Billie Eilish drops new dark music video illuminating life in the limelight

Los Angeles, California – The fifth single from Billie Eilish's highly anticipated sophomore album Happier Than Ever is here, with an accompanying music video giving a glimpse into the secret life of the Grammy-winning artist.

Billie Eilish is back with a new music video for the latest single off her upcoming album, Happier Than Ever.
Billie Eilish is back with a new music video for the latest single off her upcoming album, Happier Than Ever.  © Collage: IMAGO / ZUMA Press & Screenshot / Instagram / billieeilish

The vibe you've been waiting for from Billie Eilish's new album arrived on Thursday in the form of NDA.

A mix of synthesized vocals, electric guitars, and a pounding bass line sets the stage for Eilish's telling lyrics of a life under high media attention and public scrutiny.

The video, which was directed by Eilish herself, starts off with tires screeching on asphalt to the sound of a distorted electric guitar chord.

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After an abrupt shift in sound and scenery, the camera pans to Eilish standing alone in the middle of a desert road, similar to the one Eilish walks down in the video to her breakthrough hit, Bellyache.

A stark difference between the two is the time of day in which the video was shot. In Bellyache, Eilish struts down the road wearing a yellow rain suit in broad daylight. But in the NDA video, Eilish is clad in all black in the dead of night.

Eilish sings, "Got a stalker walkin' up and down the street. Says he's Satan, and he'd like to meet," as people dressed similarly to the artist appear in the background, walking behind her step-by-step, until she looks over her shoulder.

Similar sounds and sonic references

Billie Eilish used similar audio elements in her latest single NDA as she has in other tracks on the upcoming album.
Billie Eilish used similar audio elements in her latest single NDA as she has in other tracks on the upcoming album.  © IMAGO / BRIGANI-ART

As the video continues, the bodies become digitally distorted and disappear in bits and pieces, as if their purpose in the video is to emulate those who cyberstalk the music artist's every move – pinpointing how drastically the 18-year-old's life has changed since she first stepped onto the scene.

Things take a sonic shift as Eilish utters the words, "You couldn't save me, but you can't let me go," using excessive auto-tune and vocal effects to drive up the drama.

Cars start racing towards Eilish and drift around her in the darkness with headlight beams in full force, leading her to break down in the middle of the road, pleading, "I can crave you, but you don't need to know."

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Once the second verse hits, it's apparent there are nods to other singles on the upcoming album that have been seamlessly added into NDA, such as a similar spoken-word cadence and tone used in another recent drop, Therefore I Am.

The songstress has even embedded lyrics from other new singles in the track, singing, "I thought about my future, but I want it now" – which is from the song My Future.

The music video hits its peak in the bridge, where the cars that were once racing past her begin circling her in a mad dash of burnt rubber and bright lights, as she begs on her hands and knees, "Did I take it too far?"

Eilish circles back to offer up an answer herself: "I think I took I too far when I sold you my heart. How'd it get so dark? I saw stars."

The video ends with a close-up shot of Eilish looking disheveled as the cars continue to race in the background. The last few notes of the song are nearly identical to the opening of her single Therefore I Am, making fans speculate about the track list order ahead of her album's upcoming release.

Billie Eilish's highly-anticipated second album, Happier Than Ever, is set to drop on July 30.

Cover photo: IMAGO / BRIGANI-ART

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