Hal Baddie Was on Her Aquatic Behavior at the Loewe Party in L.A.

The globe-trotting, perennially quotable Devin Halbal, better known as Hal Baddie (the handle of her irresistible TikTok account), has had quite a year. In late 2021, she ditched her native New York for Turkey, where she became a viral sensation for videos in which she saunters around scenic Istanbul, her phone attached to a selfie stick, delivering cheeky and affirmative mantras as the breeze catches her hair. “Jewelry or androgyny?” she asks in one. “I choose my own destiny.” In others, she encourages her followers to “elevate” and “ascend,” or get on their “Met Gala Behavior,” like a philosopher for the age of the front-facing camera.

An avatar for living your very best life, it’s no wonder Halbal was tapped to star in the campaign for Loewe’s Paula’s Ibiza collection, a selection of beach-ready clothing and accessories for the Island girl within. Last week, the brand partnered with Mytheresa to celebrate the online release of the collection with a party at the picturesque Sheats-Goldstein Residence in Los Angeles, where Ms. Halbal was in attendance alongside Loewe creative director Jonathan Anderson and fellow it-girls Kaitlyn Dever and Camila Mendes. Afterwards, she was kind enough to share her photos from the evening and give us a primer on Hal Baddie terminology.

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JAKE NEVINS: How are you today, Ms. Baddie?

HAL BADDIE: I’m chilling. I’m relaxing. LOL. How are you doing?

NEVINS: I’m doing well. So, how was the Loewe party?

BADDIE: It was great. It was nice to run into old friends that I always see at Loewe events. And it was so cool to see the Paula’s Ibiza collection finally out.

NEVINS: Have you been to Ibiza?

BADDIE: Yeah, I went to Ibiza! This time it was in L.A. but last year, for the 2022 Paula’s launch, it was in Ibiza. And I feel like it was such a different vibe when it was in Ibiza. It was beautiful to just see the nature and the atmosphere that kind of inspired Jonathan Anderson. But L.A. was beautiful because it was in this gorgeous mansion with this beautiful architecture. And I feel like it being in L.A. allowed for a lot more guests and diverse people.

NEVINS: Are you more of an Ibiza or an L.A. girl?

BADDIE: I would say Ibiza is more of my vibe, just because I’m a travel queen and the nature over there is so beautiful. Not that the nature in L.A. isn’t beautiful. But Ibiza is basically just an island. And I love islands.

NEVINS: You’re an island girl.

BADDIE: Yes, I’m an island girl. Slay.

NEVINS: Tell me about your look for the party last week.

BADDIE: My look for the party, it was this cute little button-up shirt. But I buttoned it in a way that made it look kind of off-the-shoulder. So I didn’t button it the way that it was supposed to be buttoned. It was kind of a stylistic choice for me to make it look a little bit more off the shoulder-y. And then I wore these cute little cream-colored Loewe shorts with the anagram on them and these beautiful turquoise-slash-teal blue wedges. And a purse with Loewe on it. And then the glam was so stunning.

NEVINS: What was the glam?

BADDIE: My glam team, Autumn and Mitchell, they made me feel so beautiful. We were like, “We’ve got to make it island-y, tropical, floral.” So they added this gorgeous flower to my hair and they added this ponytail that was just serving goddess. It was giving summer by the beach, it was giving ocean, it was giving Moana, it was giving everything. And the glam for the makeup was very pink and blush-y. I mean, the blush wore off towards the end of the night. But that’s how you know it was a good night.

NEVINS: That’s true. I want to know, in your words, what distinguishes the Loewe girl. What’s her vibe?

BADDIE: The Loewe girl is quirky, she’s eccentric, she takes risks and doesn’t like basic shapes. And that’s what I feel like Jonathan Anderson always does, whether that be the colors he uses or the textures. I’m just such a fan of everything that he does. And I feel like a Loewe girl is someone who’s unafraid to take risks. I mean, you have to be daring and bold, because if you don’t know how to rock the piece, the piece will rock you. You know what I mean? A powerful piece needs a powerful girl.

NEVINS: What’s the last risk you took?

BADDIE: Well, I take risks every day. I’m surprised I’m still alive. No, I’m just playing. Well, I recently went to Bangladesh to visit my friend, so I went to see a new country without really knowing the language. I feel like that’s a risk, right? Going to a new place that you haven’t been to before. I did another risky thing recently but it’s not really legal.

NEVINS: You can tell me that one off the record.

BADDIE: I will.

NEVINS: So, I want to talk Hal Baddie vernacular for a second. What does it mean to be on your “Met Gala Behavior”?

BADDIE: Just to really feel beautiful and wear something that is just so show-stopping and captivating and to feel like you could be at that event, too. It’s all about art and self-expression, not about how popular you are or how financially successful you are. It should be more about art and not so much about status.

NEVINS: Great answer. What about “aquatic behavior”?

BADDIE: Aquatic behavior, that one is for the Cancer girls who just love to swim and enjoy life.

NEVINS: I’m a cancer, too.

BADDIE: Oh my goodness. Yes.

NEVINS: When’s your birthday?

BADDIE: July 16th. When’s yours?

NEVINS: June 29th.

BADDIE: Okay, slay. So that’s why there’s good energy with us, ‘cause we’re Cancers. Cancers just get life on a different, spiritual level. And we’re just more loving than anyone else, period. Okay, so aquatic behavior is all about just swimming butt ass-naked on the beach and being a mermaid and a siren.

NEVINS: Hell yeah. I’m also curious about the difference between “elevating” and “ascending.”

BADDIE: Oh, that’s an interesting one. I feel like elevating is a mindset. It’s making a plan for yourself and dreaming and really elevating. And then the ascending is the actual physical aspect of it. Now, you are at the elevated position. You have ascended into someplace new.

NEVINS: Ascending is the end result of elevating.

BADDIE: Right. Yes. When I think of elevating, I think of the actual process itself and the dreaming and the planning and taking the steps and manifesting. And I feel like the ascending is once you’ve made it there and have all the tools, you’ve ascended.

NEVINS: That makes sense to me. Well, thanks for doing this. You’re the coolest.

BADDIE: Thank you so much for interviewing me. I hope you elevate.