“TV” by Billie Eilish
Billie Eilish’s “TV” is currently making headlines in part because it indirectly references the Depp v. Heard trial and namedrops “Roe v. Wade”. Both are hot topics of the day, but what Billie is saying in that regard that is people are so caught in the frivolous (Depp v. Heard) that the serious (Roe v. Wade) has taken a backseat amongst the public consciousness.
And yes, to some degree “TV” does read as one of those sign-of-the-times’ type pieces, such as the vocalist noting in the first verse something like “we all betray each other”.
But the television itself is only mentioned twice in the lyrics. In both instances, what is ultimately being pointed to is the vocalist’s troubled romantic relationship with the addressee. As such, it has been put forth that what Eilish is speaking to is the fact that she recently broke up with her real-life boyfriend, one Matthew Tyler Vorce, whom she had been dating for about a year.
And if such is the case, what the lyrics reveal is that Billie didn’t take the dissolution of their romance easily. Instead she had a number of adverse reactions and went through what can be deemed an existential crisis. And this is in part because, as implied by the lyrics, she cut her friends off in the name of making her ex-boyfriend happy.
Beyond that, the main sentiment being relayed by the vocalist is “maybe I’m the problem”. So it seems that she is ultimately blaming herself for all that has transpired, even though it would appear that she rather was the victim of an unreciprocated love.
When was “TV” released?
To note, as of the writing of this post, “TV” has not been officially released. However, the world became knowledgeable of it when Billie performed it for the first time on 7 June 2022, in Manchester and as part of her Happier Than Ever, The World Tour.
“Happier Than Ever” is the name of the album she dropped the year prior. But to reiterate, this song is not featured on that project.
Billie Eilish eventually released “TV” officially on the 21st of July, 2022. It came out as part of her “Guitar Songs” project. Interestingly, this project contains just two songs: “TV” and “The 30th“. Both songs were released on the same day.
“Guitar Songs” is actually the fifth EP of Billie Eilish’s illustrious career.
The Credits
Finneas, who produced “TV”, acted as a backup vocalist when Eilish performed it on the aforementioned date.
Billie Eilish wrote this song herself. She achieved the writing task in conjunction with her brother, Finneas.
About Depp v. Heard
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard are a couple of Hollywood actors who decided to marry in 2015. It should perhaps be noted that Depp is over two decades’ older than Heard and, in all honesty, is a much more-accomplished actor. That noted, their marriage barely lasted a year, and they were able to finalize divorce matters expeditiously, with Johnny agreeing to pay Amber $7,000,000. And it didn’t appear that Heard was out to milk him or anything like that, as she proceeded to declare that she would donate said settlement to charity (which, by the way, she hasn’t).
A short time after that, Amber proceeded to make some statements to The Washington Post which Johnny considered libelous against him. This caused him to sue Heard for defamation. Heard then countersued under the same type of chargers, so and so forth. In fact the two of them went to court in the UK in 2020, that time around with Johnny filing a lawsuit against a tabloid called The Sun and subsequently losing the trial.
However, the direct Depp v. Heard case transpired in 2022, in Virginia. And in that instance Johnny emerged victorious, even though he wasn’t awarded anywhere near the tens of millions of dollars he sued Amber for. But in any event, the trial became a major media circus and arguably the hottest story of the year in the US thus far, which is why Billie Eilish is criticizing the public so.
About Roe v. Wade
Roe v. Wade is a case that was presented in front of the Supreme Court way back in 1973. It is unanimously considered one of the most important trials in American history, as it basically granted women across the country the right to have an abortion, despite what respective local laws may dictate. And many people in America take that right very, very seriously.
That’s why in 2022, when it was leaked that the Supreme Court may be overturning that decision, there was a major furor, including protests and even the judges who preside over the court having their lives threatened. But it remains to be seen whether or not they will actually do so. So in the meantime the potential of such transpiring remains a major topic amongst news and political circles, i.e. an ever-present debate that has sorta been normalized throughout the years now once again coming to the forefront. And for the record, it does very much appear as if Eilish is pro-choice.
