Manic

ManicStudio Album by Halsey
Alternate covers
General Information
Release Date	January 17, 2020
Recorded	2018-2019
Genre	Electropop, hip hop, alternative rock
Length	48:43
Label(s)
Singles
1. "Without Me" October 4, 2018 2. "Graveyard" September 13, 2019 3. "You Should Be Sad" January 10, 2020
Studio albums chronology
Previous	Hopeless Fountain Kingdom
Current	Manic
Next	If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power

Manic is the third full-length studio album by Halsey. It was announced in December 2018 and officially revealed on September 12, 2019. It was released on January 17, 2020 and is the follow-up to their 2017 studio album, Hopeless Fountain Kingdom. A deluxe version was released digitally on September 29, 2020.

The album's concept is being an album made "by Ashley for Halsey"-- Halsey's real self communicating with her music persona. Because of this concept, the album is also referred to as A01.

Background

Halsey first announced that she began working on the follow-up album to Badlands and Hopeless Fountain Kingdom in December 2018. and stated that after writing and releasing "Without Me" "has made [her] approach music in a more fun way as I’ve always been so serious". However, she had also stated that the single would not be attached to any album.

In March 2019, Halsey announced that her third studio album would be released in 2019 and that she wanted it to be "perfect". She further said in the tweet that "writing this album has been a lesson in forgiving myself. In being proud of myself and kind to myself despite how much this world is designed to make you hate yourself. I hope when it’s finally in your hands it brings you that same peace. It’s not a quiet peace. It’s a loud one."

Manic was originally supposed to be an album that held more rebellious themes: The standalone rock single, "Nightmare" which was released on May 17, 2019, was originally intended to be the lead single from the album. A scene in the music video for "Nightmare" showed Halsey holding a newspaper reading "MANIC" and another scene where she holds a sign reading "H3 / A1 / 10--2019", with the actual day not shown, which some speculated as a hint that the album would be released in October 2019. However, it was later confirmed to be released on January 17, 2020.

During a question-and-answer session on August 7, 2019, she stated that the album is "less dystopian fantasy world" and that it reflects her current worldview. In her Rolling Stone cover story, Halsey stated that her upcoming record is a sampling of "hip-hop, rock, country, fucking everything — because it’s so manic. It’s soooooo manic. It’s literally just, like, whatever the fuck I felt like making; there was no reason I couldn’t make it".

She revealed the album title on her social media on September 12, 2019, along with an official link to a website with the album title. The website contained a livestream of the singer painting the album cover. The album was revealed to have 16 tracks. The next day on September 13, 2019 she released the album's second single, "Graveyard". She released "Clementine" on her birthday in promotion of the then-upcoming record.

Halsey later described the tone of the album in a series of tweets: She told fans on September 14, 2019 that the album "is not a pop album. [...] It's not an angry one. And thank God I sat down to write and realized I wasn't angry anymore. It feels good to have that eight off my chest." On September 16, 2019 she stated "how [she] sat down to make a dark mean album and found nothing but calm, introspective, acceptance in [her] heart."

On December 3, 2019 Halsey released the track listing for her third album. She released "Finally // Beautiful Stranger" and "Suga's Interlude" on December 6, 2019. Furthermore, on January 10, 2020, Halsey released the album's third and final single, "You Should Be Sad". The album was finally released a week later on January 17, 2020.

On September 29, 2020 Halsey released a digital deluxe version of the album that included the previously exclusive songs "Wipe Your Tears" and "I'm Not Mad". It also includes stripped, acoustic and remixed versions of the album's other songs.

