At that point, Eilish was just sixteen years old and had around 250K followers on Instagram, accumulated after going viral with her single "Ocean Eyes." Within a year, she would have more than 6 million; the count is now up to 120 million on that platform alone. Her goofy relatability, unique tomboy style and, of course, her heavenly voice gained her such a widespread fan base that her first full-length, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?, debuted at the top of the charts and became one of the best-selling albums of 2019. Her next two albums, Happier Than Ever (2021) and Hit Me Hard and Soft (2024), were also instant successes.
Eilish has the golden touch.
She showed us that and more when she performed hits from all her albums at Ball Arena on November 19, the first show of her sold-out, two-night run. The venue was completely filled around the stage, a long rectangle in the center of the floor with two cut-outs in which the band had set up. Anticipation was at its height when a cube in the middle lit up and rose up and down, and the venue began to vibrate from the bass while deafening shrieks poured out of the crowd. Then Eilish appeared on top of the cube, beaming out at the audience before launching into "CHIHIRO," off her latest album.
While Eilish's voice is soft, it's also powerful. Somehow, you could usually make her out over the audience screaming (you couldn't call it singing) along to every word — though there were some moments when you simply couldn't. I didn't think there could be anyone louder than Taylor Swift's fans on her Eras Tour, but this Ball Arena audience had them beat during such songs as "LUNCH," "NDA," "Therefore I Am" and "WILDFLOWER."
So you can imagine the relief when Eilish plopped down to sit in the middle of the stage and announced that she would be doing some vocal loops. "It's the only time in the whole show that I will ask for complete silence," she said.
"I want all the noise and everything you guys give me," she was quick to add, "but we just all need to be quiet for one minute and that's it."
She began the humming harmonies for "When the Party's Over," which sent goosebumps through the arena. As the lyrics began, she laid on the stage, her voice crystal-clear as glass. The sound is so delicate that sometimes it seems as though it may break, but Eilish only takes it higher. This time, the audience sang along only softly, allowing for a moment of serenity.
But Eilish knew how to balance a show between high energy and soothing songs, taking us on mood swing that no one wanted to get off. She'd sprint across the stage with the energy of a young Kanye West, jumping up and down while performing "bad guy" before belting out "THE GREATEST" from a platform that rose into the air.
Eilish then took a moment to reference the election while prepping her acoustic guitar for the next songs, telling her fans that she hoped to create a "safe space" at her shows. "I won't say much, but I do want to say that it's been a hard week for a lot of us — I guess two weeks now, sheesh," she said. "And I just wanted to say to all the women in this room that you're safe in this room. And I love you so much and I hope you feel safe in yourself here; whoever you are, whatever gender you are, I hope you feel safe and comfortable as yourself."
And that's part of the magic of Eilish, too. Authentically herself, she encourages others to be the same. Sometimes her lyrics are so vulnerable, for songs like "SKINNY" and "TV," that you feel as though it's just the two of you in the room. And then suddenly, you're at a rave again. Pyrotechnics flared for "bury a friend," and lasers shot out for Eilish's portion of "Guess," by Charli XCX.
The last portion of the show saw Eilish dive back into her first EP, taking to the piano to perform parts of "lovely," "idontwannabeyouanymore" and "ocean eyes." Again, there were chills and even tears as the arena lit up with cell phone flashlights.
The concert ended around 10:15 p.m. with a performance of her latest hit, "BIRDS OF A FEATHER." Eilish looked to the crowd, her eyes shining and her smile wide, as if she was humbled by the sheer volume of screams and overlapping cries of "I love you, Billie!"
And she told us she loved us right back.
Find more concerts on our concert calendar.
