Hopeless Fountain Kingdom | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | June 2, 2017 | |||
Recorded | August 2016 – January 2017 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 38:32 | |||
Label | Astralwerks | |||
Producer | ||||
Halsey chronology | ||||
| ||||
Singles from Hopeless Fountain Kingdom | ||||
|
Hopeless Fountain Kingdom (stylized in all lowercase) is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Halsey. It was released on June 2, 2017, through Astralwerks. The album features guest appearances from Quavo, Lauren Jauregui and Cashmere Cat. Halsey co-wrote every song on the album, while production was handled by Lido and Benny Blanco, among others. Following its release, Hopeless Fountain Kingdom debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 albums chart in the United States and the Canadian Albums Chart. The album was also certified 2× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in the US. In support of the album, Halsey embarked on the Hopeless Fountain Kingdom Tour (2017–2018). The album was described by Halsey as having more "radio friendly music" when compared to her previous releases. As a result, Hopeless Fountain Kingdom is primarily a pop and R&B record and features synth-pop and electropop.
The album's lead single, "Now or Never", was released on April 4, 2017. It peaked at number 17 on the US Billboard Hot 100, marking Halsey's first top-twenty entry on the chart as a lead artist. It also became Halsey's first track as a lead artist to earn multi-Platinum status; it was certified double Platinum by the RIAA. The second single, "Bad at Love", peaked at number five on the Hot 100, making it Halsey's highest peak as a lead artist on the chart at the time. It was certified quintuple Platinum by the RIAA. The third and final single, "Alone", reached number 66 on the Hot 100, was certified Platinum by the RIAA and reached number one on the US Dance Club Songs chart.
Hopeless Fountain Kingdom is a concept album that connects with her previous album Badlands, [1] and Halsey has explained various parallels between lyrics on songs from both albums. [2] [3] [4] Halsey also hinted that something on the album was inspired by the song "Empty Gold" from her 2014 debut EP Room 93 . [5] Hopeless Fountain Kingdom's story and characters are mostly inspired by William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet, with the opening track "The Prologue" featuring the play's prologue spoken by Halsey. Inspiration for the album has also come from Halsey removing herself from a toxic relationship. [6]
The album is noted for swapping the genders of Romeo and Juliet [7] and including same sex relationships. The main character is a bisexual [8] female named Luna Aureum ( Luna meaning "moon"), and her main love interest is male character Solis Angelus (Solis meaning "sun"), [9] [2] with references to female love interests in the songs "Bad at Love" [10] and "Strangers", [11] featuring Lauren Jauregui who is bisexual herself. [12]
Billboard has pointed out that the album title might be named after a real fountain built by Halsey's ex-boyfriend off the L train's Halsey Street stop in Brooklyn. [13] [14]
In the behind-the-scenes video for the first single, "Now or Never", Halsey revealed that the Hopeless Fountain Kingdom is a sort of purgatory for people who are too bad for heaven, but too good for hell. Luna and Solis are rumored to be the only two people born inside the Kingdom.[ citation needed ] The music video for "Now or Never" was heavily influenced by Baz Luhrmann's 1996 film adaptation of the play, Romeo + Juliet. [15]
Musically, Halsey stated that she didn't want her first album to be a radio album and that although this album has a more radio-friendly sound she still sees herself as an alternative artist; Halsey also said that she is "more than capable of writing radio music".
