Billie Eilish says Barbie track helped her overcome a “dark episode”

Pop star Billie Eilish has opened up about the emotional backstory behind her popular Barbie track. 

Back in July, movie enthusiasts around the world were finally treated to the highly anticipated fantasy comedy. 

Directed by Greta Gerwig, the Barbie film follows a “stereotypical” Barbie (Margot Robbie) who resides in Barbieland, a matriarchal society where women are self-sufficient and occupy all positions of power.

After Barbie begins to worry about her mortality, she embarks on a journey of self-discovery into the “real world” – assisted by her “stereotypical” himbo boyfriend Ken (Ryan Gosling).

Since its release, Barbie has received universal acclaim from viewers and critics for its inclusive and diverse cast, empowering feminist message and Robbie’s performance as the titular character. 

In addition to the aforementioned praises, the film has been lauded for its impressive movie soundtrack, which featured Eilish’s popular track ‘What Was I Made For?’

Produced by Mark Ronson, the song dominated the charts, going number one in Australia, Ireland, and the UK. It also received five Grammy nominations, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year. 

Due to the powerful impact of ‘What Was I Made For?’, Eilish and her brother/longtime collaborator Finneas O’Connell were awarded the Chairman’s Award at the Palm Springs Film Awards. 

During her acceptance speech, the ‘Therefore I Am’ singer expressed her gratitude for the track’s success before encouraging fans to never give up on themselves. 

“I would like to say that this award and any recognition that this song gets, I just want to dedicate to anyone who experiences hopelessness, the feeling of existential dread, and feeling like ‘What’s the point, why am I here and why am I doing this for?'” she said, per a video taken by The Hollywood Reporter journalist Chris Gardner. 

While accepting Chairman’s Award during Palm Springs Film Awards,
Billie Eilish opens up on “dark episode” and feeling like she didn’t want to be here anymore prior to writing hit Barbie song. #PSIFF2024 pic.twitter.com/DnvZy0bJ1l

— Chris Gardner (@chrissgardner) January 5, 2024

“I just want to say to anyone that feels that way: Be patient with yourself and know that it is, I think, worth it all.” 

Elsewhere in her speech, Eilish gave some background about how the track came to be, revealing that she was experiencing a “dark episode” when the idea was pitched to her. 

“When we were asked to write this song, I was in a dark episode, I guess, and things didn’t make sense, like life. I just didn’t understand what the point was and why you keep going, just questioning everything in the world,” she continued. 

“Going to see the movie and being shown the small amount that we were shown, I was sitting there next to Finneas and I was just watching Barbie say and feel things that I really resonated with and felt so close to, and I felt so seen, and I did not expect that.

“I think that this movie is the most incredible, most empowering and beautiful and funny and just unbelievable piece of art in the world, and I’m so honoured to be a part of it.” 

Check out the music video for ‘What Was I Made For?’ here or below. 

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