Photo by Matt Jelonek/Wire Image
Halsey’s new album, Manic, may be her most personal release yet, and no track demonstrates that better than album-closer “929.” Over the course of three minutes, the New Jersey pop star delivers a stream-of-conscious reflection on the current state of her life, including relationships with her father and an unnamed ex.
Early on, she opens up about being disappointed in one of her heroes and feeling taken advantage of in the music industry:
They said don’t meet your heroes, they’re all fuckin' weirdos
And God knows that they were right
Because nobody loves you, they just try to fuck you
Then put you on a feature on the B-Side
Although she remains vague about who she’s referencing, her ex-boyfriend G-Eazy does have an EP titled B-Sides. Halsey is not featured on the project and “B-side” is a general music industry term, but their relationship seems to come up again later on, when she sings:
Lost the love of my life to an ivory powder
But then I realize that I’m no higher power
That I wasn’t in love then, and I’m still not now
And I’m so happy I figured that out
Once again, she doesn’t name names, but the lyrics seem to point to the two stars' relationship. G-Eazy has faced legal trouble for cocaine possession in the past. Halsey also made gossip headlines in 2018 after a photograph appeared to show her snorting an unidentified substance on a yacht in Miami.
“929” has a few lines that speak to her presence in the tabloids, too:
And who do you call when it’s late at night?
When the headlines just don’t paint the picture right
When you look at yourself on a screen and say
“Oh my God, there’s no way that’s me”
However, it’s worth noting that she has lyrics about a lover with a coke habit that predate her last relationship. 2017’s “Bad At Love” found her singing about similar subject matter:
Got a girl with California eyes
And I thought that she could really be the one this time
But I never got the chance to make her mine
Because she fell in love with little thin white lines
“929” also addresses Halsey’s father, whom she maintains a good relationship with despite a sometimes-rocky past. Genius contributor tirelessmess breaks it down:
In her Spotify Storyline about the track, Halsey said that “929” came together as a near-freestyle in the studio. “A stream of consciousness ranting confessional,” she wrote. “This one was almost like a freestyle in the booth. I barely wrote anything down. I just started spilling all of my thoughts about myself and my fans and my family, and I admit so many faults and flaws all in one go. It’s forgiving, however, it ends with the acknowledgement that I am learning and growing, minute by minute.”
The song is produced by Jasper Sheff and John Cunningham, and caps off Manic with some of the most self-confessional lyrics of her career.
Listen to the song above and read all the lyrics to Halsey’s “929” on Genius now.