For this album, Halsey worked with several producers, including Greg Kurstin, Benny Blanco and Ricky Reed. [16] The record is mainly rooted in pop music and R&B, [17] [18] [19] specifically synth-pop [20] and electropop, [21] with "trap-pop vibes". [22]
Halsey referenced the album as early as 2014, posting "(and the Kingdom)" on Twitter, [23] and in 2016 when playing in Madison Square Garden she displayed the words "you can find me in the Kingdom" on a screen. [14] In February 2017, she invited 100 fans in London to a church to hear four new songs from the album. [24]
In March, multiple Twitter accounts connected to Halsey began hinting at a storyline present in the album, seemingly involving two characters named Luna and Solis belonging to two different houses called the House of Aureum and the House of Angelus. Soon after the tweets were released, Halsey began mailing out quotes from Romeo and Juliet to fans. [14] In the first song on the album titled "The Prologue," Halsey recites the beginning lines of the play. The story of Luna and Solis in Hopeless Fountain Kingdom takes significant influence from William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, in particular the Baz Luhrmann directed adaptation Romeo + Juliet. Halsey and Luhrmann would later be interviewed by Beats 1's Zane Lowe about their respective adaptation processes. [25]
The album was announced on March 7, 2017, via Halsey's Twitter account, along with a photograph of her holding a rose, and on March 23, announced the release date of June 2, 2017. [26] [27] [28] [29] To release the album cover, she had a global scavenger hunt, where miniature gun shaped USB's were hidden in 9 cities around the world with pieces of the cover. When all the pieces were found, they revealed the album cover art along with the announcement of the first single, "Now or Never".[ citation needed ] On May 16, 2017, Halsey hinted via her Twitter account that the album would be accompanied by a series of connected music videos.[ citation needed ]
The album's lead single, "Now or Never", was released on April 4, 2017, along with its pre-order. The same day, the song's music video, co-directed by Halsey with Sing J Lee, was premiered. The single debuted at number 50 on the US Billboard Hot 100. It became her first single as a lead artist to reach the top 40 and her first since "Closer". The song later peaked at number 17.
"Bad at Love" was announced by Halsey on her Twitter account as the next single off the album. It has peaked at number five in the US, making it her highest peaking solo song, until her October 2018 single, "Without Me", from her next studio album, Manic (2020), reached number one in January 2019. [30]
A remixed version of "Alone" was announced by Halsey on her Twitter as the album's third single, featuring rappers Big Sean and Stefflon Don. [31] The song peaked at number 66 on the Billboard Hot 100.
On May 4, 2017, "Eyes Closed" was released as the first promotional single. [32]
On May 26, Halsey confirmed "Strangers", featuring Lauren Jauregui, as the second official promotional single. It debuted at number 100 on the Billboard Hot 100. It became Halsey's sixth entry and Jauregui's first as a solo artist.
On February 2, 2018, Halsey released the music video for somber piano track "Sorry" as "something to hold u over". [33] The video has racked up over 120 million views to date. [34]
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AnyDecentMusic? | 6.7/10 [35] |
Metacritic | 66/100 [36] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [37] |
Consequence of Sound | B [38] |
The Line of Best Fit | 6/10 [39] |
NME | [40] |
The Observer | [41] |
Pitchfork | 6.5/10 [42] |
PopMatters | 4/10 [43] |
Rolling Stone | [20] |
Spectrum Culture | [44] |
At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 66 out of 100, indicating "generally favorable reviews" based on 10 reviews. [36]
