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Billie Eilish Talks Not Wanting To Be Categorised, Her Creative Process, Being A Frisbee Champ, And More In MTV PUSH Exclusive Interview

"I don’t know what I am. I call myself alternative trap!"

Billie Eilish is the rising star we can guarantee will be on everyone’s playlists in 2019.

An artist that makes music too complex to fit into any genre or boxes, Eilish has become a musical phenomenon at the age of only 17. Securing her first ever UK Top 10 single this year with ‘bury a friend’, and her debut EP ‘dont smile at me’ peaking at number 12 on the charts too, the singer has also had insane success in the US, with the same project sitting on the Billboard Hot 200 for over 18 months.

Now, hot off the release of her debut album ‘WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?’, we sat down with the singer/songwriter, who’s album looks like it’s heading for the #1 spot, and asked her all the important questions. Being a frisbee champ? What musical phases did she go through? And how exactly does she pen the songs that have made her such a hit?

Watch Billie Eilish In Her Exclusive Interview With MTV PUSH Below:

Giving us an insight into her life growing up, Eilish revealed what it was like being a horse person, and being a total frisbee champ: “I used to love horses and I didn’t have any money so I would work at the barn, and I remember I worked at the barn for like two years just so I could ride. I remember I was in an ultimate frisbee team, I was all fit and stuff and then... I’m not anymore.”

Lies. We’ve seen her perform live and this girl is jumping around and giving the crowd her all nonstop. With a stage presence so energetic, this can NOT be true!

Billie Eilish
Billie Eilish

Now for the real question on everyone’s minds. Who exactly does Eilish stan?

Billie revealed her musical phases to us, detailing: "I listened to so much music growing up, you know? I had all my phases. I had Green Day, My Chemical Romance, The Strokes, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, just like Tyler and Marina and The Diamonds and Lana Del Rey... and everything.”

Billie also opened up about how she keeps it fresh and original every time she enters the studio, and how no two songs sound the same. Just take a listen to her two most recent singles ‘bury a friend’ and ‘wish you were gay’, with songs that sound so completely unlike the other, it’s clear she’s an artist unafraid of diversity in her music.

Billie explained: “Going into writing it’s like, I think it’s always different. It varies which I think keeps us from writing the same song over and over again. I like the idea that my biggest supporter could not like one of my songs, because it’s different, but that means that there’s somebody else who hates everything I’ve ever put out, but I put out this one song and they're like ‘Oh…’”

Billie Eilish
Billie Eilish

Revealing how she creates so many different perspectives in her art, Billie talked about how she and her brother Finneas (who co-writes her music alongside her) tend to step into ‘characters’ when penning songs.

Billie revealed to us: “I like to write in characters a lot, and especially me and my brother. Sometimes we’ll just sit down and be like: ‘Lets think about someone and then think what they’re seeing. What are they thinking? What are they thinking about doing?’ It’s a fantasy-like world, and I feel like the cool part about music is that you can tell the truth, 100%, and nothing but the truth, or you can completely lie.”

Billie also opened up about her enigmatic sound, and how she would describe her music, or rather, how she tries herself NOT to categorise it: “All I try now is just make sure it’s not categorised. If it is it’s under alternative, and like, I’m not though? I’m really not, I’m not pop, thank you. I’m not pop and I’m not alternative, I don’t know what I am. I call myself alternative trap.”

Well then, guess we’re obsessed with alternative trap, folks!

You can stream Eilish’s debut album ‘WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?’ on all streaming platforms right now.

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