The True Meaning Behind I Am Not A Woman, I'm A God By Halsey
When Halsey — who goes by both she and they pronouns, per Us Weekly — dropped their album "If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power" on August 27, 2021, the collection of tune gave fans a lot to be excited about.
Every song had something special to offer listeners, which they found out while putting on hits like "1121" — a number that refers to November 21, 2020, which was when Halsey found out she was having a baby — as well as "I'm Not A Woman, I'm A God." The latter song was released as the album's lead single, and when you hear the amazing beat and stunning delivery, it's not hard to understand why. However, there's much more to the songs on the album than just playlist-worthy sounds.
"It's the easiest album I've ever written, literally," Halsey told Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1 (via NME). At the same time, they admitted, "And in true Halsey fashion, the writing of the album always manifests itself in a complete juxtaposition to how I feel in my real life." That same kind of dual nature can be found clearly in the lyrics of "I'm Not A Woman, I'm A God." Indeed, pop it on again and you may notice that Halsey is saying something incredibly honest, although it might not be what you expect and it certainly isn't straightforward.
Halsey isn't singing about girl power
"I am not a woman, I'm a god / I am not a martyr, I'm a problem / I am not a legend, I'm a fraud / So keep your heart 'cause I already got one," Halsey sings in the chorus of "I"m Not A Woman, I'm A God," per Genius. If that sounds like the star is simply being honest about how others see her and who she really is, that's because she is.
"Everyone's like, 'Oh, it's like this is a girl power album,' and I'm like, 'No, it's not,'" the star explained to Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1 (via Billboard). Bringing up "I Am Not A Woman, I'm A God," they went on to say, "From jump, I'm like, 'I'm not a woman.' ... Being pregnant, writing this album, people are expecting girlishness ... And any time where I ever talk about womanhood, motherhood, femininity, I'm usually talking about it with a taste in my mouth ... all I can taste is the blood in my mouth."
Those kinds of intense feelings are also focused on the fact Halsey mentioned their heart in the chorus, which is why in the bridge they continue, "It really does hurt when you love someone / ... I just wanna feel somethin'." However, despite that, she adds, "I stay right here 'cause I'm better all alone / Yeah, I'm better all alone." Granted, she gets even more intense as the song goes on.
Halsey is willing to get dark to see the light
Halsey not only goes through a transformation in the video for "I"m Not A Woman, I'm A God" — from a natural bathing beauty to a goddess in gold to a goth-like figure — she also delves deep into what she's been experiencing.
"Every day, I got a smile where my frown goes / A couple bodies in the garden where the grass grows / I take 'em with me to the grave in a suitcase / Maybe I could be a different human in a new place," Halsey sings in the first verse, per Genius. Taking what sounds like a dark view of their struggles, that makes sense if they are feeling like they have to pretend to be okay when they're just trying to get through and make the best of a difficult situation. Beyond that, as she notes, perhaps it's best to move on and start again.
Halsey continues the raw honesty in the second verse when they add, "Every morning, got a hollow where my heart goes / I never listen, but I see it with my eyes closed / I know you, I remember from the grass stain / Maybe I could be a better human with a new name." Again, touching back on love and what sounds like a past relationship, Halsey may be deep into the duality, but she's also aware of what she's going through and willing to consider what she needs to do to move forward.