Rob Sheffield from Rolling Stone stated Halsey "shows off all her wild musical ambitions" on her "bold" second album. "It's her sprawling science-fiction breakup tale, indulging her taste for wide-screen melodrama." Musically, he opined the singer is "going for adult dystopian synth-pop realness." [20] For The Observer , Kitty Empire noted Halsey's "generic guest spot on a massive 2016 hit by the Chainsmokers, 'Closer', was an omen" as the album "does succumb to post-hit syndrome. It is not remotely bad; it certainly sounds just like one of the most hotly awaited pop albums of 2017. But you can discern, just off stage, the chorus of unignorable industry types bearing down on one bankable creative, advising this timely collaboration, that hot producer, this set of references." [41]
Jon Caramanica in The New York Times opined it "liberally borrows styles from other singers." He highlighted "where Halsey sets herself apart is in her subject matter and manner of delivery. Her tales have rough edges and ellipsis endings," however, "there isn't a flicker of musical edge on this album, only a belief in the crowdsourcing of ideas." [45] USA Today 's Maeve McDermott expressed similar sentiments in a mixed review, noting that the album "borrows magpie-like from other stars' signature sounds, with some working better than others." [46]
Hopeless Fountain Kingdom debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with 106,000 album-equivalent units, of which 76,000 were pure album sales. [47] This feat made Halsey the first female act in 2017 to open atop the chart. In Australia, the album debuted at number two with first-week sales of 4,300 copies. [48] The album debuted at number 12 on the UK Albums Chart, selling 7,123 copies in its first week. [49]
Credits adapted from the album's liner notes [50]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "The Prologue" | Lido | 1:47 | |
2. | "100 Letters" |
| Ricky Reed | 3:29 |
3. | "Eyes Closed" |
|
| 3:22 |
4. | "Alone" |
|
| 3:25 |
5. | "Now or Never" |
|
| 3:34 |
6. | "Sorry" |
| Kurstin | 3:40 |
7. | "Good Mourning" |
| Lido | 1:07 |
8. | "Lie" (featuring Quavo) |
| Lido | 2:29 |
9. | "Walls Could Talk" |
| Lido | 1:41 |
10. | "Bad at Love" |
|
| 3:01 |
11. | "Strangers" (featuring Lauren Jauregui) |
| Kurstin | 3:41 |
12. | "Devil in Me" |
| Kurstin | 4:09 |
13. | "Hopeless" (featuring Cashmere Cat) |
|
| 3:07 |
Total length: | 38:32 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
14. | "Alone" (featuring Big Sean and Stefflon Don) |
|
| 3:27 |
Total length: | 41:49 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
4. | "Heaven in Hiding" |
| Kurstin | 3:27 |
5. | "Alone" |
|
| 3:25 |
6. | "Now or Never" |
|
| 3:34 |
7. | "Sorry" |
|
| 3:40 |
8. | "Good Mourning" |
| Lido | 1:07 |
9. | "Lie" (featuring Quavo) |
| Lido | 2:29 |
10. | "Walls Could Talk" |
| Lido | 1:41 |
11. | "Bad at Love" |
|
| 3:01 |
12. | "Don't Play" |
| Lido | 3:30 |
13. | "Strangers" (featuring Lauren Jauregui) |
| Kurstin | 3:41 |
14. | "Angel on Fire" |
| Kurstin | 3:14 |
15. | "Devil in Me" |
| Kurstin | 4:09 |
16. | "Hopeless" (featuring Cashmere Cat) |
|
| 3:07 |
Total length: | 48:43 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
17. | "Alone" (featuring Big Sean and Stefflon Don) |
|
| 3:27 |
Total length: | 52:10 |
Notes
Sample credits
Credits adapted from the deluxe edition of Hopeless Fountain Kingdom. [51]
Performers and musicians
Production
Design
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil) [82] | Gold | 20,000‡ |
Canada (Music Canada) [83] | Platinum | 80,000^ |
Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [84] | Gold | 10,000‡ |
Mexico (AMPROFON) [85] | Gold | 30,000‡ |
Norway (IFPI Norway) [86] | Platinum | 20,000* |
Poland (ZPAV) [87] | Gold | 10,000‡ |
Singapore (RIAS) [88] | Gold | 5,000* |
Sweden (GLF) [89] | Gold | 15,000‡ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [90] | Gold | 100,000‡ |
United States (RIAA) [91] | 2× Platinum | 2,000,000‡ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |
William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet: Music from the Motion Picture is the soundtrack to the 1996 film of the same name. The soundtrack contained two separate releases: the first containing popular music from the film and the second containing the score to the film composed by Nellee Hooper, Craig Armstrong and Marius de Vries.
