Halsey dresses up as Dolly Parton to launch ‘The Great Impersonator’ preview series
Leading up to her fifth studio album, Halsey will portray an array of different icons alongside snippets of the songs they inspired
By Larisha Paul
Halsey wasn’t kidding when she printed a statement about her shapeshifting abilities on the cover of her upcoming album, The Great Impersonator. “Step right up, ladies and gentlemen! Behold the marvel of a century,” it reads. “Witness the uncanny ability of a woman who can become anyone, anything your heart desires.” With the album set for release on Oct. 25, the musician has launched a countdown series in which she will impersonate a different iconic figure every day leading up to its release.
Dolly Parton is the first to receive the Great Impersonator treatment. In a social media post, Halsey shared her transformation into the country icon, recreating the big bust and even bigger hair combo from Parton’s Rainbow album cover. It’s spot-on, even down to the way the curls in Halsey’s blonde wig fall around her face.
But Halsey isn’t just playing dress-up (though she did do her own makeup for the shoot). She’s also offering a glimpse into the sonic shapeshifting across her upcoming album. “The countdown to The Great Impersonator begins,” she wrote on social media. “From now till the album drops on October 25th, I will be impersonating a different icon every day and teasing a snippet of the song they inspired.”
Halsey’s impersonation of Parton has been paired with ‘Hometown’, the ninth track on The Great Impersonator. On X, the singer-songwriter encouraged fans to stay clear of her socials if they don’t want details about the album spoiled before it arrives. “I have so many exciting things (that I made with some incredible creatives) to make this lead up fun and I CANNOT wait to share them,” she wrote. “This is your “stay off my instagram until further notice if you don’t want album spoilers” – warning :)”
The Great Impersonator arrives just a few days before Halloween, adding another layer of meaning to the overarching theme of the record. “The Great Impersonator being a Halloween album is divine timing,” Halsey continued on X. “Partially on purpose, partially just what happened and what made sense. and I’m LOVING IT ALREADY.”
So far, Halsey has shared four singles from the album. The rollout officially began with ‘The End’, an emotional record revealing a myriad of health complications the musician faced while writing and recording the 18-track project. It continued with the Britney Spears-sampling ‘Lucky’ and the rioting rock track ‘Lonely Is the Muse’. The most recent single, ‘Ego’, arrived ahead of the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards, where Halsey performed the song for the first time with every ounce of her inner New Jersey angst.