changed the start of a couple of sentences so that I am not saying "also" so many times.
@@satousays this is such a great view and explanation. and i can’t wait for you to hear manic for the first time. i’m jealous!! i wish i could have that experience again. i think it’ll be different for you, as you’ve already seen h be so personal and it was more of a first at the time, being album H3/A01 and this being basically H5/A02. if you like this i’m sure you’ll love manic!
I loved the album, with that said that Halsey review exposed a toxic pattern with Anthony Fantano. He lost a lot of credibility tearing down a woman for clicks.
With a lot of family with chronic illiness that slowly kills you this album hit hard. Nobody in my direct family line has lived into their 70s. I am healthy one physically with a few mental things wrong. This album reminds me of them and alot of conversations i had with them. The end reminds me of my brother and his marriage. He flared up arround the beginning of their relationship it got worst before it got better. He straight up told me you marry the girl that stick with you through that. He is still suffering from long term effect from the illiness and drugs to put it in remission.
As someone who isnt a fan of halsey, i interpreted its concept as an homage to icons and a commentary on legacy and mortality, as in with a life cut short trying to become iconic and unforgettable in the space of a final album, the pressure of being a star to remember- the point is its meant to feel like a shortcoming. Her life wouldve been dramatically cut short. Why are people unimpressed shes not literally done a cheap pub level impersonation?
I don't know what it is about these men who seem to project their annoyences to her as a celebrity when they review her work. If these are the best representations of art critics, maybe that kind of journalism needs to die 😂😂😂
I don’t personally understand the critiques that she doesn’t sound enough like the artists she’s “impersonating”…. Because these are the same people who complain when songs sound too inspired by other artists. Cardigan by Taylor Swift comes to mind as an example. No duh, I don’t pick up a Halsey album to hear a Britney Spears song.
i came here from reddit to say what i did over there.. i think these MEN are completely missing the point and do t understand what it is to be a woman in society and also the fact that this album draws from inspiration and is not actually true impersonations. to add to what i said on reddit, i also have lupus and bipolar disorder so that really helps me understand what h is saying in these songs. and yes, how dare anthony come for ‘life of the spider (draft)’ in such a way - it’s so raw and real and is perfect the way it is. i will say that it seems these men (other than steven in stereo, who truly GOT THE ALBUM) have not been in relationships, friendship or otherwise, with women who have struggled with any of these issues that h explored on this release. and they also seem lucky enough not to have experienced issues with their own mortality. and that’s great for them and i don’t wish it to be any different bc no one should have to suffer so much, but it does make them miss the entire point of the album. i really don’t understand how anthony and pitchfork missed the idea entirely. i fear it went over their heads, tbph. thank you for this review, as it seems a female perspective is needed in the review space if most men are going to miss the point entirely and put words out into the ether that diminish someone’s art in such a horrifying way. the fact that men still don’t get what it’s like to be a woman, and a woman artist, it’s quite terrifying, seeing as this is 2024. and the people on twitter, they are just as bad. i’ll bet i’m more grounded than the person who told us to touch grass..
12:37 I’m sorry but how is lover and Midwest Princess a better execution of this concept when lover doesn’t even try to follow that theme and Midwest Princess only slightly followed that concept, when listening to lover you can not at all tell how that is a homage to previous music icons, and Midwest Princess I can only see their argument stand because Chappell dresses in drag but the drag outfits are completely original and Chappell only pays homage to drag queens it’s the live performances and outfits instead of the actual songs themselves, but Halsey’s execution of the concept is more interesting and creative and she goes all out into paying homage instead of resembling drag queens like Chappell, I also hate pitchfork because they don’t make thorough reviews instead they rush a regurgitated and sloppy review to capitalize off the album’s initial hype to get people to read their stupid articles instead of making actual good articles. And at the same time they praise slop like y2k by ice and guilty pleasure by jojo Siwa even though we all know that those albums suck. An example of a good album that pitchfork rated terribly is Ttpd, even though the album is one of Taylor’s best albums . Overall pitchfork suck and they should should collapse Edit: Ik ur prob not gonna read their whole thing but I love ur videos and I’m subscribed, ur videos are really well edited for a smaller UA-camr keep up the good work
Well, i don't know about this reviewer, but i, as an average consumer that don't really follow halsey's content (only know abou her bc of BTS), didn't even listen to her other albums, could follow and understand the concept and the story she was trying to tell in the lyrics (and i'm not even a native english speaker), like, she's not being that metaphorical for it to be so hard to understand that she's talking about someone that is ill or dying (even if she wasn't talking abou herself you could understand that perspective). And, yes, i don't see the concept of she using other artists as "muses" as an attempt to copy or imitate them to perfection. The visual concept, yes, she used the idea of impersonating them. Musically, to me she used them as muses, as inspiration to tell her own stories, and everything falls back in the idea of mortality and legacy. And still, not liking an album from an artist is completely okay, but giving it such low ratings is like they want to miss the point on purpose to create rage bait from her fans, and god, does it sound mysoginistic
I don't understand why Fatano would think that saying the songs sound like a girl in a coming of age movie is a bad thing. Or that songs written from a girl's perspective are subpar. It just sounds like someone's misogyny is showing front and center I have chronic illnesses myself, and during a particularly bad period when I didn't know what was happening and thought maybe I was dying and looked like I was dying, I did lose a lot of myself and felt like a shadow of a person, so your assessment of Halsey perhaps losing a bit of their identity during the crises they went through resonates with my experience
I thought "The Great Impersonator" was good. Not as good as "If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power" (which one of the best albums of the 2020s, IMO), but not as bad as either Pitchfork or Anthony Fantano say.
