HAPPIER THAN EVER ( ARTFEST )

By: Danisha Emmanuella
X - IPS

I have taken part in the Artfest event, many students have taken part with each different part of the song they have been assigned to. I was assigned to sing the song Happier Than Ever by Billie Eilish with Anin, a friend of mine. I was given a role to sing a duet with her, we were assigned to separate parts of the song for each other, but some of the parts were changed by the seniors due to the parts of the song not fitting for our voice.

The seniors who have guided me and Anin throughout the process of practicing to recording were Kak Kisya, Kak Zefa, Kak Umboh, and many more kind-hearted students that have helped us. Anin, my partner to sing together in the song has also helped me with some parts of the song. 

My position in the song was mostly the same as Anin’s since we have to make sure each singer has an equal amount of singing time and lines, but some of the parts Anin take part in were mostly high notes since her voice suits higher notes better than I do, as her voice range compliments higher notes very well.

What has interested me the most was the song choice given, the song was popular and some of the parts had lines where curse words were mentioned. But what made the song shine was how complicated and the duality from the opening and ending of the song was. The range of how Billie sang softly in the opening of the song and how it slowly ranged into a rock and more aggressive way shows how the singer feels in the song. The song itself is a breakup anthem where the singer herself shows her hatred towards her past lover. 

The song itself really plays how frustrated the singer felt and how Billie felt unhappy to be with her past lover. “When I’m away from you, I'm happier than ever”  (this verse being sung by Anin) the lyric was sung in a soft blue feel, where later getting closer to the bridge the song will slowly escalate. “You scared me to death, but I'm wasting my breath cuz you only listen to your f***king friends”  (this verse being sung by me) is the part where the song starts to escalate, we can see how Billie tried to advise her past lover but being stubborn also ticked Billie off.  At the end of the song, everything was so loud and chaotic that you can hear Billie screaming out of frustration in the background. The beauty in the song was how soft Billie sang at the first verse and you can hear how tired and angry the singer sounded halfway through the song.

Even though I haven’t been in a rough relationship as rough as Billie, people hearing the song or someone else singing the song can feel the emotions being poured through the lyrics. Maybe you are having a bad day? Or someone close to you is showing their ugly true colors to you? The lyrics still apply to every negative thing you feel. Even though we may haven’t experienced the same thing Billie has felt, we can still feel like we relate to the lyrics since the lyrics felt so personal and painful. Some people who may feel betrayed, frustrated, or maybe somewhere in between or maybe feeling a little sad, you can still relate to the song lyrics as much your heart likes. 



​References :

Stefannee, Wang.2021.THE STORY BEHIND BILLIE EILISH'S "HAPPIER THAN EVER," EXPLAINED.8,4 2021.https://www.nylon.com/entertainment/billie-eilish-happier-than-ever-lyrics-explained Accessed on 12/10/2021

GENIUS.2021.Happier Than Ever.https://genius.com/Billie-eilish-happier-than-ever-lyrics Accessed on 12/10/2021