Billie Eilish reveals the daring plan she had to fly over concert crowds
Her concert film is out now
The wonderful Billie Eilish joined Fleur East, Will Best and James Barr for our Friday Fry Up, where they chatted about her new concert film, 'Hit Me Hard and Soft', which is co-directed with James Cameron.
The 'Birds of a Feather' singer also revealed her early tour plans, including her swinging on a rope above the audience, and how she'd love to have a musical about her life.
Watch the full interview with Billie Eilish
'Hit Me Hard and Soft' concert film
Billie Eilish's concert film 'Hit Me Hard and Soft' arrived in cinemas on Friday 8th May 2026, and gives fans the chance to experience the singer's huge tour, in 3D from the comfort of a cinema seat. The tour saw the singer performing across the world to thousands of adoring fans, but it was the Manchester performance that was shot for the concert film, with Billie explaining how it came about.
"It was not something I had planned to do at all," she admitted. "I'd been on the tour already for like a year and it was coming to an end and I was thinking like, I love this tour so much, I wish we were going to be capturing it. And then simultaneously with that feeling, my mom goes, 'You know, Billie, I got an email from James Cameron, and he asked, you know, you had this idea to shoot your show in 3D. Would you be interested?'
"Anyway, that was obviously an amazing idea. And so we had a couple meetings and whatever, and I just was like, my main thing that I said to him was, 'I really want to do this, but I don't want to change the show at all, I want to like really represent the show well'.
"And he was fully in agreement with that and then we decided on Manchester and we went. and we shot some in 02 (Arena) to practice, you know, when I was here in London over the summer. It was just like, just like a fun... and you know what was amazing was like, yes, the prep was different than like a regular show, because I was but as soon as I got on stage, it was like any show.
"It's really a good example of the show itself, because nothing changed for it."
Speaking about 'the box', Billie explained what it was like to be inside: "In that box, it's a screen, but it's like, it's almost like a two-way mirror almost. Where you can, if you're inside it, you can see fully out and if you're outside, you can't see at all... Which is like insane.
"I didn't even know that was possible until our first rehearsal and I couldn't believe it. And so what's crazy is like, as you saw in the movie, I literally get in there and I'm just sitting there looking at the crowd and they have no idea that I'm there."
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Billie Eilish as a daredevil
Chatting to Hits Radio Breakfast, Billie revealed that she had some wild ideas for the 'Hit Me Hard and Soft Tour'. After Will described the stage as a playground for Billie, she admitted that she actually wanted it to be like a playground.
"I want it (the stage) to feel like a playground," she admitted. "Because I want to play on the playground. I used to say like, 'Can I have something to climb on?' And that's not as easy as you might think."
She then revealed the wild idea she'd had for literally hanging out with her fans, explaining: "Like originally, the tour was going to have a rope that I swing on. And then I was like, 'No, I need to swing over the crowd' and they were like ‘Billie, you can't do it’!
"And I was like... (no) because they were like, 'You'd have to be strapped in'. And I was like, 'No! I don't want to be strapped in. I want to grab on with my hand (and) swing!'"
Billie Eilish the musical
Despite performing on these huge stages, Billie revealed she loved the idea of having a West End musical about her life. After Fleur revealed her tour reminded her of a West End show, she told the singer: "I feel like your life story is amazing."
Billie responded: "Oh, thank you for saying that. Hell yeah. I mean, maybe someday when I have time to do such a thing (musical), hell yeah, I would love to do that would be pretty crazy.
"I feel like, I feel like, yeah, in a way I'm like, so, I mean, I grew up as a dancer, so that kind of theatre, bowing to each side... And also love being in plays as a kid and stuff. Like I love that side."
Take a look through Billie Eilish's amazing career:
Early life
The US songstress was born on 18th December 2001 to Maggie Baird and Patrick O'Connell. Before Maggie Baird became Billie's momager, travelling on every tour with her, she was a ground-breaking actress and screenwriter. Coming from a famous family, Billie was always destined for fame!
2015: 'Ocen Eyes'
Releasing her first track to Soundcloud would have been a gamble for other singers, however the singer-songwriter released 'Ocean Eyes' herself, at the age of 14 in 2015. A definite 'bad guy' move, as it allowed her to have autonomy over her work and career. The track has since been certified 5x Platinum in the UK.
2017: Debut EP
Billie released her debut EP 'Don't Smile At Me' in 2017 at the age of 16, to critical acclaim. For her first album, the success was unprecedented. Following suit, her breakthrough hit 'When The Party's Over' entered the Top 40 in both the UK and US, proving that her success was only going to exceed from here.
2018: First tour
The 'Lovely' singer blew up and grew up in 2018! This was the year that saw the singer-songwriter embark on her 2018 tour. Billie boasted almost 75 million Instagram followers and 52 million monthly listeners, growing her fanbase organically after that first Soundcloud release. The singer's young fans also saw her as a role model, paving the way for young women as an activist for LGBTQIA+ rights, feminism and mental health.
2019: Debut album and Coachella performance
Unsurprisingly, the US singer-songwriter scored a Number 1 position in charts around the world with her debut album 'When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?' in April 2019. Billie broke a Guinness World Record for being the youngest woman at Number 1 on the UK album charts, and for having the most simultaneous US Hot 100 entries by a female. The album consists of HUGE tracks such as 'Bad Guy', 'Xanny', 'You Should See Me in a Crown', 'When the Party's Over' and 'Bury a Friend'.
