At just eighteen years old, singer-songwriter Billie Eilish broke Grammy records, winning the “Big Four” at the 62nd annual Grammy Awards. Eilish was deemed Best New Artist and received awards for Album of the Year for her album “When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?”, and Song and Record of the Year for her song “Bad Guy.” Eilish and many of her fans were pleasantly confused when she became the first person to win the Big Four awards since The King of Yacht Rock Christopher Cross in 1981.

Suporna Das ’20 first became familiar with Eilish’s music in 2017. The first song Das heard was “Bellyache,” a song that Eilish wrote and produced a video for at the age of 15 years old. “Her music resonated with me and it inspired me, especially after learning that she was only three months older than I was,” said Das. Das claims that she could tell from the start that Eilish was a one-of-a kind artist. “[Eilish] had a unique way of presenting the turmoil that is the teenager’s mind that I had never heard any artist be able to do before,” said Das. “She doesn’t fetishize about heartbreak the way that most artists consistently do. Her music is her own and reflects her own complex ideas.” 

Kiele Morgan ’23, another Eilish fan, has similar sentiments. “Her music is so calming and gentle, but then she also has upbeat songs, so there is a lot of variety which makes it possible to listen to her through whatever mood I am in – whether it is that I am really down about something or in a really good mood,” said Morgan. 

It seems that many enjoy this aspect of Eilish’s music, so much so that Eilish was able to take home her fifth Grammy of the night. In a category with fellow nominees like Lizzo, who won a Grammy for “Best Pop Solo Performance,” and Lil Nas X, Eilish came out on top, winning a Grammy for “Best New Artist.” Upon hearing her name, Eilish seemed shocked, as if she could not believe that she had won. Her fans, however, were confident in her ability to succeed.  

“I applaud her, and I couldn’t be more proud,” said Das. Morgan agreed and said that “Billie is very deserving of winning the five Grammys because her music is very groundbreaking to me, and it has elements that I’ve never heard in other artists’ music. The sounds that she includes in the background I’ve never heard before, but they sound very cool and add a really awesome mood to the songs.” 

To be a five-time Grammy award winner is a rare and impressive accomplishment, especially so for an eighteen-year-old. “I think it is absolutely crazy that Billie was capable of winning five Grammy awards at just eighteen years old with only one EP and one album released,” said Das. However, Das is skeptical of the fact that Eilish won one of these awards. “[While] she is more than deserving of these five awards, though I do have to disagree with her receiving at least one of the five awards: Best Pop Vocal Album. Billie’s genre has never been pop and was never meant to be considered pop. Her music only became labeled as so when she began her rise to stardom, and either way, her genre has been and will always be more on the alternative side,” said Das. She said that she would have liked to see Harry Styles win this Grammy for his album “Fine Line.” 

It seems as if Eilish and Das agree on this matter: while accepting this award, Eilish shook her head and ceded that her friend Ariana Grande was much more deserving of the award that she was. In her acceptance speech Eilish stated “Can I just say that I think Ariana deserves this?” Grande was consequently seen waving Eilish off from her seat, a gesture that indicates her disapproval of Eilish’s statement. Although Das clearly is a fan of Eilish’s music, she agrees that Ariana Grande should have received the award. “While Billie’s album topped charts for weeks after its release, with about ten of her songs taking up spots in the top fifty, “bad guy” and “bury a friend” seemed to be the only songs most people paid attention to and it feels as if she won the award based solely off these two songs,” said Das. “I do not agree with this if this is largely the reason why she won ‘Best Pop Vocal Album.’” 

It is clear that Eilish has many fans, even of the famous kind, that believe in her ability to succeed as an artist. At just the age of eighteen, Eilish has been blessed with much success, and her fans are excited to see what more she accomplishes in the next year.

“I applaud her and I couldn’t be more proud,” said Suporna Das ’20. Kiele Morgan ’23 agreed and said that “Billie is very deserving of winning the five Grammys because her music is very groundbreaking to me, and it has elements that I’ve never heard in other artists’ music. The sounds that she includes in the background I’ve never heard before, but they sound very cool and add a really awesome mood to the songs.”