Billie Eilish Becomes the Youngest Two-Time Oscar Winner for Barbie 's 'What Was I Made For?'
US singer-songwriter Billie Eilish (R) and US singer-songwriter Finneas O'Connell accept the award for Best Original Song for "What Was I Made For" from "Barbie" onstage during the 96th Annual Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California on March 10, 2024. Credit - AFP via Getty Images
Billie Eilish became the youngest two-time Oscar winner at the age of 22 at the Academy Awards on Sunday night. Eilish, along with her brother Finneas O'Connell, won the Academy Award for best original song for the power ballad, “What Was I Made For?” from the blockbuster Barbie.
"I feel so incredibly lucky and honored," Eilish said, before thanking Barbie director Greta Gerwig. "This goes out to everyone that was affected by the movie and how incredible it is."
“What Was I Made For?” sets the mood for the identity crisis Barbie (Margot Robbie) is having throughout the movie. The song also dominated the 2024 Grammys, winning Song Of The Year, Record of the Year, Best Pop Solo Performance, and Best Music Video.
The brother-sister team also won the award for best original song in 2021 for “No Time to Die” in the James Bond film by the same name starring Daniel Craig.
In 2018, TIME featured Eilish in its list of the most influential teens, and she described her hope of having a career where she could not only write songs but pursue other creative ventures like designing cars and shoes. She’s also a dedicated climate change activist, pioneering ways that musicians can reduce their carbon footprint like feeding her touring crew plant-based meals and powering her Lollapalooza set with a zero-emissions battery system.
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“I can’t imagine a life that doesn’t involve creativity,” she said, “or at least inspiring other people.”
Write to Olivia B. Waxman at olivia.waxman@time.com.