"Did he not know anything about what was going on in Haley's life before listening to this?" Thats the point. Its not good art if the consumer needs to know the artists health records, childhood traumas, and mental health status as a prerequisite to consuming someone's art. Sorry, but her fans can "claim" she wasn't trying to imitate these other legends in any other way, but that's a joke. She copied them aesthetically, then made an obvious attempt at creating songs that sounded like the originals. When your album is a concept album like that, it's expected that critics are going to sound off on how well she accomplished or achieved that concept.
Every topic you mentioned is something she ACTUALLY TALKS ABOUT ON THE ALBUM. The reason he's getting so much pushback is that he didn't mention her being sick, close to death, or dealing with trauma, when it's literally what she talks about on every song, thereby giving an incredibly weak review that also comes off as wildly biased and rude.
There’s a difference between the average music fan liking or not liking the album and a professional music reviewer not doing any research or due diligence. I think music reviewers should at least try to understand the point of view.
@@LD-tn6ff did you miss the rest of this review and only focus on that?? bc if you take that sentence out, the review still stands. he didn’t need to know her history bc it’s so fucking clear in the lyrics what was going on in her life. as someone else said, it’s what she “ACTUALLY TALKS ABOUT ON THE ALBUM.” the consumer does not “need to know the artist’s health records,” etc… to understand this album, unless they just are not v smart bc she makes its so gd clear you’d have to be oblivious to miss what’s being sung about.
What are your thoughts on the Great Impersonator and music reviews?⭐
The reviews are mean they literally almost died
I looooove the album tho
It's her best album imo. At first, i was like, "Oh. Mmhm. It's good. It's good. But this isn't what i need right now, but I'm rooting for her."
By the 3rd listen, which only happened because i loved lonley is the muse, i was singing all the songs. My favorite girl, and i can't help but belt out the great impersonator at the end.
Even more than that, lol, funnily enough, i really needed it but didn't know. I needed the honesty. Lol, almost like it's cleansing me from empty music just like a green juice fast. Idk how to explain, but yhe more i listen, the more i feel like I'm coming apart and then coming back together right, like healing. Like untwisting all the lies i tell myself to get through life. So grateful for her effort and nakedness.
self indulgence isn’t even on the table to describe this album when it was, in her mind, the last album she was ever going to make and thought she was going to be dead.
Sometimes it feels like a lot of art is brushed aside because it comes from a female perspective, or that the listener just lacks any personal context that they can use to relate to it, then deems the art unworthy because it did not resonate with them.
I found The Great Impersonator a great piece of art in part due to how it resonates with me as a woman with persistent struggles, and human existential thought, as well as how I don't relate to Halsey's experiences but appreciate the art she has created from them. Plus it can also be both. For example: Halsey being a muse but feeling reduced to being a body in a bed. I've probably never influenced someone writing a song, nor have I experienced fame, but I do relate to being or feeling objectified or minimized as a female. "Lucky" resonates a lot with me not due to any likeness of our lives but for the shared human experience of distress and struggle that most people are not aware of, hidden because we have to keep going amidst a variety of social pressures.
In the realm of not relating, I absolutely have not felt some of the same kinds of dread or feeling that out of place socially - like in "Darwinism" - but neverthess Halsey paints such a beautiful portrait of her own feelings and philosophizing on the state of existence. I do not have to relate to appreciate it. I do not have to experience something personally to recognize that others do and that it is important to get to share these experiences and perspectives.
