Billie Eilish speaks to Lana Del Rey about the public’s reaction to ‘LUNCH’

Billie Eilish has shared her struggles with growing up in the limelight and the frustration she feels in regards to constantly owing the public explanations.

Eilish released her third studio album, Hit Me Hard and Soft, on 17 May 2024. In conversation with Lana Del Rey for Interview Magazine, the singer-songwriter, 22, discussed her controversial single “LUNCH”.

The upbeat and sexually explicit track, in which Eilish opens up about her sexuality, peaked at No 2 on the Billboard charts.

In response to Del Rey’s question about the expected reaction to the song, Eilish said: “I’m pretty aware of what people will say.”

The Grammy winner said: “The craziest part is discovering things about myself and then suddenly, everyone else knows, and I don’t even have a second to think about how it makes me feel.”

Eilish, who catapulted to global fame at just 14 following the release of “Ocean Eyes”, said: “It’s so weird to grow up and change in front of the world.”

She added: “I’m lucky that we’re in a period of time that is so much more welcoming in a lot of ways.”

In reference to her sexuality and people’s reaction to her being queer, Eilish said: “It’s still a big deal, but it’s not. The thing that’s been frustrating and gives me a lot of anxiety is the feeling of needing to explain myself all the time.”

The “What Was I Made For?” vocalist then delved deeper into the difficult parts of fame, including always having to defend her actions. The singer said: “[People are] making me feel like I’m not allowed to grow and change. It’s so scary, because everything is written in stone.

“I have found my want and need to explain myself to be extremely damaging to my life and my sense of self”.

Later in the interview, the conversation addressed Eilish’s outlook on love and what she is like in relationships.

Eilish admits that she has never been dumped or broken up with saying, “but that doesn’t mean that people are totally innocent. It means that I was like ‘get me the f*** out of here’ or it means things just weren’t right”.

The singer added: “I literally hate who I am so much when I’m in love”.