Billie Eilish says she hated recording her debut album so much she almost didn't make a second one
In her Rolling Stone profile, Eilish airs her grievances with the production her first album, "When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?"
In her Rolling Stone profile with Brittany Spanos, Gen-Z’s pop teen idol Billie Eilish airs her grievances with creating her first album and she details how the pressure of the industry made her never want to pick up the pen again. Ahead of the release of her sophomore album Happier Than Ever, she expands upon experiences highlighted in her Apple TV documentary titled The World’s A Little Blurry—which follows the singer’s rise and the production of her debut album When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?
Like many labels who dream of making their artist into a star, the then 16-year-old was hounded with deadlines and expectations unlike any most teens face in high school. When We All Fall Asleep was due right around her 17th birthday, and with that album came interviews, meetings, and shows after months of constant recording.
“I hated every second of it,” she says. “I hated writing. I hated recording. I literally hated it. I would’ve done anything else. I remember thinking there’s no way I’m making another album after this. Absolutely not.”
Following the release of When We All Fall Asleep, her signature image cemented itself into the mind of the public. Her baggy clothes, green and black dyed hair, and big baby blue eyes—she easily attracted cameras and paparazzi. The then-seventeen year old grew resentful: “I was a kid and I wanted to do kid shit. I didn’t want to be not able to fucking go to a store or the mall. I was very angry and not grateful about it.”