Billie Eilish Holds Music Industry Accountable in New Interview
In an interview with Billboard, Billie Eilish revealed why she chose to use recycled products when creating her vinyl pressings.
Recently, singer, songwriter, and Oscar-winning star Billie Eilish announced her feelings on recycling in an interview with Billboard. Eilish also expressed her opinion on environmental issues and took a firm stance on sustainability. “We live in this day and age where, for some reason, it’s very important to some artists to make all sorts of different vinyl and packaging…which ups the sales and ups the numbers and gets them more money and gets them more,” she stated.
Eilish is referencing a common tactic used by many artists. For example, whenever a new album is released, many stars will also release multiple colors or variants. These vinyl variants do not usually have new songs on them but are rather ways for fans to collect different versions of the same album. They usually contain a special poster or, in some very special cases, a bonus track. It’s like collecting Pokemon cards but for your favorite artist.
Eilish, however, is not a fan of this method. “I can’t even express to you how wasteful it is,” she states. “It is right in front of our faces and people are just getting away with it left and right, and I find it really frustrating as somebody who really goes out of my way to be sustainable and do the best that I can and try to involve everybody in my team in being sustainable–and then it’s some of the biggest artists in the world making f*cking 40 different vinyl packages that have a different unique thing just to get you to keep buying more.”
“It’s so wasteful, and it’s irritating to me that we’re still at a point where you care that much about your numbers and you care that much about making money–and it’s all your favorite artists doing that sh*t,” the “What Was I Made For?” singer continues.
If it wasn’t evident enough, Eilish practices what she preaches. According to Billboard, her most recent album, Happier Than Ever had eight vinyl variants, however, Eilish used “100% recycled black vinyl–plus recycled scraps for colored variants–and shrink-wrap made from sugar cane.” The singer is very passionate about the environment, often sharing photos of herself in nature on Instagram.