{"id":2713,"date":"2026-06-22T20:09:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-22T20:09:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2713"},"modified":"2026-06-22T20:09:00","modified_gmt":"2026-06-22T20:09:00","slug":"music-critic-anthony-fantano-breaks-silence-over-halsey-tweets-im-not-the-devil-himself","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2713","title":{"rendered":"Music Critic Anthony Fantano Breaks Silence Over Halsey Tweets: \u2018I\u2019m Not the Devil Himself\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<!-- do not apply CSS styles to this element! --><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>\nHalsey and her fans\u2019 outrage over an old album review is showing no signs of fading.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2711\">Don\u2019t Forget These 11 Latino Emmy Contenders, From Selena Gomez to Andy Garcia<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\n\tOn Sunday evening, after music critic\/content creator Anthony Fantano made a snarky comment about his review of Halsey\u2019s album \u201cThe Great Impersonator,\u201d the pop singer took to Twitter to quote-tweet him and unload on \u201cThe Needle Drop\u201d host, writing, \u201cI\u2019m certain my least memorable song will be remembered more fondly and for more time than anything you ever do with your life will be\u201d and insinuating that he gave her a negative review because he\u2019s a misogynist \u201craised-by-4chan edgelord bully [culture]\u201d:<\/p>\n<p>\n\tSome context: On Oct. 29, 2024, Fantano posted a 9-minute video to his YouTube channel \u201cThe Needle Drop\u201d critiquing Halsey\u2019s \u201cThe Great Impersonator,\u201d which was inspired by her cancer battle. It was a rough review, with Fantano saying the tracks \u201cseem like bad Halloween costumes, musically-speaking\u201d; describing it as \u201cstale, 2000s pop-rock vibes\u201d that are \u201cthe sort of songs you only remember for their association with various teen flicks throughout the \u201890s and 2000s\u201d; accusing the album of exhibiting \u201cmain-character syndrome\u201d; and ultimately giving it 1 out of 10 grade.<\/p>\n<p>\n\tReached by phone on Monday, Fantano had plenty to say about the online dust-up.<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\u201cWe\u2019re talking about a two-year-old review here where I\u2019ve remained mostly silent on the reception of the review, despite the fact that Halsey and her fans, for the duration of that time, have pushed the narrative that I disliked the album \u2014 or said in my assessment of the album that there was a \u2018self-centeredness\u2019 about it \u2014 <em>because <\/em>she was sick,\u201d he offers to V<em>ariety<\/em>. \u201cThat I specifically attacked this album and tore it apart because there\u2019s some cartoonishly evil characteristic about me that somehow just singled this album out because of who she is or the illness that she suffered during that time in her life that inspired the record, which couldn\u2019t be further from the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\n\tAccording to Fantano, his assessment of \u201cThe Great Impersonator\u201d had nothing to do with the real-life pain and suffering Halsey endured, but \u201ceverything to do with how bad I feel her various takes on inspirations that she tries to pull from and impersonate are, and how weak the songwriting is.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\n\tHe also wants everyone to know that, despite what Halsey\u2019s fans may think of him, he\u2019s not the devil.<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\u201cYou don\u2019t have to agree with me\u2026 But one thing I can\u2019t stand by and allow to happen is this performative act where people want to act like I\u2019m Satan incarnate for not liking this album, which I\u2019m not. I\u2019m not the devil himself for not enjoying this album. On top of that, it has nothing to do with Halsey being a woman. There are countless women whose projects I\u2019ve championed over the years. I have no problem with enjoying and supporting the work of women, especially women who address serious issues in their work.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\n\tFantano proceeded to describe to me how he\u2019s \u201cwithstood waves of harassment\u201d from Adin Ross\u2019s edgelord fandom for standing up for Doechii in light of his misogynistic attacks on her, as well as Tory Lanez fans for standing up for Megan Thee Stallion after he shot her.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2709\">Kevin McKidd Joins Elisabeth Moss in Hulu Legal Drama \u2018Conviction\u2019 (EXCLUSIVE)<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\n\tAs far as Halsey\u2019s comment that Fantano was \u201craised-by-4chan edgelord bully [culture],\u201d she may be referring to an article in The Fader from 2017 (that has since been taken down) about Fantano\u2019s since-deleted YouTube account <em>thatistheplan<\/em>, wherein he posted videos like \u201cpepe the frog triggers Hillary Clinton,\u201d and \u201cI CHANGED MY GENDER CUZ DONALD TRUMP.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\n\tFantano insists he\u2019s \u201cnot a professional edgelord\u201d but a leftist who supports Bernie Sanders and Zohran Mamdani, and \u201cwas calling [Israel\u2019s attacks on Palestinians] a \u2018genocide\u2019 before even Bernie was.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\u201cI don\u2019t think I\u2019m singularly alone in having found some early-2010s internet-edgy humor funny, or in a satirical way reviewing some memes on the internet as a joke,\u201d he explains, adding, \u201cI\u2019ve never said anything as edgy as an accidental 9\/11 joke at Pitchfork\u2019s expense, which [Halsey] very notably did.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\n\tYes, after Pitchfork gave Halsey\u2019s 2020 album \u201cManic\u201d a 6.5\/10, the singer tweeted, \u201ccan the basement that they run p*tchfork out of just collapse already.\u201d Apparently, Halsey was not aware that Pitchfork operated out of One World Traded Center in New York City, the very building that was meant to replace the Twin Towers after 9\/11. When people began pointing that out to her, she deleted the tweet and wrote that it was \u201cclearly a misunderstanding.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\n\tIn Halsey\u2019s defense, Fantano is an internet provocateur whose initial tweet that people were \u201cmore into the review than the album\u201d appeared to set the musician off, and his reviews can come off as patronizing. But Fantano feels that Halsey is dead wrong when it comes to his own legacy.<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\u201cI don\u2019t have to prove my track record to Halsey,\u201d he maintains. \u201cI have been the most relevant and impactful music critic of my \u2014 and <em>any<\/em> \u2014 generation for over 10 years now. You can\u2019t really debate that. There\u2019s no music critic bigger than me who\u2019s had more impact than me for as long as I have, consistently. And if I die tomorrow, nobody\u2019s going to outdo that run.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2707\">Ms. Pat Signs Expanded Overall Deal With BET Studios (EXCLUSIVE)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cThe Needle Drop\u201d YouTuber\/music critic has found himself in the crosshairs of pop singer Halsey over an old album review.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2712,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[2311,2312,2313,510],"class_list":["post-2713","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music","tag-anthony-fantano","tag-halsey","tag-twitter","tag-youtube"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Music Critic Anthony Fantano Breaks Silence Over Halsey Tweets: \u2018I\u2019m Not the Devil Himself\u2019 - 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