Singer and pop star Halsey released her second record, “Hopeless Fountain Kingdom,” earlier this year. Like her first, it’s a concept album, based, in this case, on her own breakup with a partner and partly on the Romeo and Juliet story.
Halsey has a pleasing voice with a hint of husk and rasp when she sings, or talk-sings, in a lower register. One can hear her New Jersey roots at times in her particular enunciations. She can sound equally influenced by hip-hop and Billie Holiday. You might recognize Halsey from “Closer,” the enormous hit by the Chainsmokers.
Halsey, who turns 23 at the end of this month, got her start posting tracks online, and she’s emerged in the post-Lorde era, when young singers and songwriters can work in something like isolation and then burst onto the world stage. The combination encourages a strange mix of introspection, concealment and self-exposure. Like Lorde, Halsey is more likely to make brooding songs about being anxious and feeling alienated than about mindlessly hitting the dancefloor. Halsey is highly tattooed and likes to show her ink. She’s also recently shaved her head and has been keen to rock a wig, only heightening the fluidity of style, character and persona, which can only be good for pop people to embrace.
Halsey will perform at Mohegan Sun Arena, 1 Mohegan Sun Blvd., Uncasville, on Friday, Sept. 29, at 7 p.m. $59, $79 and $89. 860-226-7711 and mohegansun.com.
