Billie Eilish performed her hit song “Birds of a Feather” at the Grammys and got Taylor Swift and Margaret Qualley standing up to dance together in the audience.
Eilish was flanked by a massive screen showing Los Angeles’ San Gabriel Mountains and Altadena’s Eaton Canyon, as well as a band featuring her brother and songwriting partner, Finneas. Childhood photos of Eilish and Finneas, who grew up in the Highland Park neighborhood of L.A., flashed across the screen and blended in with the mountain vistas.
A couple minutes in, the camera panned to Swift, wearing a sparkly red dress, dancing with Qualley, star of “The Substance” and wife of Swift’s longtime collaborator Jack Antonoff. Also swaying to the breezy, guitar-led song were “Wicked” star Cynthia Erivo and Chrissy Teigen, whose husband John Lennon played keys for Dawes in the opening number.
As the song winded down, Eilish shared a moment with Finneas and said, “I love you L.A.” Music’s biggest night, held at the Crypto.com Arena, began with a tribute to the city, which was recently devastated by a series of wildfires. Host Trevor Noah remarked on L.A.’s resilience and the community of support that stepped up after the fires claimed nearly 30 lives and more than 16,000 homes.
Eilish is no stranger to the Grammys, with a total of nine wins since her debut release “When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?” won awards for album of the year and best pop vocal album in 2020. That same year, her single “Bad Guy” won for record of the year and song of the year, with Eilish also being recognized as best new artist.
This year, her album “Hit Me Hard and Soft” was nominated for seven Grammy awards, including album of the year. Her hit song “Birds of a Feather” got three separate nominations for song of the year, record of the year and best pop solo performance. In the album of the year category, Eilish is up against Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter,” Charli XCX’s “Brat,” Taylor Swift’s “The Tortured Poets Department,” Chappell Roan’s “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess” and Sabrina Carpenter’s “Short n’ Sweet.”
Last year, Eilish and her brother and collaborator Finneas O’Connell made history at the Academy Awards by becoming the two youngest two-time Oscar winners after “What Was I Made For?” from “Barbie” won for best original song. The sibling duo previously won for “No Time to Die,” the title song of the last Daniel Craig James Bond outing.
At just the age of 23, Eilish has already become a major force in the music industry with her three award-winning albums. This past year, Eilish was the second-most streamed artist, just behind Swift and ahead of Ariana Grande, Olivia Rodrigo, Carpenter and Roan. Eilish has yet to reveal her next album following the success of “Hit Me Hard and Soft.”