Cover art

Halsey's eye glitter throughout the Manic era

While doing a make-up tutorial for her Manic eye look Halsey talked about the concept of the cover art:

"When I was coming up with the concept for the album cover, the black eye was a really important part of it because I think a black eye is a universally recognized sign of pain, or trauma or abuse, I feel like everyone recognizes the black eye in that way. And the album is a lot about me outgrowing some traumas and some things that have been otherwise holding me back from feeling like I could really become myself in my early 20s. And being 25 and putting out an album was hard for me because I had a new perspective about my femininity, about my sexuality, about the things that I’ve been through. And as a result of that, what I felt like I earned, earned the right to say, earned the right to stand up for as a woman, had the space to say all of this on the album. So I did the black eye and I wanted to do it in glitter, kind of to take it something... Almost like a badge. A badge of honor for what I've been through and through the album cycle, the black eye goes from black glitter to red glitter. To red glitter to yellow glitter, which symbolizes the stages of healing that the bruise goes through. So hopefully in a year you will see me running around with a full face of yellow glitter instead."

—Halsey

She then further explained that the album has two cover artworks "the face", the official one, which is the Halsey version and an Ashley version. She released the Ashley version cover on January 20, 2020 and also put up a limited offer where she would sign orders as Ashley - something she's never done before.

"I just thought it would be a really cool way of kinda having both versions of me; the Halsey signature on the flashy cover and the Ashley signature on the kind of dark, more personal one. I don’t know how many of you guys would be interested in something like this but you know, I’m gonna put a couple of them up and I just thin it would be a cool thing to do. So, go get them before I change my mind and think this is a terrible idea."

—Halsey

Critical reception

On January 13, 2020 Rolling Stone published an early review of the album and called it an "excellent new album". In the review they praise how Haley "doesn't even come close to finding peace of mind" on this album but still manages to make it a "thrilling quest". They name "Finally // Beautiful Stranger" to be the album's "moment of bliss" and give the album a four out of five stars rating.

Tour

The first installment of the tour was announced on September 23, 2019. The European of leg of the tour started on February 6, 2020 in Madrid, Spain and ended prematurely on March 12, 2020 in Manchester, England. The remainder of the European leg had to be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the North American leg of the tour was delayed until it was ultimately canceled as well.

Track listing

Standard Edition
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Ashley"	Ashley Frangipane, Magnus Høiberg, Benjamin Levin, Brenton Duvall & Alex Young	Brenton Duvall, Cashmere Cat, Benny Blanco & Alex Young	3:06
2.	"Clementine"	Frangipane, Jonathan Carter Cunningham	John Cunningham	3:54
3.	"Graveyard"	Frangipane, Amy Allen, Louis Bell, Jonathan Bellion, Mark Williams, Stefan Johnson, Jordan Johnson	Jon Bellion, Ojivolta, Louis Bell, The Monsters and the Strangerz	3:01
4.	"You Should Be Sad"	Frangipane, Greg Kurstin	Greg Kurstin	3:25
5.	"Forever...(Is a Long Time)"	Frangipane, Høiberg, Levin, Happy Perez, Peder Losnegård	Halsey, Lido	2:47
6.	"Dominic's Interlude" (featuring Dominic Fike)	Frangipane, Dominic Fike, Andrew Jackson, Duck Blackwell, Losnegård	Halsey, Andrew Jackson, Duck Blackwell, Lido	1:16
7.	"I Hate Everybody"	Frangipane, Finneas O'Connell, Levin, Noonie Bao, Sarah Aarons, Høiberg, Happy Perez, Losnegård	Halsey, Finneas, Lido	2:51
8.	"3AM"	Frangipane, Kurstin	Kurstin	3:54
9.	"Without Me"	Frangipane, Brittany Amaradio, Amy Allen, Bell, Justin Timberlake, Timothy Mosley, Scott Storch	Bell	3:22
10.	"Finally/Beautiful Stranger"	Frangipane, Kurstin	Kurstin	3:41
11.	"Alanis' Interlude" (featuring Alanis Morissette)	Frangipane, Mike Farrell, Alanis Morissette, Losnegård, Vincent Accardi, Jesse Lacey, Brian Lane, Garrett Tierney, Derrick Sherman	Halsey, Lido	2:41
12.	"Killing Boys"	Frangipane, Happy Perez, Nate Ruess, Høiberg, Levin, Cunningham	Halsey, Cunningham	2:23
13.	"Suga's Interlude" (featuring Suga)	Frangipane, Min Yoon-gi, Losnegård	Halsey, Lido, SUGA, Pdogg	2:18
14.	"More"	Frangipane, Andrew VanWyngarden, Kevin Snevely, Høiberg, Ammar Malik, Dave Lubben, Levin, Losnegård	Halsey, Lido	2:33
15.	"Still Learning"	Frangipane, Romy Madley Croft, Fred Gibson, Ed Sheeran, Bell	Fred Gibson, Bell	3:31
16.	"929"	Frangipane, Jasper Sheff, Cunningham	Jasper Sheff, Cunningham	2:55
Total length:				47:34

