No one models the art of self-examination quite like Billie Eilish. The pop phenom has sat for six straight years with interviewers from Vanity Fair for an all-encompassing interview that covers her biggest successes, struggles, and retrospections on the year prior. Not only that, but editors from the magazine have pieced together clips from each of her previous years, which she has a chance to watch live and respond to.
For many, especially those in the public eye, it would be a daunting task. But for the singer and songwriter, who has always been profoundly blunt and honest with her fans, it comes with the territory. This year, a decidedly joyful, vibrant version of Eilish squared up with the camera to share her now-annual update, along with why she keeps doing them year after year.
Eilish completed her first video interview with Vanity Fair when she was just 15 years old and breaking into the music scene. She had just 257,000 followers on Instagram. Six years running, she’s repeated similar versions of the interview, albeit with different hairstyles, levels of fame, and outlooks on life.
Now 20, and with 106 million followers on Instagram, the singer is beaming on set. Perhaps it’s the afterglow of a successful world tour she wrapped in September, or a new fitness routine she mentions, or a budding romance with The Neighbourhood’s Jesse Rutherford. Whatever the case may be, the “Bad Guy” singer said she’s currently in a good headspace. “I am feeling really good,” she said at the beginning of the interview. “It’s just so cool to get to do this every year.”
Throughout the interview, Eilish expressed how much she enjoys doing it each year. Of course, one factor may be that Vanity Fair still wants to do them: Twenty-minute video interviews with a professional set and editing aren’t wasted on those who have lost their cultural cachet. That said, Eilish repeatedly said how happy it makes her to sit for the interviews.
“They mean so much to me. Every year I watch these and I’m just like…it makes me really happy,” Eilish said, pausing in the middle to collect her thoughts. “I feel hopeful and I feel happy and I feel in a good, a good spot in my life right now.”
In each video that followed her first year, Vanity Fair staffers have the “Your Power” singer watch clips from previous years. That element is especially valuable to her, Eilish said. “I feel really connected to myself,” the pop icon explained. “It’s really cool to have these, what, five versions of myself to interact with. That’s just so insane. It feels like I’m interacting with other people, but also it’s me.”
Along with clips from previous years, the 2022 interview included questions Eilish fielded from Instagram. Fans asked which of her own songs is her least favorite (“Watch”) and which was her favorite show of her last tour (Boston), among others. Another follower asked which year of the interview included the most individual growth. “I’ve changed more from the beginning of this year until now than I have in the last five years,” Eilish answered. “Honestly.”
There are good reasons for Eilish to be celebratory in this year’s interview. She didn’t miss a single one of her scheduled stops on her Happier Than Ever tour, which she says in the video she was really proud of. She also won her first Oscar award this year, for the titular song “No Time to Die” in the latest James Bond film.
In the video, Eilish also celebrated her health. “I’ve had a very big transformation this year with my fitness lifestyle,” the singer explained. “I feel better about myself than I ever have, which makes me feel proud. I worked really hard on it.”
Along with her successes, though, the positive mental outlook allowed her to poke fun at herself — both now and in the previous interviews. When she mentioned she was feeling “really good” this year, she paused and added, “Nothing like that second year, you know what I’m saying?” She leaned forward as if she’s conspiring with the audience, then laughs to herself, remembering the second year she did the Vanity Fair interview with a distinctly dark attitude.
At other points, the 20-year-old demonstrates a depth of self-awareness she hasn’t had in other years, calling out moments in previous interviews where she was a “parody” of herself, going so far as to call her 16-year-old self a “little idiot.” In other points, she calls her past self “annoying,” though with a dose of self-love and appreciation for her experiences. Six years in, and we’re already waiting to see what the seventh year holds.