Lauren Michelle Jauregui Morgado is an American singer and songwriter. She rose to prominence as a member of the girl group Fifth Harmony, which became one of the best-selling girl groups of all time. Jauregui began experimenting with different sounds and exploring solo songwriting, collaborating on songs with Marian Hill, Steve Aoki and Halsey. She signed to Columbia Records to release her debut solo single "Expectations" in October 2018.
Ashley Nicolette Frangipane, known professionally as Halsey, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Noted for her distinctive singing voice, she has received several accolades including three Billboard Music Awards, a Billboard Women in Music Award, an American Music Award and nominations for three Grammy Awards. She was included on Time's annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2020.
Badlands is the debut studio album by American singer Halsey. It was released on August 28, 2015 through Astralwerks. Musically, Badlands is an electropop, dark pop, alternative pop, synth-pop, and pop record featuring industrial undertones. Halsey wrote every song on the album when she was 19, while production was handled by a number of producers. Norwegian producer Lido was one of the main producers on Badlands.
American singer and songwriter Halsey has released five studio albums, two live albums, 11 extended plays, 28 singles, 10 promotional singles, and 36 music videos. After being signed to Astralwerks, she released her debut EP Room 93 on October 27, 2014, and then toured with larger acts to promote it and her upcoming album. Since her debut, Halsey has released nine Gold, 11 Platinum, seven Multiplatinum, and one Diamond single in the United States alone.
7/27 is the second studio album by American girl group Fifth Harmony, released by Syco Music and Epic Records on May 27, 2016. The record is the follow-up to the group's debut studio album Reflection (2015). Its lyrics discuss themes of female empowerment and love. It features guest appearances by American R&B and hip hop artists Ty Dolla Sign, Fetty Wap and Missy Elliott, and collaborations with producers Jack Antonoff, Kygo and Norwegian duo Stargate. 7/27 is primarily a pop, tropical house and R&B record that includes elements of reggae, funk, electronic dance music, hip hop and trap. Unlike the genres explored on Reflection, 7/27's songs incorporate new genres like tropical house. This is the final Fifth Harmony album to feature Camila Cabello before she left the group in December 2016 to pursue a solo career.
Fifty Shades Darker (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album to the 2017 film Fifty Shades Darker, an adaptation of E. L. James's novel of the same name. The soundtrack album was released through Republic Records on February 10, 2017. The lead single, "I Don't Wanna Live Forever", was performed by Taylor Swift and Zayn Malik and was released on December 9, 2016. The single was commercially successful, reaching number five on United Kingdom and number two on the Billboard Hot 100. The film's soundtrack was released in two separate versions; one for the 19 popular artists songs used in the film, and another separate release for the original score composed for the film by Danny Elfman. Two of Elfman's themes were also included on the popular artists version of the soundtrack release.
"Now or Never" is a song by American singer Halsey from her second studio album Hopeless Fountain Kingdom (2017). It was released on April 4, 2017, through Astralwerks as the lead single with its music video being released simultaneously, as an instant grat with the album's pre-order. Halsey co-wrote the song with Starrah and its producers Cashmere Cat, Happy Perez, and Benny Blanco. It is a pop and dark pop song that also incorporates R&B.
"Eyes Closed" is a song by American singer Halsey. It was released on May 4, 2017, through Astralwerks as the first promotional single from her second studio album, Hopeless Fountain Kingdom (2017).
"Alone" is a song by American singer Halsey from her second studio album Hopeless Fountain Kingdom (2017). A remixed version of the song featuring American rapper Big Sean and British rapper Stefflon Don was released on March 15, 2018 through Astralwerks as the third and final single from the album.
"Sorry" is a song by American singer Halsey, from her second studio album, Hopeless Fountain Kingdom (2017). It was written by Halsey and its producer Greg Kurstin. The track is a ballad where she apologizes to her potential lovers for not letting them to get close to her. The music video for the song was directed by Sing J Lee and Halsey and it was released on February 2, 2018 on Halsey's Vevo channel. The song has achieved over 300 million streams on Spotify, being the third most played song from the album, despite not being an official single.
