Billie Eilish recalls fight with Finneas over song she wrote about suicide dream
'I felt like an enabler in helping her write a song as bleak as that song was,' her music producer brother said
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Billie Eilish has recalled a fight she had with her brother, the music producer Finneas, over writing a song about dying by suicide.
In an interview, the singer said she once dreamed she “jumped off a building” when she was “in a really bad place mentally” and approached Finneas with the idea of turning it into a song.
Eilish told The New York Times that Finneas grew “insanely concerned” by the opening line – “I had a dream I got everything I wanted” – before pulling the plug.
“We had this big argument,” she says. “Because I admitted something that I was, uh… It wasn’t a physical thing I was admitting. I don’t know how to put it without actually saying it, and I don’t want to actually say it. But it was me admitting to something that was very serious about my depression. A very serious step that I was admitting that I was planning on taking. And Finneas said, ‘I don’t want to write a song about you killing yourself and how that’s everything you wanted.’”
Finneas added: “It was a period where I was really worried about my sister, and I felt like an enabler in helping her write a song as bleak as that song was. Like the musical equivalent of giving an alcoholic another beer.
“A lot of songs are written in retrospect, but this one felt like it was being written in real time, and I was like: ‘This is something we’ve got to write on the other side of this hill. We have to go through this in real life. You can’t always solve your problems in a song.’”
Eilish said they haven’t spoken about the argument until the interview.
The singer is the latest to perform the James Bond theme track, which will be heard at the beginning of No Time to Die when it’s released in November.
For confidential support call the Samaritans in the UK on 116 123, visit a local Samaritans branch or visit their website. The US number is 1-800-273-8225
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments