"The Other Girl" is all about two women who have just found out they are being cheated on with each other, wondering if the other is "more promiscuous" or has something they don't. The women wonder aloud, "I bet you're bold, I bet that's why you seem to occupy his mind / I bet you're smart, but do you know about me?" (via Genius), playing into a hint of jealousy. But it doesn't last long – as Halsey told The Boot, "The Other Girl" is about being "empowered," and not letting "misogyny turn us against each other."
In the chorus, the powerhouse pair analyze how neither of them are right nor wrong in the situation. Lyrics like "Is it me? Is it you? ... Who's the first? Who's the fool? Who's the diamond? Who's the pearl?" show that neither is better than the other. Halsey explained to The Boot, "People wanna pin it on the other girl, and make it the other girl's fault," but in this song, the duo is saying, "You know what? Forget him. We're not gonna hate each other."
A cheating song that's not about anger, "The Other Girl" even alludes to the book "The Scarlet Letter" with lyrics like, "Scarlet letter on her chest / Can't love with this on her conscience." Analyzing shame, this track is "a dark and angsty story song" as described by Ballerini (via Sounds Like Nashville), while still managing to be the perfect summer song.
