Halsey has released a new music video for “929” in celebration of her birthday today, September 29. The song was originally released as the closer for her platinum-selling album Manic, which came out in January this year.
The video shows old photos and footage from Halsey’s life on prop television screens projected inside a miniature pink and white room. Most of the photos/videos focus on her childhood, capturing her trying on various outfits, dancing and living out some other usual childhood scenes. There’s also some concert videos and backstage footage mixed in.
It was directed by Peter Donaghy, who is also her tour videographer. Donaghy hasn’t made a statement about the video, but Halsey posted about it on Instagram, saying “You guys have made me who I am today .”
“929” is likewise a reflection on Halsey’s life. It starts out “Well who am I? I’m almost 25/Can’t remember half the time that I’ve been alive/’Cause half was in a cheap apartment and half was on the Eastside” and continues with a pessimistic outlook on her experience so far, largely her experience as an artist now that she’s made it big compared to where she started.
Halsey recently added some bonus tracks to Manic on streaming platforms, including “wipe your tears,” “i’m not mad,” her Marshmello collaboration “Be Kind,” two versions of “Without Me” remixed separately by Illenium and Juice WRLD, acoustic versions of “Graveyard” and “You Should Be Sad” and stripped versions of “Alanis’ Interlude,” “Without Me,” “Graveyard” and “3am.”
She also announced a poetry collection called I Would Leave Me If I Could which is available for preorder. Earlier this year, she made an appearance playing a virtual show to benefit COVID-19 relief and joined the protests in support of Black Lives Matter. Upcoming, Halsey has some future shows lined up for a 2021 summer tour, rescheduled from this year.