Decoding the Melancholy: How Billie Eilish and FINNEAS Captured Existentialism in "What Was I Made For?"

I went down the YouTube rabbit hole today. The video How Billie Eilish & FINNEAS Created Oscar Winning Song ‘What Was I Made For?’ for ‘Barbie’ on the Variety channel surfaced, and I was glad I jumped in.

The video delves into the behind-the-scenes creative process of FINNEAS and Billie Eilish in creating their song for the Barbie movie. (I always love a great behind-the-scenes because I like to see how things are deconstructed or constructed…) It starts with FINNEAS discussing the song’s inception: the song’s core, except for the final verse, was written in about 35 minutes. “What Was I Made For?” is a song that makes me cry buckets. Each. Time. Every time I listen to it. Billie’s ethereal vocals against a backdrop of sparse piano chords and subtle electronic elements — it’s haunting.

I thoroughly enjoyed how FINNEAS describes his creative and production process. He delves into the philosophy of his music production. The seamless blend of sounds evokes emotion without drawing attention to the individual components. The song features a real piano, focusing on achieving a muffled sound through a felt pedal (hence, its unique sound). He highlights the minimalistic goal of making compelling music, and it’s so cool to see him showing the layering and how the harmonies, doubles, and various instruments like the Mellotron and cello are added to enrich the song’s texture — how all these are invisible support to the lead vocal (Billie’s voice).

Another reason I’m writing this post is mostly (for myself) to recall the way FINNEAS breaks down his production techniques, which include stereo mixing, automation of ad-libs, delay, reverb, and subtle percussion to enhance the song’s emotional and atmospheric quality. The arrangement includes contributions from other musicians, such as Matt Dunley on strings, and incorporates elements like electric bass guitar and harp to support the song’s structure. This changes the way I’ve always listened to the song and it becomes much more ‘transparent’ for me. It’s like, I’m now able to ‘put a finger’ to what made me feel so much about the song. The words, the music, Billie’s voice. Her vulnerable delivery creates a bittersweet sense of melancholy.

I have not watched ‘Barbie’ (I’m not a TV person, remember?), but someday I will.

Just wanted to throw in another Billie-FINNEAS older video, but this has nothing to do with “What Was I Made Of?” It’s an NPR Music’s Tiny Desk Concert featuring them. Loved it!

Updated on 23 March 2024: Here’s an interview by Zane Lowe with Billie Eilish that is so good I want to immortalize it here. The interview was recorded in Los Angeles, CA, on 10 July 2023. It explores the creation of Billie’s song “What Was I Made For?” specifically made for the movie “Barbie.” It delves into how the song (despite being tied to the film) reflects Billie’s personal feelings and experiences, where she shares insights about her involvement with the “Barbie” movie, her approach to songwriting for film and TV, and her personal connection to Barbie. This interview does not even feel like an interview, and Zane Lowe is so, so good.