Billie Eilish may look like she's living the literal teenage dream, but it hasn't always been No. 1 songs and sold out concerts for the 17-year-old.
In a new interview with Rolling Stone, the "bad guy" singer was candid and bravely talked about some of her saddest moments growing up after previously being an advocate for mental health awareness.
Before singing on stage in front of thousands of fans, Eilish was quite the accomplished dancer and was skilled in everything from ballet to jazz but she admitted she never felt like she fit in with the "pretty girls" in her dance class and also hated wearing the small dance clothes. "I was always worried about my appearance," she said. "That was the peak of my body dysmorphia. I couldn’t look in the mirror at all.”
Then a devastating dance injury turned her entire life around when she was just a pre-teen. During a hip-hop class, she ended up rupturing her growth plate in her hip halting her dance career in its tracks.
“I think that’s when the depression started,” she revealed. “It sent me down a hole. I went through a whole self-harming phase — we don’t have to go into it. But the gist of it was, I felt like I deserved to be in pain.”
Thankfully, she said she is doing better now and is loving her life and hasn't been depressed "in a minute." Now, when she sees fans with self-harm scars she always makes sure to reach out.
Billie Eilish is performing at this year's Daytime Stage at the iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas on September 21st alongside a lineup of incredible rising stars. A lineup of superstars are also set to perform on the main stage at T-Mobile Arena throughout the weekend, and fans across the country can tune in and watch an exclusive live stream of the show via The CW App and CWTV.com. Then, on October 2nd and 3rd, relive all of the epic performances from the weekend during a televised special on The CW Network at 8pm ET/PT. And leading up to the official television special, The CW will also air an hour-long Best Of Special on Sunday, September 29th at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
If you are in crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741-741.
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