If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power

If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Halsey, released on August 27, 2021, by Capitol Records. It written by Halsey, Johnathan Cunningham, Greg Kurstin, and its producers Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. Halsey described the project as "a concept album about the joys and horrors of pregnancy and childbirth".
The cover artwork of If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power was inspired by artistic depictions of Mary, mother of Jesus. A theatrical film directed by American filmmaker Colin Tilley, titled after the album and featuring its music, screened in select IMAX cinemas around the world on August 25 and 26, 2021, leading up to the album release. If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power is an alternative rock, grunge-pop, and pop punk effort with heavy industrial influence, driven by clattering drums, fuzzy guitars and cinematic textures. Its lyrics center on femininist themes, such as addressing patriarchy and institutional misogyny. The album has received critical acclaim, with emphasis on its ambitious concept and theatrical production.
Background
American singer-songwriter Halsey released her third studio album, Manic, on January 17, 2020. It included the successful single, "Without Me" (2018), the second Billboard Hot 100 number-one song of Halsey's career. She contributed to the Birds of Prey soundtrack, titled "Experiment on Me", which is a nu-metal track produced by Oliver Sykes and Jordan Fish from the British rock band Bring Me the Horizon. She released collaborative songs with other artists in 2020, such as Kelsea Ballerini's "The Other Girl", Juice Wrld's "Life's a Mess", and Machine Gun Kelly's "Forget Me Too". Halsey was slated to embark on her third concert tour, titled Manic World Tour, in 2020, but after postponing and rescheduling many dates due to the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, the tour was announced cancelled on January 23, 2021. She also announced her first pregnancy, with American screenwriter Alev Aydin, after suffering many miscarriages due to endometriosis and undergoing a surgery in 2017.
On June 28, 2021, numerous billboards went up across major cities of the United States, announcing the fourth studio album by Halsey, titled If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power. The singer confirmed it herself through her social media accounts on the same day. Together with the announcement, she also previewed one of the tracks from the album. It was also revealed that the album was produced by American musician Trent Reznor and English musician Atticus Ross, members of American industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails. In a short teaser video, Halsey hinted at the album's punk rock sound. On July 7, 2021, Halsey unveiled the cover art and announced that If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power would be released on August 27, 2021. Halsey gave birth to her child, Ender Ridley Aydin, on July 14, 2021.