Halsey opens up about her health struggles, life, and death in her latest and gripping single, “The End.” In a candid social media post on June 4, she wrote, “Long story short, I’m lucky to be alive. Short story short, I wrote an album. It begins with ‘The End.'” The post included videos and images of Halsey undergoing treatment, tagging both The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and the Lupus Research Alliance. Alongside the song release, Halsey is donating to both organizations.
In the first video of the post, Halsey is seen rubbing her aching legs and telling someone off-camera, “I feel like an old lady. I told myself I’m giving myself two more years to be sick. At 30, I’m having a rebirth and I’m not gonna be sick, and I’m gonna look super hot, have so much energy, and just get to re-do my twenties in my thirties.”
The lyrics of “The End” reflect these struggles: “Every couple of years now, a doctor says I’m sick / Pulls out a brand new bag of tricks / And then they lay it on me / And at first, it was my brain, then a skeleton in pain / And I don’t like to complain, but I’m saying sorry.” Halsey also shared photos on Instagram, revealing her diagnosis with Lupus SLE (an autoimmune disease affecting various organs) and a rare T-cell lymphoproliferative disorder in 2022. “Both of which are currently being managed or in remission; and both of which I will likely have for the duration of my life,” she wrote. “After a rocky start, I slowly got everything under control with the help of amazing doctors. After two years, I’m feeling better and I’m more grateful than ever to have music to turn to.”
“The End” was written by Halsey and produced by her, Michael Uzowuru (known for working with Frank Ocean, Rosalía, SZA, and Kevin Abstract), and Alex G. This guitar-led single is the first release from her upcoming fifth studio album, following 2021’s “If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power,” produced by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. Her new album will be released under Columbia Records, with whom she signed last year after leaving Capitol Music Group.