Halsey unveiled the artwork for her upcoming album If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power and broke down how it embodies "the joys and horrors" of pregnancy.
She showed off the artful image on Instagram, which depicts the regal-looking "Castle" singer sitting on a Game of Thrones-like golden throne. Halsey, who is expecting her first child with screenwriter Alev Aydin, is seen holding a baby on her lap in the cover shot while exposing her breast, which serves as a nod to the Madonna-whore psychological complex of how women are perceived as either motherly figures whose bodies are vessels for childbearing or sexual beings. In her caption, the 26-year-old artist explains how she believes both ideas "can co-exist peacefully and powerfully."
"This album is a concept album about the joys and horrors of pregnancy and childbirth. It was very important to me that the cover art conveyed the sentiment of my journey over the past few months," she shared in the caption. "The dichotomy of the Madonna and the Whore. The idea that me as a sexual being and my body as a vessel and gift to my child are two concepts that can co-exist peacefully and powerfully. My body has belonged to the world in many different ways the past few years, and this image is my means of reclaiming my autonomy and establishing my pride and strength as a life force for my human being."
Her post also revealed that her fourth studio album, produced by Oscar- and Grammy-winners Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross of Nine Inch Nails, will be released on August 27. Stay tuned for updates.