One thing that I would not love about being famous, is the likelihood of becoming the object of someone’s obsession, and being stalked.
Unfortunately, 18-year-old singer, Billie Eilish , has had to deal with that.
According to TMZ , she recently had to file a restraining order against a man who kept showing up at her Los Angeles home.
That sounds really frightening, tbh.
For someone who is barely an adult, Billie Eilish has had to deal with a lot of grief that no 18-year-old should ever have to deal with.
Like the time she was called the b-word by a grown man outside of the Jimmy Kimmel Live studio last November, when she was still just 17.
After leaving the show, she was accosted by a swarm of paparazzi that booed her for not stopping to sign any autographs.
While the rest of her fans would probably agree that a group of grown adult men bombarding a 17-year-old girl and booing her is weird and definitely not her fault, she kindly took to her Instagram story to explain her side of the story and set the record straight.
She explained that when she exited the “Jimmy Kimmel Live” studio, there were two large groups of people outside waiting for her.
One group was fans and the other was paparazzi and people looking for autographs to sell on eBay.
Naturally, she prioritized the fans. She went up to them, gave hugs, took photos with them, but opted not to sign any autographs — which is entirely her prerogative.
She revealed that she had recently taken a stand against signing autographs, as they often end up being sold online.
RELATED STORIES
“I used to, but I realized all anyone did was sell everything that I signed,” she said.
“So I stopped [signing autographs]. It was kind of like a policy of mine that I don’t. “
Which, again, is totally in her right! She doesn’t have to do anything she doesn’t want to do.
She said that she’d “way rather get a hug and talk” to her fans than sign something for them that they’ll sell later.
“I was like, nobody here really wants anything from me, besides a [expletive] autograph — which I don’t do because they’ll sell that [expletive].”
Tbh, I’d rather get a hug anyhow.
“I started to walk away because I realized none of these people actually cared about anything that had to do with me, as a person,” she said.
“As I started to walk away — back to the car — they all started to boo me,” she said .
So childish!
“Then, they all started calling me a ‘little [expletive],’ and [said] that I’ll lose my Grammy nominations.”
“They wait outside for you and then immediately they don’t get what they want and they boo you, and [expletive] curse at you .”
Anyway, now Billie is dealing with something much scarier…
According to TMZ , Billie and her parents were granted a temporary restraining order against a mysterious man who showed up at their Los Angeles home looking for the singer seven times in one week.
The alleged trespasser is 24-year-old Prenell Rousseau.
He first showed up at the Eilish home last Monday.
He allegedly rang the doorbell and when Billie’s father asked how he could help him, he said : “I think I might have the wrong house, but does Billie Eilish live here?”
“While we waited for security, Mr. Rousseau remained on our porch,” Billie’s legal document reads.
“He sat down and began to read a book, while also continuing to engage in a periodic monologue. My father repeatedly asked him to leave, but he refused .”
Once security arrived to remove the trespasser, he allegedly hid behind a wall and tried to camp out there overnight.
Fortunately, he was ultimately removed from the property.
Only to return repeatedly in the days that followed. So he really wasn’t getting the hint.
The man allegedly tried six more times that week to gain entrance into Billie’s home.
He was taken into police custody two of the times he showed up at their house, but was released both times, as trespassing is non-violent offense.
In the end, he was put on a bus back to New York where he reportedly lives, and Billie and her family were allowed to file a restraining order against him.
Legally, Prenell must stay at least 200 yards away from Billie and her family indefinitely.
In addition, he isn’t allowed to try to make contact with Billie or her family in any way.
Their court hearing is set to take place on June 1st , where this will hopefully be resolved and Billie can go about her life, assured that there isn’t a stranger trying to camp outside of her home.