Halloween Costume Guide
Au/Ra’s layered dark aesthetic from the Ghost music video: green wig, cross front poncho, punk accessories, and enough earrings to make the look.
Au/Ra is a Danish-German singer-songwriter who moves between dark pop and atmospheric electronic music. “Ghost,” her 2019 collaboration with Norwegian DJ Alan Walker, gave her one of her most visually defined looks: layered dark clothing, green hair, and punk-adjacent accessories against a cold, desolate landscape. Recognition depends entirely on your crowd. Among people who follow alternative pop or listen to Alan Walker, you will be placed immediately. At a general Halloween party, most people will see a green-haired punk character and move on.
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The poncho is what people see first, and it needs to move like clothing, not like a prop. If it sits stiff on your shoulders or bunches at the sides, the whole look reads as fancy dress rather than a deliberate aesthetic. The green wig is the second thing they notice, and if it is visibly sliding or the cap is showing at the hairline, it pulls attention away from the rest of the costume. Those two items need to work before anything else matters. If one of them is slightly off, the costume reads as someone who tried a green wig and threw a blanket over themselves.
In the Ghost video, Au/Ra moves through the landscape like someone who has stopped being surprised by things. There is a stillness to her that is not passive; it is just very controlled. That is easy to carry at a party without any lines or gestures. Standing still at a loud event, holding a two-way radio and looking like you are waiting for a signal that may not come, is already the character.
The wig cap is the most common failure point
A wig that fits well in the mirror at home has a way of shifting after forty minutes of dancing or walking through a crowded room. The cap line at the forehead is the first thing to go. Pin the wig at the crown with a couple of bobby pins through the cap and into your hair before you leave. It takes two minutes and it is the difference between a costume that holds for six hours and one that you are adjusting every twenty.
The ear stack needs a mirror check from both sides
Three earring pieces on one ear is a commitment, and they have a way of tangling or sitting at the wrong angle once the wig is on. Put the wig on first, then add the earrings, then check both sides in a mirror. The cuff, chain, and hoop need to be visible below the wig line to do anything. If the hair is covering them, pull the wig back slightly at the ear or tuck the hair behind.
Group Idea: The Timefall Collaborators
Might work, but this only lands at an event where people know both the music and Death Stranding. Alan Walker contributed tracks to the Death Stranding soundtrack, which is the thread connecting all four. Sam Porter Bridges and Fragile are recognisable to anyone who played the game. Au/Ra without Alan Walker standing next to her is just a green-haired stranger to that crowd. All four together and the concept clicks, but it requires four people who all know the source material and all commit to specific builds.
Group Idea: Alternative Dark Pop Icons
Strong group concept because Billie Eilish carries the recognition for the whole group. Most people at a general party will know her immediately, and the others read alongside her as variations on the same aesthetic territory. Melanie Martinez and Grimes are more niche. Au/Ra is the least recognised of the four. The visual contrast across the four costumes is real: each one has a different take on dark alternative style, which makes the group readable as a theme even if not everyone can name every artist.
Group Idea: Ghostly Visions
Might work, but the ghost theme is loose. The song is called Ghost and the video has that atmosphere, but Au/Ra is not a ghost character. Samara, Ghostface, and Beetlejuice are all horror icons with immediate visual recognition. Au/Ra next to them reads as the odd one out unless someone explains the music video connection. Works at a Halloween party where the theme is broad enough to include music references, but the concept needs the other three to carry it.
Most of this costume is layering and accessories, which means you can substitute a lot of it from things you already own or find cheaply.
Au/Ra’s presence in the Ghost video is quiet and deliberate. The costume carries that naturally if you let it.
The look is built around the green long wig and the large cross front poncho. Layer a short sleeve turtleneck underneath, add side lacing pants and punk canvas boots, and stack the accessories: ear cuff earrings, safety pin chain earrings, a hoop earring, distressed glove arm, and wool fingerless gloves. Carry the two-way radio and a vintage shoulder bag to complete the music video silhouette.
It is a niche pick. Ghost came out in 2019 and has a dedicated fanbase, but Au/Ra is not a household name at a general Halloween party. Among people who follow alternative dark pop or listen to Alan Walker, you will be placed immediately. Most other crowds will see a green-haired punk character and leave it at that.
Au/Ra is known more for her lyrics than spoken quotes. From Ghost: “I’m a ghost, you can’t touch me.” From Panic Room: “There’s a panic room in my head, and I don’t know how to get out.” These are the lines most referenced across fan communities.
Au/Ra is a Danish-German singer-songwriter born in 2001, known for dark pop tracks including Panic Room and Counting Sheep. Ghost is a 2019 collaboration with Norwegian DJ Alan Walker. The video follows a solitary figure moving through a cold, atmospheric landscape, which is where the green-haired, layered dark aesthetic comes from.
You can, but the green hair is the one thing that ties the costume to the music video specifically. Without it, the look reads as general dark alternative. If your own hair is already dark and long, lean harder on the poncho and accessories to carry the silhouette. Recognition will drop, but the outfit still holds together.
The ear cuff earrings and safety pin chain earrings do the most work after the wig and poncho. They push the look from generic dark outfit into the punk-adjacent territory the music video sits in. The two-way radio is a specific prop detail from the video and gives you something to hold, which is more useful at a party than it sounds.