Billie Eilish Gets Real About Body Image Struggles
Just like everyone else, the imitable Billie Eilish struggles with body image
It’s hard to imagine that someone as cool and talented as 19-year-old Billie Eilish struggles with confidence, but, just like any other Gen Z teen growing up in the world of face filters and constant communication, she feels the pressures of looking happy and hot 24/7.
“To always to to look good is such a loss of joy and freedom,” the singer lamented as she opened up to The Guardian while promoting her latest album, Happier Than Ever. In typical Eilish form, she called out the body shamers, sexism in the industry, and was candid about her own body image insecurities, especially when it comes to her body during her performances.
“I’m very confident in who I am, and I’m very happy with my life…I’m obviously not happy with my body,” she started, adding “but who is?”
Those familiar with Eilish’s enviable style and shows know that the singer often sports baggy clothes, a choice meant to ward off creeps from commenting on her body that has turned into her signature style.
“When I’m on stage, I have to disassociate from the ideas I have of my body,” she says. “Because I wear clothes that are bigger and easier to move in without showing everything – they can be really unflattering. In pictures, they look like I don’t even know what. I just completely separate the two. Because I have such a terrible relationship with my body, like you would not believe, so I just have to disassociate.”
Eilish explores the theme of impossible beauty standards on her track “OverHeated,” which she said is directed towards people who promote said impossible standards.
“It’s completely fine to get work done – do this, do that, do what makes you feel happy,” she says. “It’s just when you deny it and say, ‘Oh, I got this all on my own, and if you just tried harder, you could get it.’ That makes me literally furious,” she said. “It is so bad for young women – and boys, too – to see that.”
Still, Billie is wise beyond her years and puts body image in perspective.
We all have different body types, but when it comes down to it, does that even matter? They shouldn’t — at least to Eilish.
“I mean, we only need bodies to eat and walk around and poop. We only need them to survive. It’s ridiculous that anybody even cares about bodies at all. Like, why? Why do we care? You know, when you really think about it?”
She pressed on, adding that it is wild we care about looks at all!
“Why do we care about hair? Why does everybody hate body hair so much, but we literally have an enormous thing of hair on our heads, and that’s, like, cool and pretty… Like, what’s the difference? I mean, I love hair, and I do crazy things with my hair. I’m as guilty as everybody else. But it’s so weird. If you think about it hard, you go crazy.”
We’re all going to take a page from Billie’s book and try not to dwell on all the little body image and beauty insecurities we have. Here’s hoping that Eilish continues to be candid and perhaps help fans free themselves from the shackles of body insecurity.