2019 was also the year that saw Billie's iconic Coachella performance. As well as being the year she cemented herself as a fashion icon, she wore head-to-toe Louis Vuitton and burst onto our TV screens in a Calvin Klein ad 'I Speak My Truth in #MyCalvins', sporting her iconic baggy look and opening up about why, saying: "I never want anyone to know everything about me. I mean, that's why I wear big, baggy clothes. Nobody can have an opinion, because they haven't seen what's underneath."
2020: The GRAMMY Awards milestone and Bond theme
In 2020, our favourite 'bad guy' became the first artist since 1981 to do a full sweep at the GRAMMY Awards, winning all four major awards and being the youngest to win them at the age of 18 - making history yet again! Billie won Song of the Year, Record of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance for 'bad guy', Best Pop Vocal Album and Album of the Year for 'When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?' and Best New Artist.
2020 was Billie's year as the star also joined the Bond hall of fame! The US singer-songwriter became the youngest artist to be chosen to lend her voice for a Bond film, working with her brother Finneas and esteemed movie soundtrack genius Hans Zimmer. Her theme song 'No Time To Die' hit Number 1 in the UK, as well as featuring on the 2020 Bond film. This placed Billie alongside worldwide superstars Adele and Sam Smith who have been initiated into the Bond elite too. Impressive!
2021: New album, documentary and fragrance
Billie released her second album 'Happier Than Ever' on Friday 30th July 2021, featuring singles 'My Future', 'Therefore I Am', 'Your Power', 'Lost Cause', and 'NDA'. Her Disney+ documentary - Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles - was released in September 2021.
Billie delighted her fans in October 2021, revealing she would be releasing her very own fragrance called Eilish - fast forward to today, and she now has three fragrances! Billie Eilish's first perfume, called 'Eilish', officially went on sale on 10th November 2021. Billie later revealed in September 2022 that she would be releasing her second perfume Eilish No. 2. It was then on 28th September 2023 that she announced Eilish No. 3 - a limited edition perfume that served as the last of the Eilish collection.
2022: Glastonbury Festival headline slot and 'Happier Than Ever, The World Tour'
Not only did Billie headline the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury Festival in 2022, she became the youngest female to ever do so. Performing an exhilarating 20-song set full of hits, she opened with 'bury a friend', as well as singing the likes of 'Therefore I Am', 'Oxytocin' and 'when the party's over' before ending with 'Happier Than Ever'.
Fitting in around her Glastonbury performance, Billie kicked off her world tour in the US and brought her amazing shows to the UK and Ireland in June. She played 13 dates across Belfast, London, Manchester, Glasgow, Birmingham and Dublin.
2023: 'What Was I Made For?'
In July 2023, Billie released a new track called 'What Was I Made For?', which features on the soundtrack of the Barbie movie. It was later nominated for a Golden Globe, with Billie winning both Song of the Year and Best Song Written For Visual Media at the 2024 GRAMMY Awards.
Billie also appeared in a TV show in 2023, dipping her toes in the acting world and starring in an episode of US drama Swarm in which she played Eva, a leader of a female empowerment cult who takes a special interest in the main character.
2024: Third album and Olympics Closing Ceremony performance
The singer's third album 'Hit Me Hard and Soft' was released in May 2024, containing singles 'Birds of a Feather', 'Chihiro' and 'Wildflower'. It went to Number 1 around the world including in the UK, US, Australia, Canada and Ireland to name but a few, and was certified Platinum in the UK just six months later, receiving a 2x Platinum certification in January 2026.
On 11th August, Billie Eilish performed at the Closing Ceremony for the Paris 2024 Olympics. Before the event, there were several rumours circulating that the singer would be performing, along with The Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Snoop Dogg. Despite the rumours, nothing was confirmed until the day that it took place.
2025: GRAMMYs performance and bringing her tour to the UK
On 2nd February 2025, Billie took to the stage at the 67th annual GRAMMY Awards to entertain the star-studded audience with a performance of 'Birds of a Feather'. She was nominated for seven awards, but unfortunately did not take any home.
Billie brought her 'Hit Me Hard and Soft' tour to the UK and Ireland in July 2025, visiting Glasgow, London, Manchester and Dublin.
2026: 10th GRAMMY win and the 'Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour' concert film
Billie took home her 10th GRAMMY Award win at the 2026 ceremony, picking up Song of the Year for 'Wildflower' which was also nominated for Record of the Year. She used her acceptance speech to encourage acceptance of diversity: "As grateful as I feel, I honestly don't feel like I need to say anything but that … No one is illegal on stolen land. I feel really hopeful in this room, and I feel like we just need to keep fighting and speaking up and protesting. Our voices really do matter and the people matter."
Also in 2026, Billie released her concert film for her 'Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour', which was co-directed by renowned director James Cameron and released in cinemas on 8th May 2026. It's now available to stream on Prime Video. Billie has also taken a further step towards an acting career as she spent the summer filming for a film adaptation of Sylvia Plath's classic novel, The Bell Jar. Co-starring Carey Mulligan as her mother, the film does not yet have a release date but Billie was spotted in costume over the summer of 2026.