Billie Eilish opens up about backlash over her look, style choices

Billy Eilish is opening up about the judgment she faces over her appearance.

The 18-year-old, who typically dons loose-fitting clothes to keep her body out of the spotlight, spoke to Dazed Magazine about the reactions she has received when she’s strayed from her usual style.

Eilish recalled a viral photo of her in a white tank top from June of 2019. The picture gained the attention of trolls commenting on the top’s tight fit and Eilish’s body.

“I saw comments like, ‘How dare she talk about not wanting to be (sexualized) and wear this?!’” she said in the article, published Thursday.

She also spoke about the attention she received in January, when she posted photos and videos to Instagram of herself in a swimsuit.

“It was trending,” she said. “There were comments like, ‘I don’t like her any more because as soon as she turns 18 she’s a whore.’ Like, dude. I can’t win. I can-not win.”

In a May 2019 ad for Calvin Klein, the “bad guy” singer revealed she wears big clothes on purpose to prevent others from body shaming her.

Eilish also opened up to Dazed about how she, too, has avoided looking at herself.

“There was a point last year where I was naked and I didn’t (recognize) my body ’cos I hadn’t seen it in a while,” she said. “I would see it sometimes and be like, ‘Whose body is that?’”

She added: “It’s not that I like (my body) now, I just think I’m a bit more OK with it.”

Though often pegged as a rebel, Eilish says her style isn’t meant as backlash against anything — she just wears what she wants to wear.

But the world doesn’t always see it that way.

“If I wore a dress to something, I would be hated for it,” she said. “People would be like, ‘You’ve changed, how dare you do what you’ve always rebelled against?’ I’m like, ‘I’m not rebelling against anything, really.’ I can’t stress it enough. I’m just wearing what I wanna wear. If there’s a day when I’m like, ‘You know what, I feel comfortable with my belly right now, and I wanna show my belly,’ I should be allowed to do that.”

Contributing: Sara M Moniuszko

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