Clearly the references are homages and not literal recreations, and I feel like they were done well. The Vevo video for "Panic Attack" was exceptional and felt perfect in both song, set, performance, and makeup and costuming for the period. I wasn't alive then, but spent most of my childhood listening to my parents music selection, and the 70s stuff is spot on. From when I was growing up I can say that the 90s and 2000s imitations feel spot on too. What I'm trying to say is that as someone who does have context for most of the artists Halsey homages or imitates, that it feels done well and respectfully.
I also say this as someone who only recently has gotten into Halsey, without arguably less potential bias. I only knew a few of her songs, (albeit including a long time love of "Colors",) until recently listening through most of her discography before the release of The Great Impersonator, and I do like almost every song so far. (Ironically have not listened to Manic yet but am looking forward to it, once I can get myself off of only wanting to listen to this current album when I'm putting music on).
A side note on terminology: I think what Halsey did for "Lucky" was interpolate Britney Spear's song, where she wrote new lyrics, sang, and recorded all new pieces, whereas sampling involves using part of the original recording.
Nevertheless, I feel kind of shocked how much some of these reviewers seem to be missing some of the themes of the album, and appreciate your counter-review. 🫶
Edit: typo
Second edit: Realized I forgot a point that is now added in, and changed the start of a couple of sentences so that I am not saying "also" so many times.
This is a really great view of it and i think shows the difference between someone who consumes media, and someone who can actually appreciate art.
@@satousays this is such a great view and explanation. and i can’t wait for you to hear manic for the first time. i’m jealous!! i wish i could have that experience again. i think it’ll be different for you, as you’ve already seen h be so personal and it was more of a first at the time, being album H3/A01 and this being basically H5/A02. if you like this i’m sure you’ll love manic!
I loved the album, with that said that Halsey review exposed a toxic pattern with Anthony Fantano. He lost a lot of credibility tearing down a woman for clicks.
With a lot of family with chronic illiness that slowly kills you this album hit hard. Nobody in my direct family line has lived into their 70s. I am healthy one physically with a few mental things wrong. This album reminds me of them and alot of conversations i had with them. The end reminds me of my brother and his marriage. He flared up arround the beginning of their relationship it got worst before it got better. He straight up told me you marry the girl that stick with you through that. He is still suffering from long term effect from the illiness and drugs to put it in remission.
My mom has a list of chronic disorders, and my dad has Arthritis, as do I as a 21 yr old, thus album hit so fucking hard
great video! i agree halsey deserves more credit for her artistry
As someone who isnt a fan of halsey, i interpreted its concept as an homage to icons and a commentary on legacy and mortality, as in with a life cut short trying to become iconic and unforgettable in the space of a final album, the pressure of being a star to remember- the point is its meant to feel like a shortcoming. Her life wouldve been dramatically cut short.
Why are people unimpressed shes not literally done a cheap pub level impersonation?
I don't know what it is about these men who seem to project their annoyences to her as a celebrity when they review her work.
If these are the best representations of art critics, maybe that kind of journalism needs to die 😂😂😂
the tracks “The End”, “I Never Loved You” and “Ego” are my favorite. Ohh Also “Lonely Is The Muse” is just perfection
i just don’t get how fantano could come up with that take and think anyone would agree.. i’m tempted to say it’s ragebait but it probably isn’t
I guess I fell for it haha
someone said he made sure to post it at the end of the month so he could pay rent lmao
I don’t personally understand the critiques that she doesn’t sound enough like the artists she’s “impersonating”…. Because these are the same people who complain when songs sound too inspired by other artists. Cardigan by Taylor Swift comes to mind as an example. No duh, I don’t pick up a Halsey album to hear a Britney Spears song.
i came here from reddit to say what i did over there.. i think these MEN are completely missing the point and do t understand what it is to be a woman in society and also the fact that this album draws from inspiration and is not actually true impersonations. to add to what i said on reddit, i also have lupus and bipolar disorder so that really helps me understand what h is saying in these songs. and yes, how dare anthony come for ‘life of the spider (draft)’ in such a way - it’s so raw and real and is perfect the way it is.
i will say that it seems these men (other than steven in stereo, who truly GOT THE ALBUM) have not been in relationships, friendship or otherwise, with women who have struggled with any of these issues that h explored on this release. and they also seem lucky enough not to have experienced issues with their own mortality. and that’s great for them and i don’t wish it to be any different bc no one should have to suffer so much, but it does make them miss the entire point of the album. i really don’t understand how anthony and pitchfork missed the idea entirely. i fear it went over their heads, tbph.
thank you for this review, as it seems a female perspective is needed in the review space if most men are going to miss the point entirely and put words out into the ether that diminish someone’s art in such a horrifying way. the fact that men still don’t get what it’s like to be a woman, and a woman artist, it’s quite terrifying, seeing as this is 2024. and the people on twitter, they are just as bad. i’ll bet i’m more grounded than the person who told us to touch grass..
