Billie Eilish’s Stance on Feeling Sexy on Your Own Terms Is So Powerful

Billie Eilish has broken records and the internet more than a few times within the past two years. On April 29th, the singer dropped “Your Power,” the first single off her upcoming album, Happier Than Ever, and within the same weekend, British Vogue released their June cover story: Eilish in a “‘classic, old-timey pin-up’ look inspired by Betty Brosmer” in blush corset and nude latex skirt. Anyone who has just an ounce of knowledge about the “Bad Guy” singer knows this isn’t Eilish’s traditional look. So, when we say fans went berserk, we truly mean it. 

As a back-to-back Grammy Record of the Year award-winning artist, Eilish has had the whole world in the palm of her hand in anticipation of her new album, which began receiving hype after she debuted her bombshell blonde hair in mid-March, signaling the start of a new era. (Some could say, it’s all very Taylor Swift of her.)

I’ve literally never done anything in this realm at all, Eilish revealed at the magazine shoot, adding with a smirk quipped tone, Y’know, besides when I’m alone and shit. 

The sexy vintage ensemble comes years after Eilish, who has struggled with her own body image, only appeared in public sporting her signature stylish, baggy Gucci getup. She went on to explain that “because of the way that I feel the world sees me, I haven’t felt really desired,” in regards to the oversized designer wear.

The world hasn’t known Eilish her whole life, and before she was a megawatt singer, she was a dancer. She told Vogue her body was the initial reason for my depression when I was younger, a topic Eilish’s songwriting deeply dives into. 

When compared to other artists her age, Eilish’s wardrobe aesthetic is definitely *unique.* While others may choose to wear more revealing or form-fitting clothing, Eilish has done the exact opposite. So when she is spotted in something “different,” it’s immediately picked up as a headline, in which she says her confidence has been twisted into “a lot of weird miscommunications.”

“It made me really offended when people were like, ‘Good for her for feeling comfortable in her bigger skin,'” she continued. “Jesus Christ?! Good for me? Fuck off! The more the internet and the world care about somebody that’s doing something they’re not used to, they put it on such a high pedestal that then it’s even worse.”

Eilish praised, It’s all about what makes you feel good. If you want to get surgery, go get surgery. If you want to wear a dress that somebody thinks that you look too big wearing, fuck it—if you feel like you look good, you look good.

Case in point, TV and entertainment have been a source that’s really “fucked [Eilish] up,” too. She makes an example out of a “classic hot girl,” where women are celebrated and desired for being “hoes,” yet “everybody’s like ‘you can’t make a wife out of a hoe,'” Eilish argues.  

“Suddenly you’re a hypocrite if you want to show your skin, and you’re easy and you’re a slut and you’re a whore. If I am, then I’m proud. Me and all the girls are hoes, and fuck it, y’know? Let’s turn it around and be empowered in that. Showing your body and showing your skin— or not—should not take any respect away from you.”

Eilish is leaning into this mantra, which is evident in the title of her next album: She’s happier than ever.

She was originally supposed to spend 2020 on a worldwide tour; but given the pandemic, she and her brother and co-musical creator Finneas O’Connell have had the time to reset and focus on new music, new storytelling. “I’ve grown so much and gotten so much better in my voice, it’s crazy to think about,” she recalled. “I think change is one of the best gifts in the world.”