Billie Eilish sat down with Allure Magazine to offer an intimate look into the creation of her visually captivating music video for “What Was I Made For?” In this interview, Billie shared her thoughts on the creative process, the Barbie-inspired aesthetics, and the emotional significance behind the video.
Billie’s music video for “What Was I Made For?” showcased her unique vision and storytelling ability. She revealed, “The video idea, definitely just the image of me sitting there, yellow dress, 45-degree angle, desk, sage green background, was just there. I didn’t even really think about it.” She knew she wanted it to be a one-take with deep meaning.
The music video for “What Was I Made For?” features several mini looks that Billie wore in her previous music videos or events. The Grammy-winning singer explained that this brilliant concept of using mini clothes, especially her own outfits from her career, emerged organically. “I was sitting there with my mom and my team, and my mom was like, ‘You could be folding clothes.’ And then Chelsea was like, ‘What if they’re mini clothes?’”
Billie took great care in selecting specific outfits from her past for the miniature clothes. “All the little outfits that I pull out are all specific looks that I’ve worn over my life that have become, I don’t wanna say iconic about my own self, but even in my own life they are very sentimental to me because of big moments in my life.”
Billie’s video draws inspiration from vintage Barbie dolls, a concept she immersed herself in while collecting images of classic Barbie hair. She noted, “I kind of based the whole Barbie aesthetic on the vintage Barbie, that was the idea, and that’s not the Barbie that I grew up with, but it’s definitely the coolest one.”
The 21-year-old reflected on how her makeup artist, Emily Chang, played a pivotal role in enhancing the Barbie aesthetic. “I wanted it to just be really simple and dewy and natural,” Billie said. “Just very what I normally look like, I think, but just kind of made to look a little bit cleaner.”
In the music video, Billie appears in a yellow dress, a choice that played a significant role in the video’s overall aesthetic. “I always loved those [vintage mod dresses], and that was kind of the era of fashion that I was kind of going for and that vintagey summertime Barbie,” she shared. She revealed that blue was also considered initially, but yellow ultimately won.
Watch Billie Eilish’s full interview with Allure Magazine:
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