Billie covers Complex Magazine

[wish]

 

 

 

--

 

On leaving social media:

 

Spoiler

 

What's your relationship like with social media these days? I noticed you're not really on Twitter...

Yeah, I'm off that ****. And I went off of Instagram and TikTok a couple of months ago, which was awesome. But then I went on tour, and the issue is, I really love to interact with the fans when I'm on tour. I love seeing all the videos and all the angles. I love seeing how people are feeling and thinking about the show. If I think something looks different, I want to change it. So I go on the internet to see the videos that I want to see, but then I get sucked in. Then I get all ****** up, and I'm stuck. So I've been back on it, but I am trying to get off. It's my cigarettes. It's really a problem.

 

On not choosing any singles this era:
 

Spoiler

 

You didn't put out any singles before the album dropped, but then "Birds of a Feather" and "Wildflower" blew up afterwards. So you basically let the fans pick the singles. Why did you take that approach?

When it comes to letting the fans pick the singles, I didn't even really think of it that way. I was just like, "No singles!" But that's really what's happened, and it's so much better. I would never have chosen "Wildflower" to be the single ever in a million years. I would've been like, "Oh, it's going to be 'Lunch' or 'Birds of a Feather' or 'The Greatest.'" And even with "Birds of a Feather," I was like, "Eh, I don't know. Probably not." But it's worked out in my favor, which is great.

 

On changing her image for HTE era, and then changing back:
 

Spoiler

 

Let's talk about your style eras. When you started out, you were wearing baggy clothes and streetwear. Then you switched things up for Happier Than Ever. And now you're returning to more of the original look. Why is that?

I think life is always about going back to who you originally were. The older I get, the more I'm doing things I did when I was a kid, and being who I was when I was a kid.

 

I've always loved fashion so much and always had a real fascination with it. In middle school, all I would talk about is clothes, and I would always notice clothing and style. I still kind of think about fashion first when I meet somebody.

What's really interesting is that when I was a little girl, I loved big dresses. All I wore was fairy dresses and skirts. I never wore pants or shorts when I was a little kid. But when I got to be about 11, I got obsessed with this brand called Brandy Melville. And they only sold clothes in one size. I was chubbier and I was obsessed with these clothes, but I'd buy a shirt and it wouldn't fit me. That's when my body problems started. I was around the age of 10 or 11. I got boobs at like 9, and I was just developing really early. I wasn't slim. Also, I was in ballet, and that's this whole world of body problems.

 

I was wearing all these baggy clothes, and it was my style, but at the same time, it was how I could feel comfortable in my body and not feel tied to how my body looks. I didn't want my body to be part of my outfit. I wanted my outfit to be my outfit, and my body happens to be inside it.

Then [my career] got to be big, and when I was around 16, I was put in such a box of, like, "Billie Eilish wears baggy clothes only. And she's not a woman. And she doesn't look like a girl. And she's not desirable." So when I made Happier Than Ever, I was kind of like, "OK, people have decided that I'm this one thing. And I am that thing. But I'm also all these other things."

So of course, classic me, I had to go with the completely extreme version of it. I couldn't just, like, wear a skirt once. I had to completely reverse everything and be this girly girl for a second and have these pink nails, blonde hair, skirts, dresses, button-ups, bras, and lingerie. I really just did it to prove a point. I was just like, "**** you guys. I can do whatever I want. And then I can go back to what I was doing before, and you guys can eat it." So even though it was a little extreme how I did it all, I feel really grateful for it.

Read the interview here

[Auburn]

absolutely ate

[starsailor]

She's amazing.

[wish]

 

She knows she has impact

[IsidoraMarí]

Can it Billboard. Billie has spoken. Rihanna is the GOAT

[whatyouwant_]

Love the photoshoot 

lots of content in this interview 

[commander]

Dragging Xchain as she should . By the way she looks amazing 

[Dash_inthedark]

A few more quotes .

"There's something about music that's magical in that way, where you really cannot overshare with your art. The whole point of art is to overshare." -Billie Eilish

Quote

 

This May, the LA native released her third studio album, HIT ME HARD AND SOFT, which is anchored by the most honest songwriting of her career. For years, she talked about "hating" the act of songwriting, and her brother Finneas would often steer the ship in the studio. But something changed this time around. While Finneas battled through his own lack of inspiration, Eilish found herself enjoying the process more than ever. So she threw herself at it, even trying her hand at production, and ended up with a collection of songs about love, lust, heartbreak, and self-discovery that she describes as the most "me" album she's ever made. In February, it will be up for six Grammy Awards.

HIT ME HARD AND SOFT dropped exactly six months ago. How do you feel about it now?
I love it so much. The response was better than I could have ever imagined. The songs are doing so well and performing them is even better than I thought it would be. I feel so proud of the artwork, the title, the order of the songs, the length of the album, and the music videos. Everything about it, I'm like, "Yes, yes, yes, yes, feels good." Surprisingly, that's kind of rare. A lot of artists tend to be unhappy with the outcome of things. We're like, "Oh ****, that's not how I wanted it to be." And I've had that so much in my life. But for this album, I'm like, "No, that's exactly what I wanted."
 

What did you learn while making this album?
The main thing I learned is that even when you feel like you're failing, you aren't, necessarily. I mean, you might be! [Laughs.] But also, it's possible that you're not.

Also, I've always been really critical about myself and my writing abilities. I've always been like, "Oh, I'm not a good writer." And with this album, I really learned that I'm a lot better than I think. I learned to appreciate myself more.

 

 

You're very honest on this album, but I also know there are drawbacks to putting so much of yourself out there. You recently made it clear that you're not going to talk about certain personal things in public anymore. As a songwriter, how do you manage being honest, while also protecting yourself
When I'm writing, I never think, "Oh, this is too honest. I can't say that." And I feel really grateful about that. There's something about music that's magical in that way, where you really cannot overshare with your art. The whole point of art is to overshare.

When I speak, that's when I'm like, "Oh, I'm not going any further than this." But in music, I will go and go and go and go. I do not care how deep it is. I've written songs that are so unbelievably honest and brutal, and people are like, "Yay!" But if I say something in an interview, it's just a completely different thing.

 

 

Here's the link to the complete interview 

https://www.complex.com/music/a/eric-skelton/hey-billie-you-there

 

 

 

 

Edited December 5, 2024 by Dash_inthedark

[Dash_inthedark]

Photos by Kenneth Cappello

 

Edited December 5, 2024 by Dash_inthedark