Everything I Wanted - The Fashion of Billie Eilish
By Hannah Schmidt-Rees
As the final part of my music-meets-fashion mini series over the past fours days, I decided to focus on the fashion of Billie Eilish. I’ve really hoped you’ve enjoyed this series so far!
The 18 year-old five-time Grammy award winner Billie Eilish is known for having one of the most unique styles currently in the music industry, as well as having one of the most unique music styles. Her now signature baggy silhouette, hip-hop influences mixed with early 00s pop culture and the nods to 90s goth and skater culture all combine to create an unforgettable look.
Her style is clear evidence that Eilish loves fashion, enjoys standing out with her fashion and wearing what she wants. Her unisex style tells a message of hiding the body, rather than showing it off. Styled with the help of Samantha Burkhart, it’s clear that Eilish’s fashion holds a fundamental goal. In her own words; "I never want the world to know everything about me," she said. "Nobody can have an opinion because they haven't seen what's underneath." It’s so very common for female musicians to be judged solely on the fashion/outward appearance, not their music. The standards that female musicians are held to; to look a certain way in order to find traditional success/acceptance by the media; are essentially a minefield for slut-shaming and misogyny. Eilish is breaking these standards, in a way that is appealing to the younger generations. She’s completely in control of her image, she knows what she’s doing. There’s a reason why her style was the most searched celebrity icon in Google in 2019.
She’s essentially the pinnacle of the current fashion zeitgeist. Her fashion references the popular e-boy/modern goth trend sweeping social media, as well the younger generation’s new obsession with luxury brands; Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Burberry etc. Her baggy silhouette appeals to the idea of gender-nonconforming, which is incredibly refreshing to see on the red carpet. Also her now iconic neon green hair dye is just one of the best things I’ve seen a musician do in a while.
Both in her fashion/aesthetic and her music, Eilish is the antithesis of femininity in pop music. She plays with traditional femininity and modern gender fluidity. She’ll pair these oversized and bold garments with dainty jewellery and rhinestoned material. She combines very little makeup (which is usually unheard of for a red carpet) with inch long fake nails. She unapologetically wears what she wants and like I said before, it’s refreshing.
“It’s my whole identity. My whole personality is based off my clothes and what I’m wearing that day. I’ll have a different personality for a different outfit sometimes. If I’m wearing something I don’t feel comfortable in I will turn into a totally different persona that I hate.”
For her appearance at the 2019 AMA’s, her matching Burberry ensemble (which was three sizes too big) with rhinestoned and veiled bonnet caught everyone’s attention. Also noting a sister-look she wore to the 2019 BRIT Awards, boasting the same Burberry check and matching bonnet.
The 2020 Oscars lead to a full white Chanel tweed look, with contrasting black and silver details.
And possibly my favourite look yet, her 2020 Grammys appearance was a full Gucci moment. Head-to-toe Gucci black and green monogram, with matching fingerless gloves, green nails, face mask and bulky sneakers.
“I just like dressing out of my comfort zone. I want to dress in a way that if I was in a room full of people wearing regular clothes, I would be like, ‘Oh, I bet everyone’s looking at me.’ I want to feel that way. That’s my casual.”
Billie Eilish’s fashion is such as clear example of how damaging the culture of slut-shaming and misogyny is on women, especially women in the public eye. We essentially teach women that showing off their bodies is wrong, while leaving the negative/misogynistic comments (typically made by men) unchecked. Women and the clothing they choose to wear are restricted by the societal standards, especially if they want to still want to be accepted by the society/the media. It’s honestly depressing that these standards still exist, but its women like Eilish who lead the way to a better future.
“I never want the world to know everything about me. I mean, that’s why I wear big baggy clothes: Nobody can have an opinion, because they haven’t seen what’s underneath, you know?”
After writing these four articles in this mini-series, I’ve found a few interesting points. I decided to focus on two male and two female artists and I realised that the main reasons that their fashion is so iconic is because; the male artists break the barriers of traditional masculinity and the female artists break the beauty standards of femininity. Obviously that’s not all that’s iconic about their fashion, but it’s interesting to see these similar veins run through the fashion of four vastly different artists. It’s entirely possible that these two veins of fashion will lead society into the future.
Once again, here are some of my favourite Billie Eilish looks:
