Halsey claims music label blocked new album due to disappointing sales numbers

Pop star Halsey has revealed that she is currently unable to release another album due to her label’s disappointment with the commercial performance of her most recent project, The Great Impersonator.

Speaking with Zane Lowe, the singer shared that despite the record’s achievements, her label expected numbers closer to those of her 2020 release, Manic. “I can’t make an album right now, I’m not allowed to,” Halsey said. “The Great Impersonator didn’t perform the way they thought it was going to.”

The artist noted that the album sold 100,000 copies in its first week, a figure she described as significant in today’s music landscape, where streaming dominates and physical sales have sharply declined. “That’s a pretty big first week,” she said, highlighting the challenge of meeting heightened expectations.

In addition to album sales, Halsey pointed out that her accompanying tour was the highest-grossing of her career, demonstrating strong demand from fans. However, her team considered the results insufficient compared to the success of earlier albums. “They want Manic numbers from me,” she explained. “I can’t do that every single time. It should be good enough that I do it once in a while. But it’s not.”

The comments shed light on the pressure artists face in the industry, where even relatively strong performances can be viewed as failures when measured against past successes. For Halsey, the experience underscores the difficulties of sustaining long-term commercial expectations while maintaining creative momentum.