Halsey recently shared how her forays into acting have influenced her persona as a musician. Artiste Halsey, whose real name is Ashley Nicolette Frangipane, has been trying to juggle new personas while working on Americana released this year, and Maxine due to hit theaters next year.
In an interview recently with The Hollywood Reporter, Halsey talks about how acting has given her leeway to draw lines between her stage persona and herself. She said acting has relieved her to be doing something different from being the musician she’s always been.
“I always compare Halsey to Grey’s Anatomy,” Halsey said. “After 25 seasons, actors probably feel they can’t play Meredith anymore. That’s how I felt about Halsey. It was an existential question: ‘Why do I feel like I’m playing Halsey?'” As she spoke, she elaborated, “Halsey was supposed to be a stage name. Not a persona. And it is a persona now, which I don’t want it to be.”
Even though she’s still using her stage name when acting, Halsey appreciates the opportunity to play roles far different from what many associate her music with. “Acting gave me a break from being ‘Halsey, ‘” she said. “It allowed me to be part of someone else’s vision. Much of my music is driven by my being in control of everything. Acting was refreshing because my role was to serve the director’s vision, not to lead.”
She was also excited about the fresh creative experience acting involved. “Being bad at something and working with others was stimulating,” she said. “Being an artist is very lonely. People don’t know that it could be, often. And though it beats being in a band, cuz I’d probably be a nightmare band member.”
The interview also sees her reflecting on her love for Britney Spears in light of her career. Halsey recently interpolated Spears’ hit song “Lucky” for her track of the same name.
“While I will never understand the extent of the fame and lack of control Britney faced, I relate a bit with our careers,” said Halsey. “Britney was the first pop star that I ever Freaked out about. I knew everything about her, i idolized her. I thought she had, like, the perfect life, you know did everybody my age throughout her career, I always just kind of rooted for her.”
As she said, moving into acting shines a light on the whole different look she has toward her career, being able to step out of the persona that has defined her and start her artistic path down the avenue of new continuance with the depth of her creativity and adaptability.
ANI
