Listeners of Billie Eilish’s song “Your Power” will hear an artist willing to broaden not only the scope of her own musical planet, but also that of the greater pop world.
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Stream: “Your Power” – Billie Eilish
Nineteen year old singer-songwriter Billie Eilish was born of the Internet.
Like many artists of her generation, her first forays into music began on the streaming platform SoundCloud. In the last few years, however, Billie Eilish has grown from humble Internet beginnings into one of the most decorated and celebrated artists of her generation. Her stratospheric rise has both reinvigorated the pop landscape and exposed its dark underpinnings. On her latest single, “Your Power,” from the forthcoming album Happier Than Ever, the seven time GRAMMY award winner delivers a chilling takedown of the industry’s abuses, offering listeners both a cathartic outlet and a peek into the sonic directions her highly anticipated second album might take.
She said you were a hero
You played the part
But you ruined her in a year
Don’t act like it was hard
And you swear you didn’t know (Didn’t know)
No wonder why you didn’t ask
She was sleepin’ in your clothes (In your clothes)
But now she’s got to get to class
Like any modern pop star, Billie Eilish first introduced “Your Power” to the world via social media. The snippet on her Instagram page features Eilish sitting against a boulder, a large snake winding itself around her torso. Immediately, the clip’s pared down production and acoustic sound announces a departure from Eilish’s earlier work. In the caption to her Instagram post, Eilish writes “I feel very vulnerable putting this one out because I hold it so close to my heart.” This raw vulnerability on Eilish’s part is what makes “Your Power” a timely as well as powerful rebuke of the music industry’s dark underbelly.
“Your Power” opens with the song’s rallying cry, “Try not to abuse your power.” Sung in a soft voice and accompanied by a stripped down, acoustic guitar, this first line of the song is eerie yet unambiguous. Though the instrumentals are slow and loose, Eilish’s message cannot be misconstrued; she is challenging men who prey on women. “She said you were a hero,” Eilish sings in the first verse. “You played the part/But you ruined her in a year/Don’t act like it was hard.”
In the next verse, Eilish leans even harder into her anger, singing “How dare you?/ And how could you?” Her voice is still paradoxically light and even. “Will you only feel bad when they find out/ If you could take it all back/ Would you?” The effect of this level of careful consistency is a sense that Eilish is finally the one in control. For young women like Eilish, the limelight is harsh and unforgiving. From violations of privacy to invasive questions around body and image, young women in the spotlight, and indeed outside of it, face harrowing pressures. Yet Eilish is pushing back. “Try not to abuse your power,” she sings in the song’s chorus. “I know we didn’t choose to change/You might not wanna lose your power/But havin’ it’s so strange.”
How dare you?
And how could you?
Will you only feel bad when they find out?
If you could take it all back
Would you?
Try not to abuse your power
I know we didn’t choose to change
You might not wanna lose your power
But havin’ it’s so strange
Eilish’s declaration of solidarity through song is a bold way of taking back agency, demanding accountability, and tapping into healing.
Recently, Eilish spoke to British Vogue about fame, music, and the industry. “My thing,” Eilish said in the interview, “is that I can do whatever I want.” In the lull in touring brought upon by a deadly pandemic year, Eilish and her brother and collaborator, Finneas O’Connell, spent months writing songs. Of that period of creativity, Eilish says, “I’ve grown so much and gotten so much better in my voice, it’s crazy to think about. I think change is one of the best gifts in the world.”
On “Your Power,” Eilish’s enthusiastic embrace of change is evident. Listeners will hear an artist willing to broaden the scope of not only her own musical planet, but also that of the greater pop world.
I thought that I was special
You made me feel
Like it was my fault, you were the devil
Lost your appeal
Does it keep you in control? (In control)
For you to keep her in a cage?
And you swear you didn’t know (Didn’t know)
You said you thought she was your age
Since her record-breaking debut album, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?, fans and music critics alike have set their sights on a follow-up. How will Eilish evolve on a sophomore effort? For an artist still so young, the pressures and expectations are immense. Yet Eilish proves on “Your Power” that she is an artist not afraid of reinvention.
If “Your Power” is any indication, Billie Eilish will continue to push past boundaries for years and albums to come.
How dare you?
And how could you?
Will you only feel bad if it turns out
That they kill your contract?
Would you?
Try not to abuse your power
I know we didn’t choose to change
You might not wanna lose your power
But power isn’t pain
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Stream: “Your Power” – Billie Eilish
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