You’ve seen the image. A girl in baggy clothes, sinking into the dark blue, a white door floating like a ghost above her. It’s haunting. It’s the Hit Me Hard and Soft cover, and honestly, it’s the most talked-about Billie Eilish 2024 photoshoot for a reason. Most people assume it’s high-end CGI or a clever Photoshop job.
It wasn't.
Billie actually spent six hours underwater in a massive tank in Santa Clarita. No nose plug. No oxygen tank between every click. Just her, a heavy weight strapped to her body to keep her from floating, and a literal ton of water filling her sinuses. She called it "basically waterboarding myself."
The Brutal Reality of the Hit Me Hard and Soft Shoot
Why would a global superstar subject herself to that? For Billie, 2024 was about stripping away the "baggy-goth avatar" and being, well, herself. She worked with photographer William Drumm to capture that specific feeling of being submerged in emotion.
The logistics were a nightmare. They used a 20-foot by 20-foot tank. To get the lighting right—that specific, filtered "ocean" look—they had to use giant 20-foot diffusers.
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What happened behind the scenes:
- The Wardrobe: She wasn't in a swimsuit. She wore giant pants, a thermal long-sleeve, a flannel, a tie, and rings. Every piece of fabric gets ten times heavier when wet.
- The Weight: Because her baggy clothes trapped air, she kept floating to the top. The solution? A literal weight strapped to her to keep her "sunken."
- The Timing: This happened the day after the 2024 Grammys. She’d stayed up until 7 a.m., dyed her hair from bright red to black, and then drove out to the set.
"I need to suffer," she told Stephen Colbert later that May. It sounds dramatic, but it’s her process. She thinks of the visual first—the "optical illusion" of the door and the depth—and deals with the physical misery later.
Rolling Stone and the "Reintroduction"
While the album cover was about the "sink," the Rolling Stone May 2024 cover was about the "resurface." Photographed for the magazine's cover story, this was billed as Billie reintroducing herself to the world.
The vibe here was a far cry from the "lethal teen" look of her 2019 shoots. It felt more intimate, almost like a friend was behind the lens. It captured her in a transitional state—someone who has won two Oscars but still feels like the kid who grew up in Highland Park.
The 2024 visual aesthetic for Billie moved away from the neon-green "Bad Guy" era into something "Blue" (literally). The colors in her 2024 shoots were muted, earthy, and deep.
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The Variety Controversy: When a Shoot Becomes a "Moment"
We can't talk about her recent media presence without mentioning the Variety Power of Women shoot. While technically appearing at the end of 2023, the fallout dominated her early 2024 narrative.
Photographed by Victoria Stevens, the images were classic Billie—structured, soulful, and sophisticated. But the interview attached to it became the "outing" moment that she later criticized. She felt the red carpet questions about her sexuality took away from the actual purpose of the event.
"I like boys and girls, leave me alone about it please, literally who cares," she wrote on Instagram.
It’s a reminder that for Billie, a photoshoot isn't just a pretty picture. It’s a battlefield where she tries to control her own narrative while the world tries to pin a label on her.
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What This Means for the "New" Billie
The billie eilish 2024 photoshoot trend is moving toward "hyper-realism." Whether she’s climbing trees (like in her more casual Yana Yatsuk sessions) or "drowning" for an album cover, there’s a rejection of the polished, airbrushed pop star look.
If you’re a fan or a photographer looking at her 2024 work, there are a few key takeaways:
- Authenticity over Comfort: If the shot requires you to be underwater for six hours, you do it. The lack of a nose plug in the Hit Me Hard and Soft shoot gave her face a specific, strained vulnerability that you can't fake.
- Visual Metaphor: The floating door isn't just a prop. It’s an optical illusion meant to make the viewer linger.
- Color Storying: Notice how she transitioned her hair color specifically for the shoot to match the "Blue" theme of the album. Everything is intentional.
If you want to capture the "Billie vibe" in your own creative work, stop trying to make things look perfect. Use soft lighting, embrace deep blues and shadows, and don't be afraid to look a little "undone." The most successful images of 2024 were the ones where she looked like she was actually going through something, not just posing for a check.
Check out the "Lunch" music video next—it carries this same 2024 aesthetic of "90s preppy meets modern angst" that she perfected in her recent magazine spreads.