This weekend, Billie Eilish broke the internet for the second time in as many months. After the debut of her new blonde shag became the fastest Instagram post to reach a million likes in March, the Vogue cover that represents her new musical era broke her own record – achieving 1million likes in just six minutes.
Why? Because Billie looked entirely unlike her usual self. Dressed in a custom Gucci corset and transparent skirt, the 19-year-old appeared to have said goodbye to the oversized hoodies and baggy pants that defined her style since she shot to fame. Naturally – and some word say, unfortunately – that sent the world into a spin.
The cover was shared by pretty much every celebrity ever, her name began trending instantly and commentators began speculating what this new look really means. Even now, ‘Billie Eilish Vogue photos’, ‘Billie Eilish lingerie’ and ‘Billie Eilish sexuality’ are breakout search terms on Google Trends.
Reading the interview, Laura Snapes is quick to note that the shoot was entirely Billie’s idea. The new hairdo has made her feel ‘more like a woman’, Billie says, and she went for a ‘classic, old-timey pin-up’ look to make a point about women’s bodies being sexualised for merely showing some skin.
Accompanied by the release of her new single, ‘Your Power’, which is all about men who abuse their privilege to exploit underage girls, she wants those who see her Vogue cover to confront their own expectations of her and reflect on what it says about themselves. ‘Don’t make me not a role model because you’re turned on by me,’ she says.
But the internet seems divided.
Many are, of course, celebrating Billie’s confidence, agency and how she’s choosing to own her womanhood in a way she now appears to feel comfortable. When she was accused of ‘selling out’ by the Daily Mail, Jameela Jamil rushed to her defence. ‘You can’t sell out when you’ve already OUTSOLD the entire planet,’ she tweeted. ‘She was an icon in her pyjamas and she’s simply STILL an icon now that she’s switched to lingerie.
‘She was a minor who wanted to cover up before. She didn’t want to be judged and sexualized as a child.’ Jamil added on Instagram. ‘She isn’t a puppet and never has been and she doesn’t exist in any box…A 19-year-old wearing tight clothes isn’t a scandal unless you hate women.’
The reaction has been largely positive, at least in our social media echo chambers, but there is a train of thought that, unlike with tabloid headlines, comes out of concern for Billie more than anything.
‘I can't decide how I feel about the Billie/Vogue cover! She obviously looks sensational but I'm always [suspicious] when embracing fairly normative standards of femininity is framed as somehow subversive of the male gaze. Feels a bit ~choice feminism-y,’ tweeted writer Otegha Uwagba.
‘Lots of "it was her idea and her choice" responses to this tweet,’ she continued. ‘Please remember that women don't make choices about their sexuality or the presentation of it in a vacuum… ESPECIALLY not 19-year-old women operating in an industry where looks and sex appeal are basically part of the job description.’
It’s a valid concern. While it might seem unfair to take Billie’s agency away from her, it’s impossible not to apply the context of internalised misogyny, the insidious power of the music industry and the external pressures of fame when it comes to establishing how she made that decision. She might sound incredibly mature reading her interview, often talking about how much her opinions have changed compared to when she was a younger teen, but she’s still just that… a teen.
Billie is also one of many teen icons to reinvent themselves with a more overtly sexualised image, almost exclusively seen through the male gaze, all in the name of ‘becoming a woman’. (We say ‘overtly sexualised’ not because Billie is showing more skin, which isn’t inherently sexual, but because she’s wearing lingerie.)
Remember Britney Spears Rolling Stone cover in 1999? Aged 17, it was amidst the countdown to her 18th birthday going on in the tabloids at the time, and she was pictured in bed with a cuddly toy wearing a bra and tiny silk shorts. Christina Aguilera had the same ‘coming of age’ moment in 2002, appearing naked on the cover of Rolling Stone too.
Of course, Billie’s cover is meant to subvert the sexualisation that comes with showing skin. ‘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,’ she explains. ‘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.’
If Billie’s coming-of-age cover is just one of many like it, will her intention for it to mean more actually land?
And she’s right – but it’s also worth asking, if Billie’s coming-of-age cover is just one of many all put out in the name of discovering their womanhood through sex, will her intention for it to mean more than Britney’s or Christina’s actually land? Will those who most need to hear her point (i.e., the men she hopes will self-reflect upon viewing her in this new lens) actually listen and understand it? Because if not, there is little that sets this apart from every other pop star framing their sexual agency through the male gaze.
The thing is, there’s nothing necessarily wrong with that being Billie’s decision. When you read her interview, you can almost feel your own sense of angst and confusion when you too were Billie’s age. She talks about understanding the controversy of corsets, all the while admitting she chose it because she hates her stomach. In the past, she’s talked about wearing baggy clothes so nobody can judge what her body looks like, but admits in this interview that style of clothing left her feeling ‘undesired’.
It’s clear, reading her words, that she’s a lot more evolved than many of us were at her age when it comes to navigating sexism and body-shaming. But it’s also clear that she’s just a teenage girl, figuring it all out. With the ironies and the hypocrisies, the confusion is almost palpable – and ever so relatable.
Billie wants to make a point, sure, but she’s also just a 19-year-old trying to negotiate desire, femininity, and womanhood on a hugely public stage. Knowing the incredibly protective family she has around her, perhaps for now that’s all it needs to be.
Read More:
Making Jokes About Female Popstars Taking Their Own Lives Is Never Going To Be Okay
Billie Eilish Just Single-Handedly Redefined Red Carpet Dressing For A New Generation
Billie Eilish Is Entitled To Wear Whatever She Wants, Without You Commenting On Her Body