Halsey’s latest hit single, “Without Me,” is in many ways entirely of the moment: a mid-tempo track with intense confessional lyrics—seemingly about a recent breakup—and a buzzy video that features a look-alike for her real-life ex, G-Eazy. But it also has a decidedly old-school secret weapon: Justin Timberlake’s 2002 hit “Cry Me a River,” which famously was written about his real-life ex, Britney Spears, and had a video featuring her look-alike. In the bridge of the song, Halsey slightly alters the lyrics to the Timberlake classic, serving to both evoke memories of the pervasive pop classic (as well as the video and the corresponding narrative around the song), while also, as they say, making it her own.
