As someone who has made music in the public eye since she was just 13 years old, Billie Eilish knows what its like to have her music ripped apart by online trolls. Now, Eilish tries to stay off of social media as much as she can, but she does admit that online haters used to make her “feel like a failure,” despite the obvious success of her music.
Eilish recently sat down for an interview with UK grime rapper Stormzy for i-D. The two musicians discussed their careers and upcoming tour, but the conversation eventually turned to the negative impacts of social media. Eilish noted how social media affected the way she saw her success:
“I’ve felt like a failure a lot in my life. And it’s really easy to feel like a failure when so many people are looking at you and telling you you are one. It can be hard not to believe them. I grew up with the internet. I use social media for the same reasons everyone else does, and you come across these videos saying you’re ugly and you suck and you’re terrible and that makes me feel like a failure. There are other things too, more concrete things, like when I disappoint myself, when I don’t feel how I said I was going to feel, or do the things I said to myself I was going to do… but failure is an interesting thing because, like success, it’s really only in your head. You can literally physically fail at something but it can still be a success, and vice versa. Success and failure are all only about your perspective.”
Eilish continued that people shouldn’t have such a strong opinion on her personal life. “Why do people need to have an opinion about everything I do or say or wear or look like and f*cking feel. I just want to make music,” she said. “I’m just a random girl who likes to sing. It’s not that deep. Just listen to the music and shut the f*ck up about my life.”
Read Eilish’ full interview with Stormzy on i-D here.