@@BareBohemianBeauty Michael Beveraggi and Popsamcam also had refreshingly thorough and emotional reactions (in case you needed more H content!)
@ thank you! i’ll have to check them out x
12:37 I’m sorry but how is lover and Midwest Princess a better execution of this concept when lover doesn’t even try to follow that theme and Midwest Princess only slightly followed that concept, when listening to lover you can not at all tell how that is a homage to previous music icons, and Midwest Princess I can only see their argument stand because Chappell dresses in drag but the drag outfits are completely original and Chappell only pays homage to drag queens it’s the live performances and outfits instead of the actual songs themselves, but Halsey’s execution of the concept is more interesting and creative and she goes all out into paying homage instead of resembling drag queens like Chappell, I also hate pitchfork because they don’t make thorough reviews instead they rush a regurgitated and sloppy review to capitalize off the album’s initial hype to get people to read their stupid articles instead of making actual good articles. And at the same time they praise slop like y2k by ice and guilty pleasure by jojo Siwa even though we all know that those albums suck. An example of a good album that pitchfork rated terribly is Ttpd, even though the album is one of Taylor’s best albums . Overall pitchfork suck and they should should collapse
Edit: Ik ur prob not gonna read their whole thing but I love ur videos and I’m subscribed, ur videos are really well edited for a smaller UA-camr keep up the good work
Well, i don't know about this reviewer, but i, as an average consumer that don't really follow halsey's content (only know abou her bc of BTS), didn't even listen to her other albums, could follow and understand the concept and the story she was trying to tell in the lyrics (and i'm not even a native english speaker), like, she's not being that metaphorical for it to be so hard to understand that she's talking about someone that is ill or dying (even if she wasn't talking abou herself you could understand that perspective). And, yes, i don't see the concept of she using other artists as "muses" as an attempt to copy or imitate them to perfection. The visual concept, yes, she used the idea of impersonating them. Musically, to me she used them as muses, as inspiration to tell her own stories, and everything falls back in the idea of mortality and legacy. And still, not liking an album from an artist is completely okay, but giving it such low ratings is like they want to miss the point on purpose to create rage bait from her fans, and god, does it sound mysoginistic
i dont particularly like halsey but but like....WHO went into this album thinking it was trying to be lover???? LOVER????
Just randomly found this video and have never seen your content before. Beautifully said. 💜
Someone who finally understood the album. Bless you 😭😭
I don't understand why Fatano would think that saying the songs sound like a girl in a coming of age movie is a bad thing. Or that songs written from a girl's perspective are subpar. It just sounds like someone's misogyny is showing front and center
I have chronic illnesses myself, and during a particularly bad period when I didn't know what was happening and thought maybe I was dying and looked like I was dying, I did lose a lot of myself and felt like a shadow of a person, so your assessment of Halsey perhaps losing a bit of their identity during the crises they went through resonates with my experience
most of the critcs do their only job in a dumb way
I thought "The Great Impersonator" was good. Not as good as "If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power" (which one of the best albums of the 2020s, IMO), but not as bad as either Pitchfork or Anthony Fantano say.
I hope they plays pink pony club ❤
of course
"Did he not know anything about what was going on in Haley's life before listening to this?" Thats the point. Its not good art if the consumer needs to know the artists health records, childhood traumas, and mental health status as a prerequisite to consuming someone's art. Sorry, but her fans can "claim" she wasn't trying to imitate these other legends in any other way, but that's a joke. She copied them aesthetically, then made an obvious attempt at creating songs that sounded like the originals. When your album is a concept album like that, it's expected that critics are going to sound off on how well she accomplished or achieved that concept.
Every topic you mentioned is something she ACTUALLY TALKS ABOUT ON THE ALBUM. The reason he's getting so much pushback is that he didn't mention her being sick, close to death, or dealing with trauma, when it's literally what she talks about on every song, thereby giving an incredibly weak review that also comes off as wildly biased and rude.
There’s a difference between the average music fan liking or not liking the album and a professional music reviewer not doing any research or due diligence. I think music reviewers should at least try to understand the point of view.
@@LD-tn6ff did you miss the rest of this review and only focus on that?? bc if you take that sentence out, the review still stands. he didn’t need to know her history bc it’s so fucking clear in the lyrics what was going on in her life. as someone else said, it’s what she “ACTUALLY TALKS ABOUT ON THE ALBUM.” the consumer does not “need to know the artist’s health records,” etc… to understand this album, unless they just are not v smart bc she makes its so gd clear you’d have to be oblivious to miss what’s being sung about.