 Billie Eilish recently released her full-length documentary. She first gained attention in 2015 when she put her new song Ocean Eyes on SoundCloud. Some have observed that her music has gotten progressively darker and darker as her music career has progressed. There have been some Christian voices that have risen up in concern for her and her young fans, but I want to dig deeper. I have listened to quite a bit of her music and some of it I like. I know that'll get me canceled in some Christian circles, but I'm okay with that. But her music has also sparked some critical questions in my mind. Why are kids, primarily teen girls, attracted to her music so much? What kind of worldview does she have and how can we understand it through the biblical worldview? Also, are there any lessons that we can take away from her rise to fame? Thankfully, her new documentary, The World's A Little Blurry, answers a lot of the questions I have about her, her music, and her fans. In her interview with Zane Lowe, the guy from Apple Music, she said that the documentary crew had been following her around for years, but they had really no idea of where her career would go. I can't even wrap my head around that. I mean, the fact that anybody could have thought that I was gonna go anywhere is insane to me. I thought, okay, we're making a little movie and it's like, you know, about a little small artist and what it's like to like make music. Five Grammys later, the filmmakers were sure that they had stumbled upon a gold mine. The documentary is over two hours long, so I'm not gonna give you a play-by-play. Plus, there are some, I would say, inappropriate parts of the documentary, which, you know, that's why you have the fast-forward button. I don't think it's an issue for adults so much, but I wanna start the video here. One of the first takeaways that people have when listening to Billy's music is that it's depressing, right? She deals with issues like anxiety, depression, suicide, and yet people connect with it really deeply. I look back at my own life being raised in a Christian homeschool community. There were many times where I felt alone. I felt like I was the only one dealing with crippling anxiety. Like, all my friends were very well put together, solid Christians, and here I am, just the screwed up mess. In large part, I think Christians don't wanna talk about these darker issues. Depression, suicide, debilitating anxiety are a little too dark for Sunday morning or Wednesday night Bible study. You'll notice a theme here when Christians decide that a topic is too uncomfortable for them to talk about. The culture comes in and fills the gap. Billie Eilish is no different. She's talking about issues that people can relate to, depression, anxiety, but she's interpreting those things through her worldview, which ultimately gives it a more nihilistic tone. Although talking about depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts may be uncomfortable for us. We need to speak on it. People are anxious. People are depressed. So instead of looking down on people for experiencing these things, our job is to create a place, a safe space within the Christian context where people can be open with what they're experiencing and authentically open up about this stuff. Music that rings true to people's experience connects with people, but that's not just exclusive to music. Authenticity connects. What am I talking about when I say authenticity? Authenticity is when we can become vulnerable enough to verbalize or demonstrate what is going on inside of us, our thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and flaws. When somebody can be authentic within art, it connects. The problem for us is that authenticity is really challenging. Think about it. It's not natural for us to expose ourselves. We're in the business of self-protection, guarding against rejection and trying to protect our pride. This is a big issue for Christians. We like to present ourselves to other people as better Christians than we are as if we know the Bible better than we do. I know I do that, but in those moments, I'm trying to do two things. I'm trying to protect my pride and I'm trying to guard against people's rejection. The Bible talks about how we ought to humble ourselves before God and others. In Matthew 18 verse 4, it says, whoever humbles himself like a child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. The fruit of humility is authenticity, then connection. We can never truly connect with people that we think are basically perfect, but it's within the flaws that we can begin to form an emotional bond with someone. Fame is not a good goal. Not only was this evident within this documentary, but also ones like it. Fame is the cost of artistic success, not the reward. Throughout the film, you see Billy constantly berated by fans. Fame always wants more and we've all seen it. We've all seen the cost of fame and yet it's still so widely sought after. We want to be known and yet no level of fame will satisfy our desire for connection with someone who loves us fully and accepts us completely. God, fame for personal gain is ultimately an empty aim. Fame for a personal gain is ultimately an... Somebody put that on a t-shirt. But when art is used to point to God's beauty, his goodness, his love, his mercy, we're beginning to use the tools that he's given us for their intended purpose. Now, some people have claimed that Billy is a Satanist usually referring to her music video. All good girls go to hell and some of the imagery used in that, but she's stated numerous times that the... It's kind of a... The imagery used is a metaphor for global warming. And you do with that what you will. I'm just reporting on the news here. I'm not trying to defend her or try to convince you she's a good person. I'm just trying to develop some clarity here. Though I couldn't find any clips about Billy talking about her views of God or the afterlife, it seems like she doesn't really associate herself with any particular religion or belief system. Whether a song, a movie, or a painting, every piece of art espouses some kind of worldview. A worldview is simply a way someone sees the world. The lens you look through affects the art you make and the perspective you have. Though I don't believe an artist has to encapsulate every human emotion within their discography. The utter lack of hope within Billy's music is telling. She, like many others, have a lack of confident hope. With all the brokenness apparent in our world, a worldview lacking knowledge of God's sovereignty produces dusk without dawn. Christian artists should be asking themselves this question. How can I vulnerably vocalize the brokenness of our world through the lens of God's control and care for His creation? Artists like Billy see the brokenness. Some Christian artists only acknowledge God's care and control. But both are essential in understanding our world. Yes, our world is broken, but through Jesus we have hope. Family was an essential theme in the doc. From the very beginning of Billy's career, her family was right next to her. It's actually kind of heartwarming to see how interconnected their family bond really was, especially her relationship with her brother who helps her produce her music. Seeing their sibling dynamic was kind of fun. It brought a sense of authenticity to the music. I've been in creative partnerships with my siblings and it's like kind of a fun tug-of-war type thing because you're so close you can say anything to each other and you'll forgive each other later. But it's an interesting creative dynamic having those kind of very very close family relationships all intertwined in the creative process. I've thought this too. If only I had more money, my problems would be solved. Some problems? Sure. Internal issues? Oftentimes, no. Throughout the doc we're brought into Billy's struggle with depression and suicidal thoughts. Even as a multi-millionaire, these things still seem to play a factor in her life. Noting multiple times over the past years that she hasn't been happy. And we're asking herself, how can you not be happy with all the fame, success, and money that somebody would give their life for? To be happy is to be at peace. But peace can't be manufactured by simply getting more stuff. Fame, money, and success breathe momentary contentment for as long as there are fresh experiences. It provides a high for a time. But as we see time after time, money is not an adequate cure to our internal brokenness. Though the brokenness of this world is so apparent, Jesus has a promise for those who repent and trust in Him. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more. Neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away. Revelation 21.4 I truly hope that Billie Eilish comes to a saving faith in Jesus. I think God gave her a gift in her creativity that is really apparent, and I hope one day she'll use it for him. Should you listen to her music? I think that's a decision that you need to make for yourself. But as for any piece of music or content that you're consuming, I think it's important that you understand what kind of worldview that piece of art is espousing, and really discern whether you want to be meditating upon that. Thanks to my patrons on Patreon. I can't tell you guys how thankful I am that you enable me to make this kind of content. It's through your support that I'm able to spend the hours and hours necessary in producing this content. So thank you for keeping this ministry going and growing. And if you want to help support on Patreon, head to the link in my description to support on a monthly basis. Thank you so much for watching, guys. I hope you have a great week, and I'll see you next time. God bless.