Content Warning: The following article features mentions of eating disorders and mental health, which may be triggers for some. If you or a loved one is struggling with these issues, please contact the National Eating Disorders Hotline at (800) 931-2237 or visit online. Reader discretion is advised.
Lo and behold, Billie Eilish has treated fans to a surprise music release on this beautiful Thursday afternoon. The 20-year-old singer got naked with guitar songs, a new project that has two songs, “TV” and “The 30th”. She announced the drops through Instagram with the cover of the project. “A little surprise for youuuuuuuuu…… TWO NEWS!!!! “TV” and “El 30″ !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” Billie wrote in the caption of her photo. “These songs mean a lot to me. I’m so happy they’re yours. ❤️”
The drop comes after Billie revealed she was “starting to think about” her next album during a June 6, 2022 appearance on the ellen show. He also performed “TV”, unreleased at the time, in his Stop in Manchester, England for the Happier than ever route June 7th. The song is about leaving friendships behind for a romantic relationship, though it may not be worth it due to toxic conditions. Billie’s lyrics also reference difficult topics such as the public trial between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard, the annulment of Roe v. Wadeand an unhealthy relationship with food. If you’re wondering what these lyrics mean and what references Billie makes in the song, check out our breakdown below.
This content is imported from youtube. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may find more information on their website.
Letter provided by Genius
[Verse 1]
I do not want to talk now
I just want to watch TV
I’ll stay in the pool and drown.
So I don’t have to watch you go
I wear Survivor just to see someone suffer
maybe i should get some sleep
Sink into the couch while everyone betrays each other
What’s the point of anything?
In the first verse, Billie describes what is probably a depressive episode (a la Rue de Euphoriaapparently) while watching the reality show, Survivorjust to feel something She questions people’s general intentions and she brings up her insomnia, which she’s been open about since the early days of her career. Her sleeping habits and nightmares also inspired her debut album, When we all fall asleep, where do we go? in 2019.
In March 2022, Billie told him V Magazine about his sleeping problems. “I was having really, really unbelievably terrible nightmares. I was having this weird sleep paralysis. It just wasn’t a good period for my brain. I couldn’t sleep,” she said. “I’d go to bed at like four in the morning and wake up at one in the afternoon. And I’d listen to that meditation app whenever I needed to breathe and not think about the horrors that were going on in my mind.”
[Chorus]
All my friends are missing again.
That’s what happens when you fall in love
You don’t have time, you leave them all behind
You tell yourself that it’s okay, you’re just in love
The choir takes advantage of the abandonment of your friends when you get into a new relationship. Billie assures herself that it’s worth it because “she’s just in love”, but she doesn’t seem like she believes the words she says.
[Verse 2]
I don’t know where you are now
Did you see me on TV?
I’ll try not to starve
just because you’re mad at me
And I’ll be in denial for at least a while
What about the plans we made?
The internet has gone crazy watching movie stars on trial
As they overturn Roe v. Wade
There is a batch to unpack in the second verse. Billie refers to her rising stardom when she asks the subject if they have seen her on TV, probably through a talk show interview or live performance. She also says that she will try not to starve herself to satisfy the theme, which parallels the lyrics of “Male Fantasy”, the last track of her second album. Happier than ever.
There are many emotions that he seems to be dealing with, from his current love falling apart to the aftermath of jarring cultural moments. At the end of the verse, she apparently refers to the Johnny Depp’s trial against Amber Heard that took the internet by storm from April to June 2022 and even denounces the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, who once protected abortion rights in the United States.
Billie has been open about her stance in the fight for reproductive rights in the past. In October 2021, she nearly canceled her performance on Austin City Limits after learning of the Texas abortion ban. “When they made that shitty law, I almost didn’t want to do the show. Because I wanted to punish this damn place for letting that happen here,” she began. “But then I remembered that you guys are the fucking victims and you deserve everything in the world. And we have to tell you to shut up! My body, my fucking choice!”
[Chorus]
[Bridge]
and I don’t get along with anyone
maybe i’m the problem
maybe i’m the problem
[Outro]
Billie acknowledges that she too can have flaws and that maybe she was the problem in a certain relationship she writes about on “TV.”
Sam is an editorial assistant at Seventeen, covering pop culture, celebrity news, health and beauty. When she’s not covering her cheeks with blush, you can probably find her live-tweeting award shows or doing SwiftToks.