Target Exclusive Edition
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
17.	"You Should Be Sad (Original Voicenote)"	Frangipane	Halsey	2:13
18.	"I'm Not Mad"	Frangipane, Cunningham	Cunningham	2:53
Total length:				51:59

Japanese Exclusive Edition
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
19.	"Wipe Your Tears"	Frangipane, John Cunningham	Cunningham	1:51
Total length:				53:50

Digital Deluxe Edition (Disc 2)
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Wipe Your Tears"	Frangipane, John Cunningham	Cunningham	1:49
2.	"I'm Not Mad"	Frangipane, Cunningham	Cunningham	2:53
3.	"Be Kind" (featuring Marshmello)	Frangipane, Christopher Comstock, Amy Allen, Freddy Wexler, Gian Stone	Gian Stone, Marshmello	2:52
4.	"Without Me (Juice WRLD Remix)" (featuring Juice WRLD)	Frangipane, Brittany Amaradio, Amy Allen, Bell, Justin Timberlake, Timothy Mosley, Scott Storch, Jarad Anthony Higgins	Bell	3:49
5.	"Without Me (Illenium Remix)" (featuring Illenium)	Frangipane, Brittany Amaradio, Amy Allen, Bell, Justin Timberlake, Timothy Mosley, Scott Storch	Bell	4:09
6.	"Graveyard (Acoustic)"	Frangipane, Amy Allen, Louis Bell, Jonathan Bellion, Mark Williams, Stefan Johnson, Jordan Johnson	Jon Bellion, Ojivolta, Louis Bell, The Monsters and the Strangerz	3:57
7.	"You Should Be Sad (Acoustic)"	Frangipane, Greg Kurstin	Greg Kurstin	3:19
8.	"Alanis' Interlude (Stripped)"	Frangipane, Mike Farrell, Alanis Morissette, Losnegård, Vincent Accardi, Jesse Lacey, Brian Lane, Garrett Tierney, Derrick Sherman	Halsey, Lido	2:30
9.	"Without Me (Stripped)"	Frangipane, Brittany Amaradio, Amy Allen, Bell, Justin Timberlake, Timothy Mosley, Scott Storch	Bell	3:22
10.	"Graveyard (Stripped)"	Frangipane, Amy Allen, Louis Bell, Jonathan Bellion, Mark Williams, Stefan Johnson, Jordan Johnson	Jon Bellion, Ojivolta, Louis Bell, The Monsters and the Strangerz	3:57
11.	"3AM (Stripped)"	Frangipane, Kurstin	Kurstin	3:54
Total length:				36:31

Cut Tracks

• "Nightmare"
• "Feel This Lonely"
• "French song"

Singles

All singles and promotional singles were released through Capitol Records.

• "Without Me" was released as the lead single of the album on October 4, 2018.
• "Graveyard" was released as the second single of the album on September 13, 2019.
• "You Should Be Sad" was released as the third single on January 10, 2020.

Promotional singles

• "Clementine" was released as a promotional single on September 29, 2019.
• "Finally // Beautiful Stranger" was released as another promotional single on December 6, 2019.
• "Suga's Interlude" was also released as a promotional single on December 6, 2019.

Compilation EPs

Main article: Manic Compilation EPs

Halsey started releasing reissues of her album in the form of extended plays: The first EP, Manic: Revenge EP, was released on November 13, 2020 and the second EP, Manic: Confessional EP, on November 20, 2020. The third EP, Manic: Is She Like, You Know..., was released on December 4, 2020 and the fourth EP, Manic:...Or Are You Normal, was released on December 11, 2020.