Article by Stephan Cook, Contributing Writer

After almost three years since the release of Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Halle Bailey has released her debut album, love?… or something like it. 

Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, the singer, songwriter, and actress was in the spotlight from an early age. Musically, her career started on the social media platform, YouTube, as she and her older sister, Chloe Bailey, musically known as Chlöe, uploaded covers of songs, forming the  five-time Grammy-nominated group, Chloe x Halle. They ended up gaining attention from celebrities, including Beyoncé, who took the two sisters under her wing and became a mentor for them. The Bailey sisters put out two successful albums together, but ended up temporarily disbanding due to Halle’s filming of The Little Mermaid. 

On October 24, 2025, Halle released her solo 15-track LP on all streaming platforms with production from D. Phelps, Dem Jointz, Bongos ByTheWay, Needlz and many others, along with writing credits on every track with help from singer-songwriter, RAYE and Sevyn Streeter. It was released through Parkwood Entertainment LLC, under exclusive license to Columbia Records, a Division of Sony Music Entertainment. 

Through storytelling, the ethereal, earthy R&B album explores themes of love, heartbreak, and self-reflection. Throughout the album, Halle embarks on a journey of trying to find and sustain love, before she inevitably loses it. The album allows Bailey to stray away from the public’s perception of innocence, and allows her to pave her own path to create her own narrative. 

The album had five singles before the LP’s release, “In Your Hands,” “Because I Love You,” “Back and Forth,” “Braveface,” and her Grammy nominated debut single, “Angel.”

The album begins with a 54-second narration from Halle, that starts off with the classic fairytale line, “Once upon a time…,” as cinematic strings and harmonies are added to the background of her narration. This track lays the foundation for the album, as she tells the story of a hopeless romantic that may or may not be herself.

Leading into “overtime” (track 2), Halle takes a break from her signature light and airy sound, to transition into a rich, vibrant, yet deeper part of her voice, as she uses her lower register. She tells the story of a girl, betrayed by a lover, who decides to put away the “good girl” act and flaunt her newly found confidence. As the song closes, she taps back into her light and airy register with the lyrics “No you’re not her daddy,” but then quickly goes back into the deep and rich part of her voice as she takes on a rock-like sound with an electric guitar playing in the background. 

This newfound confidence helps fuel the next track, “know about me” (track 3), which features female rapper, GloRilla. This song was one of many that was actually teased when she was trying to figure out a third single on the social media platform, Instagram’s live feature. 

Though the song wasn’t released before the rest of the album, she still made sure to include it. This song shows a different side of Halle. Since she was a child, the public thought that since she could sing like an angel, she must act like one as well, but she made sure to put that narrative to rest: “I’m not innocent, if only you could see/ what you know about me/ you don’t know about me.” 

Her collaborator, GloRilla delivers her verse, but some listeners found her sound distasteful. A popular opinion that circulated the media was that the delivery was a bit off-tempo with the rest of the song, and didn’t really have bars that hit with the topic at hand, leaving some fans skeptical about her presence in this song. Though Halle could have released a version without her feature, the song still ended up being a heavy hitter, as she made sure to note that people should get rid of the microscope that she was under, and let her grow as a young woman. 

Though this song’s feature didn’t land as well as it could’ve, there were three other tracks that had features that did land: “alone” (track 7) with Mariah the Scientist, “so i can feel again” (track 10) with her older sister Chlöe and “no warning” (track 12) with H.E.R. 

The album takes a turn as “interlude 2” (track 6) makes the listener feel as though they are falling down a well in a movie, through the not so subtle harmonies and instrumental, as a narration unfolds. It ends with a heated exchange as Halle states, “No! You’re not gonna treat me like I’m desperate.”

“Alone” (track 7), follows the argument immediately. The ballad-like piano and fast ticking clock in the background reinforce a sense of urgency to the listeners. It makes it seem as though you have seconds before you hit the bottom of the well, without any way out. The song reflects wanting to keep the values one was raised with, yet wanting love from someone who doesn’t love them back. Mariah the Scientist was the perfect collaborator for this song, as both artists’ romantic relationships were put in the public for them to be dissected and discussed. The song resembles that in a way, as they got to tell their side of what happened to them behind the scenes. 

This song can be related to her Grammy-nominated debut single, “Angel” (track 14). This song was born after the filming of the 2023 live-action film, The Little Mermaid. She was faced with a lot of backlash from the media, as they didn’t take too kindly to the fact that Disney cast a Black woman to play the princess, Ariel. This song was something that allowed her to make peace with the fact that there are people that won’t like her because of the color of her skin. She decides she will persevere and do what she loves. She also made a subtle nod towards her son, Halo, in the lyrics: “Heaven wears your halo/ they know you’re an angel.” 

This track and “Braveface” (track 9) have related themes, as they both speak about the pressure about being Black women in society; how they have to be strong to be taken seriously. 

Leading to the next collaboration, the sisters reunite after about a year for a song of love. In 2024, the two collaborated on Chlöe’s sophomore album, “Trouble in Paradise,” on the song, “Want Me.” While Chlöe’s “Want Me” is a song about wanting to be accepted by the ones that they want, Halle’s “so i can feel again” (track 10) is one about knowing the consequences of what will happen if they do choose to stay together. 

On the somber-felt track, the two grapple with knowing the possibility of being hurt and trying to figure out if they want to risk it or not. This song could be related to the song “Don’t Make It Harder On Me” from their 2020 Grammy-nominated second studio album, “Ungodly Hour.” They are related in the realm of knowing the consequences of their choices and not wanting to do something that they will regret. 

This narrative does take a turn on the track, “no warning” (track 12), with collaborator, H.E.R. In the tropical and sonically Disney-influenced track, the two go back and forth playing with the idea of toying with men’s feelings, as they do to women; exposing a bit of a toxic side to each of them. At the end of the bridge and starting the closing of the song, the two delicately sing: “I know I may be psycho/ I know that’s what you like though/ I love to drive you crazy … Want to play those twisted games with me, do you?” 

As the album ends with the track, “Because I Love You,” she examines the risk that one takes when in love. She speaks about the passion and beauty that comes with love, and in the music video, shows how this passion can sometimes overtake you in different ways.

With this album, the question that is stated at the beginning, love?… or something like it, is left open to interpretation for the listener. She puts herself in the positions and phases of love that not many people talk about, and shares her journey in navigating how these phases affected the person she is today. This era of Halle leaves fans waiting for what’s next, as she embarks on this new chapter in her career.