Halsey Reveals How BTS Inspired Her Latest Album, Dishes On Collaboration
In a recent interview, Halsey revealed new details about her personal connection to BTS, and her plans to collaborate with them in the future.
ARMYs already know that Halsey is a big fan of the group.
with @halsey .. 누가 저 합성 좀 해주세요 – RM pic.twitter.com/T3ABQ07NxO
— 방탄소년단 (@BTS_twt) May 22, 2017
She has met up with the members several times…
…and has not been shy about expressing her love for the group on social media.
you know there was no way I’d come all the way to Seoul without seeing these guys. 👼🏼 can’t wait to see them play Staples center!!! I’m HELLA proud. 💗💖💗 @BTS_twt pic.twitter.com/RF4vqE9G0J
— h (@halsey) August 7, 2018
Halsey and BTS began discussing collaboration plans back in 2017.
BTS, Halsey, and Machine Gun Kelly Talked About Possible Future Collaborations
“[We talked with] Halsey and Machine Gun Kelly. We talked about what we could collaborate on together in the future.” — RM
Since then, fans have eagerly awaited an official collaboration announcement.
tell me where yall see the news about a bts x halsey collaboration i need to see it with my own pair of eyes before i decide to choke myself
— sara holmes ♡ 73 (@jksheaux) February 27, 2018
Hoping for @BTS_twt x @halsey collaboration soon :)
— felix's freckles (@MINFULLYOONGI) November 3, 2017
I'm shipping their friendship.hope to see a collaboration soon?
— Orchid M (@OrchidM4) August 7, 2018
Although this announcement has yet to be made, Halsey revealed how she envisions the collab going down. In an interview with heatworld, she discussed what she felt she and BTS could both bring to the table.
“I think we both have this conceptual thing that we really like to do, so it could be cool to find some kind of bridge that is really great for their M.O. and my M.O. Something that kind of like signified the whole thing together.” — Halsey
From there, Halsey went on to talk about how BTS played a role in inspiring her 2017 album Hopeless Fountain Kingdom.
“They were so inspirational to me when I was making Hopeless Fountain Kingdom.” — Halsey
She was inspired by the “philosophical references”, colours, and other aspects of BTS’s earlier work.
“I was watching some of their earlier concept videos and I saw some of the philosophical references they were using, and the colours, and the warmness, and just all of it. It inspired me so much.” — Halsey
She said that this experience helped her to see her own work from a fan’s perspective.
“As someone who loves making concept records for my fans, part of the fan experience of being a fan of [BTS] was going through all that to see it from the other side. It helped me make [Hopeless Fountain Kingdom]. I told them that the first time I met them.” — Halsey
Halsey also commented on BTS’s mainstream popularity in non-English speaking countries by comparing K-Pop’s rise to the rise of Latin music.
“It takes time. I think that the Latin community was making really incredible music for so long that was going under the radar and then it started to break slowly. “Despacito” was the #1 record worldwide. I think people are starting to come around to the idea of accepting music as a non-verbal expression, and something that’s a little more abstract than that.” — Halsey
She ended the segment by referring to BTS as pioneers who are helping K-Pop to become more mainstream.
“So, watching Latin artists have their break in English-speaking countries, it gives me hope that BTS is pioneering a path for that music to be more commercial.” — Halsey
“I’m rooting for them,” she said.
You can check out what else Halsey had to say in the full interview here.
