This week, Vanity Fair released its annual interview with Billie Eilish on YouTube. This is a highly anticipated interview for her fans, as she has done similar videos on the same day for the past six years answering similar questions each time. I have watched these just about every year since they began coming out. They highlight her rapid growth in fame and also show how she as an individual continues to change as she grows up.
These interviews follow Billie from the age of 15 to 20 and for everyone, this is a drastic turning point in life. Immediately it feels that Billie is in a better place in life and happier than we have seen her in previous years. She even admits that she believes she has changed more over the past year than she did in the previous five years.
One of the first questions she is asked is about her biggest accomplishments of the year. She then casually lists off things the average person can only dream of including headlining Coachella and winning an Oscar. When I first heard her begin stating these great achievements, I felt a little sad. I am also 20 but have done nothing even close to this. I then reminded myself that everyone has different dreams and goals and I have had a lot of my own, goals in the past year, although much more realistic, they are still important accomplishments that I am proud of.
Another part of this interview that really stuck out to me was her constructive criticism to her fans. Billie says she wants her fans to trust her and understand that she knows what she is doing. Every 20-year-old wants their loved ones to trust them. Every young person falls while reaching for their goals but let those who love you know you are all right and will get up to try again.
It is also fun to see Billie have a different reaction to each “version” of herself. The average person is lucky they often don’t have to face their past selves on a daily basis. This mostly only occurs through pictures or videos not viewed by a large portion of the world, but this is often not true for celebrities. Many see their younger selves through acting or music and choose to avoid their past behaviors, whether positive or negative. In this interview, Billie not only reflects on her past decisions made at a very young age but has found a way to make doing so enjoyable for herself and her fans. It is fun to see Billie cringe and laugh at her old self and it reminds the average person that everyone is embarrassed by how they acted when they were young.
Although she does spend a portion of the video making fun of herself, it is also very heartwarming to see her positive reactions to her past self. A lot of the time, we forget that our younger selves can be wise too, but we often disregard and consider them naïve. Looking back on those past experiences can help you remember what is truly important and what makes you happy.
Some things also came out of this interview that I wasn’t expecting. Billie admitted her least favorite song she has created is “watch” from her very first EP released in 2017. This honestly shocked me because it is such a great song. She also said she and her brother FINNEAS are working on a new album so hopefully, we get to hear that sooner rather than later but you never know.