Billie Eilish recently put a stop to reading Instagram comments, explaining in a new interview that the practice was "ruining" her life.
Speaking with Louise Minchin for BBC Breakfast earlier this week, Eilish and Finneas detailed what they feel is the disconnect between face-to-face interactions and what some choose to say online. Asked if she still read "everything that's on Instagram" around nine minutes into the discussion, Eilish said she had actually very recently stopped reading comments.
"No, I stopped like two days ago," she said. "Literally two days ago. I stopped reading comments fully because it was ruining my life, once again. Yeah, it's weird. Like, the cooler the things you get to do are, the more people hate you. It's crazy."
Elaborating further, Eilish argued that the humor of some of it prevents people from taking it seriously.
"I don't know, dude, it's crazy," she said. "Cancel culture is insane. I mean, that's not what has been happening. It's just been, like, just the internet is a bunch of trolls. And the problem is a lot of it's really funny. I think that's the issue. I think that's why nobody really stops. Because it's funny."
Finneas added that he sees a "lack of accountability" on social media. "Everybody's much braver behind the cellphone screen than they would be if they walked down the street," he said, adding that he believes many people are unaware of how "potent" or (potentially) equally heard their voices are online.
While Eilish still values her connection with fans, and enjoys talking to them, she said she should have "stopped long ago" when it comes to reading comments.
"People have ruined that for me," she said.
Billie Eilish, fresh off a slew of Grammy wins, recently released her James Bond theme song "No Time to Die."
