Billie Eilish’s négligé style for our equatorial heat

Billie Eilish in Kampong Glam. Photo: Billie Eilish/Instagram

Before her performance at the National Stadium last night, Billie Eilish took time off to take in the sights of hipster-cool-lost Haji Lane and, the surrounding back alleys. In an Instagram post, Ms Eilish wore a black camisole and a slip-skirt with a wide lace border and a left slit that shot up her thigh. Déshabillé lorong! The get-up, we presume, was chosen with consideration for our uncomfortably warm weather (which made the National Stadium so heated up that a few concert-goers were reported to have fainted, necessitating the singer to call security at one point). Above her straight neckline, she wore multiple silver chains, flanked by black bra straps. She was cuffed with a black bracelet on her left wrist and had multiple rings on both hands. In sum, it was nothing like the baggy-tee-and-shorts combo that she loves and her fans, too.

To contrast with the delicate two-piece, Ms Eilish was shod in Uggs-like, lace-up boots by Moon Boot. They appear weighty, wintery, and worn. In a TikTok-ish video shared in the same IG post, in which Ms Eilish was prancing in a drizzle, the boots looked a little ungainly as she clomped happily towards the camera. While she clothed her body to embrace the sweltering heat, her feet, curiously, are cozily padded with what are usually worn in winter. Could it be a deliberate choice so that there would be a noticeable contrast between outfit and footwear? (Was it also contrast that she was after when, in the video, she cavorted with the Sultan Mosque behind her?) After all, it is hard to imagine Billie Eilish in heels, even kitty heels. But ankle-high clomper-hoofs are the stuff that would engender influence. Even in the dumpster-lined back alleys of Kampong Glam, fans are clearly not far from her mind.