Badlands

## ***Badlands***Studio Album by Halsey

### Producer(s)

Lido, The Futuristics, Tim Anderson, Captain Cuts, Dylan William, Charlie Hugall, Justyn Pilbrow, Dylan Scott, Tim Larcombe, Trevor Simpson

## Singles

1. "Ghost"
June 11, 2015
2. "New Americana"
July 10, 2015
3. "Colors"
February 9, 2016
4. "Castle"
April 8, 2016

***Badlands*** (stylized in all uppercase) is the debut full-length studio album by Halsey. It was released on August 28, 2015 through Astralwerks Records.

The album debuted at number two on the *Billboard* 200 albums chart in the United States with first-week sales of 115,000 copies, 97,000 of that estimate being pure album sales. The album was eventually certified double Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). *Badlands* found success in many countries outside of the United States; it reached the top ten of the music charts of Australia, Belgium, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Portugal, Scotland and the United Kingdom. It was also certified Gold in several countries, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, and the United Kingdom. The album was further promoted by Halsey's debut headlining world tour, the Badlands Tour (2015–2016).

## Background

On December 1, 2014, Halsey officially announced that the theme for her debut album would be "badlands" via her Twitter account. Following this, the album artwork was revealed via Halsey's Twitter and Instagram profiles on May 29, 2015. On June 1, 2015, the album became available for preorder.

The standard edition of the studio album features 11 tracks, one of which is also featured on Halsey's *Room 93* EP ("Ghost"). The Target and digital exclusive deluxe editions of the album feature five additional tracks, which include "Hurricane" (also from *Room 93*), "Colors, Pt. 2", "Strange Love", "Gasoline" and "I Walk the Line".

## Singles

"Ghost" was released as the lead single from the album on October 27, 2014. "New Americana", the second single, was released on July 10, 2015. It went on to peak at number 60 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Colors" was released as the third single on February 9, 2016. The fourth and final single, "Castle", was released on April 9, 2016.

## Commercial success

As of March 2017, the album has sold over 494,000 copies in the United States, and it has been certified platinum by the RIAA. Prior to its release, *Badlands* had amassed around 40,000 preorders and ultimately debuted and peaked at number two on the Billboard 200. It sold 97,000 copies during its first week of sale.

## Trivia

* The name "Badlands" is a reference to Halsey's state of mind while writing the album. It is to give a physical place as a metaphor for a desolate and lonely mind.
* The "Badlands" are the outside of hotel Room 93.
* The tracklist was posted in code before it was announced, giving fans the chance to figure it out for themselves.. The lyrics to the first promotional single, "Hold Me Down", were also posted in the HTML code.
* The album was certified gold by the RIAA on February 1, 2016
	+ It was then certified platinum on September 7, 2016 and 2x multi-platinum on June 9, 2020
* There is an accompanying website that Halsey runs. It can be found here.
* Badlands went platinum the same day as Halsey's song with The Chainsmokers, "Closer", did.
* In the album booklet, the letters "HFK" can be found. This is the acronym for her second studio album *Hopeless Fountain Kingdom*.
* On July 10, 2015, "Drive" leaked in Mexico due to a release mixup.
* *Badlands* was featured 2 times in Apple emails.

## References

1. ↑ *Headline Planet* - "Halsey’s “Badlands” Enjoys 2015’s Third-Best Opening Sales Week for Solo Debut Album"
2. ↑ Badlands Announcement
3. ↑ Badlands Album Artwork Release on Twitter
4. ↑ Badlands Album Artwork Release on Instagram
5. ↑ Badlands Pre-order Announcement
6. ↑ Badlands CD and Deluxe Tracklist
7. ↑ Halsey's Billboard Chart History
8. ↑ Halsey - Chart History
9. ↑ Deluxe Box Set 7" Vinyl
10. ↑ https://twitter.com/dcntplcy/status/871881015576408065

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