"Bad at Love" is a song by American singer Halsey from her second studio album, Hopeless Fountain Kingdom (2017). It was released on June 2, 2017, through Astralwerks as the second single from the album. Halsey co-wrote the song with Justin Tranter, Ricky Reed, and Rogét Chahayed, with the song being produced by the latter two. Lyrically, the song encompasses the protagonist's past relationships and the reasons they were unsuccessful.
"Strangers" is a song by American singer Halsey featuring Lauren Jauregui. It was released on May 26, 2017, through Astralwerks as the second promotional single from her second studio album, Hopeless Fountain Kingdom (2017). The song received critical acclaim. Halsey later released a music video on June 20, 2018.
American singer Lauren Jauregui has released two extended play, sixteen singles, two promotional singles. In 2012, Jauregui auditioned as a solo artist in the second season of The X Factor. After being eliminated as a solo performer, Jauregui was brought back into the competition along with four other girls to form the girl group Fifth Harmony. During her time in the group, Jauregui and her bandmates released the albums Reflection (2015), 7/27 (2016), and Fifth Harmony (2017).
"Him & I" is a song recorded by American rapper G-Eazy and American singer Halsey. The song was released via RCA Records on November 30, 2017, as the second single from the former's third studio album The Beautiful & Damned. It was written alongside Edgar Machuca, Jim Lavigne, Dakarai Gwitira, Madison Love, and production duo The Futuristics. The single reached the top 20 of the charts in the United States, Australia, Canada as well as multiple other countries.
Speak Your Mind is the debut studio album by English singer Anne-Marie, released on 27 April 2018 by Major Tom's and Asylum Records. Anne-Marie announced the album on 21 November 2016 and it was made available for pre-order two days later. The album was preceded by the release of six singles and features collaborations with Marshmello, Clean Bandit, David Guetta and Sean Paul.
Expectations is the debut studio album by American singer Bebe Rexha. It was released on June 22, 2018, by Warner Bros. Records. The album was announced following the success of her collaboration with country duo Florida Georgia Line, "Meant to Be". Expectations went out for pre-order on April 13, 2018, with the release of two promotional singles: "Ferrari" and "2 Souls on Fire". The album includes the singles "I Got You" and "Meant to Be" from All Your Fault: Pt. 1 and All Your Fault: Pt. 2, respectively. It features appearances from rappers Quavo and Tory Lanez, and country duo Florida Georgia Line.
"Without Me" is a song by American singer Halsey, released on October 4, 2018. Halsey wrote the song with Brittany Amaradio, Amy Allen, and Louis Bell; while production was handled by Bell and Dylan Bauld. It interpolates Justin Timberlake's "Cry Me a River" with Timberlake, Timbaland and Scott Storch credited as co-writers. It was released through Capitol Records as the lead single from Halsey's third studio album, Manic.
"Expectations" is the debut solo single by American singer and songwriter Lauren Jauregui, released on October 24, 2018. It is a guitar-driven R&B song written by Jauregui and produced by Kid Harpoon, about an unresponsive relationship and the struggle to amend the situation. Jauregui debuted the track live in June 2018, as the opening act for Halsey's Hopeless Fountain Kingdom Tour in Latin America. "Expectations" received positive reviews from critics who praised Harpoon's production and Jauregui's musicianship. The song's black-and-white music video was creatively directed and co-edited by Jauregui, and portrays two opposing facets of the artist.
Manic is the third studio album by American singer Halsey. It was released on January 17, 2020, through Capitol Records. It was preceded by the release of three singles: "Without Me", "Graveyard" and "You Should Be Sad", with featured guest appearances by Dominic Fike, Alanis Morissette, and Suga. The album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 albums chart in the US, becoming Halsey's third top-two album on the chart and her biggest album debut in the country to date, selling 239,000 units in its first week.
[...] or the electro-pop-R&B hybrid of Hopeless Fountain Kingdom...
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link){{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)