12 3.29.20 Illustrations by Giacomo Gambineri
Photograph by Arielle Bobb-WillisThe Thread
Readers respond to the 3.15.2020 issue.
RE: BILLIE EILISH
Jonah Weiner profi led Billie Eilish, the 18-year-
old singer and pop superstar who won the
four big awards at the Grammys in January.
Anyone who hasn’t listened to Billie
Eilish yet is missing a once-in-a-gen-
eration talent, along with her brother,
Finneas. I’m 58 years old, and I fi nd
their music compelling, beautiful, orig-
inal and inspiring. Her voice is magical,
mostly because of her ability to infuse
every song with emotion in a way I’ve
not heard in a very long time. I look for-
ward to hearing what they create next.
Mary, Paris
I am a 60-year-old woman who discov-
ered Billie Eilish quite by accident a cou-
ple of years ago. I always look forward
to her new work. Billie has brought real
creativity back to pop. Anyone who gen-
uinely listens to her lyrics will soon rec-
ognize she is preternaturally wise. Not
to mention deeply gifted and ironic as a
writer. And she’s not poking at boomers
or the over-the-hill crowd; she’s shining
a light on the illusions, paradigms, pre-
tensions, perceptions and dysfunctions
of her own generation... the normal-
ization of dysfunction and worse. Her
music, lyrics, videos and shows are a
product of her and her brother’s creativ-
ity. I’m not exactly a middle-aged fangirl
... but I am a very big fan.
Kelly Grace Smith, Syracuse, N.Y.
I am 72 years old and discovered Billie’s
music as a curiosity item. I was trans-
ported to a festering and mellowing
sadness that I only touch in nightmares.
Wow! Church never gets that close. This
me if it did — I fi nd her attitude and agen-
da fascinating and admirable.
Her approach reminds me a bit of
David Bowie’s: Both life and art require
multiple fully developed discrete perso-
nas, and you can be completely upfront
about the artifice you’re employing
as you move among them, inhabiting
diff erent characters for diff erent situ-
ations. I found it interesting that she
broke down who all these characters
are, including the one she adopted while
doing the interview. By doing so, she’s
being an excellent role model because
she’s showing young girls not only how
to negotiate the code-switching between
diff erent and seemingly contradictory
identities but also demonstrating that
a full life includes a number of diff erent
elements: the partier, the performer,
the artist, the student, the entrepreneur,
the self-marketer, the caring friend and
family member, the responsible global
citizen. So many kids think that ‘‘keeping
it real’’ means adopting one consistent
attitude, with the result that they crum-
ble when faced with a situation requiring
a diff erent attitude. It turns out ‘‘keeping
it real’’ means maintaining multiple real-
ities and being true to each one while
you’re inhabiting it.
James Jacobs, WashingtonCORRECTIONS
An article on March 8 about the Chinese gay
dating app Blued misspelled the given name
of a Taiwanese writer. He is Bai Xianyong,
not Bai Xinyong. And the article misstated
the name of China’s Legislature. It is the
National People’s Congress, not the National
Party Congress.Send your thoughts to [email protected].‘I’m not exactly
a middle-aged
fangirl...
but I am a very
big fan.’THE STORY,
ON INSTAGRAM
This is me since
they told me not to
touch my face.
@pwenyuanharticle gave me the complete picture.
And I love the connection. I subscribe
to The Times for Trump. This wasn’t
Trump. Thank you for that as well.
Peter Th omas, Bendigo, AustraliaRE: BRITTANY HOWARD
Zandria F. Robinson wrote about the Alabama
Shakes’ frontwoman’s song ‘‘Goat Head.’’Zandria F. Robinson perfectly captured
how I feel about this song. I’m so confl ict-
ed about jamming to it... but the lyrics
break my heart. What kills me is that I
have to remind myself that Ms. Howard
is like 15 years younger than me... not
50 and sharing something from the not-
so-distant past. Amazing write-up about
an amazing song... and a killer album.
Thank you for doing this (and the pictures
are out of this world).
Kristin, WashingtonArielle Bobb-Willis — thank you for
these beautiful photos. More, please.
We had the pleasure of seeing Brittany
Howard in the Rodeo here in Austin,
of all places. It was our daughter’s fi rst
concert, and we still talk about the chills
Howard gave us. Thank you so much for
putting your heart into it. The sincerity
matters so much and sticks around like
good art does.
Gina, Austin, Tex.RE: MEGAN THEE STALLION
Jenna Wortham interviewed the rapper and
musician known for #HotGirlSummer.Even though hers is not a music or a cul-
ture that speaks to me — as a middle-aged
man, there’d be something wrong with