Billie Eilish has called out reporters who ask her about her sexuality. (Mike Marsland/WireImage/Getty)
Billie Eilish isn’t too pleased about the line of questioning that led to her speaking about her sexuality over the weekend.
The “What Was I Made For?” singer made headlines on Saturday (2 December) when she attended Variety’s Hitmakers event and was asked about her sexuality.
A red carpet reporter at the event had asked Eilish about her interview with Variety last month in which she said that she was “attracted to” women and asked the singer if she had intended to come out.
In response, Eilish laughed and said: “No I didn’t, but I kind of thought: ‘Wasn’t it obvious?’ I didn’t realise people didn’t know.”
When the reporter commented: “We need to get to a point where you don’t even have to come out,” Eilish told her: “I just don’t really believe in it. I’m just like, why can’t we just exist? I’ve been doing this for a long time and I just didn’t talk about it. Whoops.”
But while the singer may have appeared all-smiles during the interview, she has since made it clear that she wasn’t impressed.
In a post to Instagram on Sunday night (3 December), Eilish wrote: “Thanks Variety for my award and for also outing me on a red carpet at 11 am instead of talking about anything else that matters. I like boys and girls leave me alone about it please literally who cares stream ‘What was I made for’.”
In November, Eilish had spoken to Variety for their The Power of Women issue and opened up about her feelings toward women.
“I never felt like I could relate to girls very well,” she told the publication.
“I love them so much. I love them as people. I’m attracted to them as people. I’m attracted to them for real.
“I have deep connections with women in my life, the friends in my life, the family in my life.
“I’m physically attracted to them. But I’m also so intimidated by them and their beauty and their presence.”
Eilish’s comments delighted her queer fanbase, and went on to inspire one reporter’s questions at this weekend’s Variety event.
But the singer has made it clear that she’s not interested in her sexuality being a major topic of conversation.
This isn’t the first time that Eilish hit out at obsessive speculation over her sexuality.
In 2021, the Grammy-winner spoke to Elle about the intense scrutiny she was under from fans – particularly after she was accused of “queerbaiting” in the music video for her single “Lost Cause.”
“Like, oh yeah, that’s everyone else’s business, right?” she told the magazine. “No. Where’s that energy with men?”
Eilish went on to say that she had never asked to have her personal life to be watched so intensely.
“I just wanted to make a song once, and then I kept making songs. I never said: ‘Hey, pay attention to my life.’”