Who Are Billie Eilish’s Famous Parents and What Did They Do?
When born into a famous family, it’s not uncommon to end up in the limelight. For several celebrities with famous parents, acting or singing is often expected to happen. However, Billie Eilish‘s story to stardom is slightly different because of the sleeper hit, “Ocean Eyes,” released on SoundCloud in 2015.
While her famous parents inspired the young artist to express her creativity and fully supported her endeavors, they did not expect Eilish or her brother and songwriting partner, Finneas O’Connell to follow in their footsteps in the entertainment industry. We’ve uncovered Eilish’s musical journey and why her parents make look familiar to you.
Billie Eilish’s rise to superstardom
Whether it’s her unique musical or personal style or criticism of her song lyrics, Eilish is a worldwide superstar. While only making a splash in the entertainment industry a short time ago, Eilish has set new records and won numerous awards that some artists work for years to achieve. She has won seven Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards. She has accomplished all this before her 20th birthday and continues to take the world by storm with her work on and performance of the theme song for the upcoming James Bond film No Time to Die.
Growing up in Los Angeles, Eilish and her brother Finneas were homeschooled, allowing them to explore avenues that most interested them. Music and songwriting were early interests for Eilish, and Aurora’s Runaway music video inspired her to become an artist. After her viral hit “Ocean Eyes,” she released her first studio album, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? in 2019. The album featured her first number one, “Bad Guy.” In July 2021, Eilish’s sophomore album, Happier Than Ever, was released to a large anxiously awaiting fan base. She describes the album as a new era for her. While she takes alternative pop to the next level with her worldwide success, the push for making it as an artist could stem from her famous parents.
Who are Eilish’s famous parents?
While many recognize Eilish’s brother, Finneas, from his appearance in the final season of the musical comedy show Glee in 2015 or his guest roles on Modern Family, some may not know the siblings have famous parents too. Eilish’s parents are Maggie Baird and Patrick O’Connell. While the two are also musicians, they are better known for their acting careers. Maggie was on TV shows including X Files and Another World before focusing more on voice work. Patrick has had small roles on hit series and movies including, The West Wing, Without a Trace, and Iron Man. Maggie and Patrick also appeared in the film Life Inside Out in 2013. With famous parents, some fans question how much Eilish’s parents’ connections helped jumpstart her unbelievable success at a young age. In a Metro article, Finneas clears up that he nor his sister’s success is because of their parents’ entertainment industry influences. “He claimed his parents were never able to ‘fully financially support’ the family through their work as actors and were forced to take other jobs, Patrick as a construction worker and Maggie as a teacher.”
Supportive family
While being part of an entertainment industry family is helpful for budding celebrities, having family encouraging you may be a bigger part of their success. Eilish had the full support of her parents and brother as she worked to perfect her musical craft over the years. She even revealed that she was allowed to stay up all night to practice music and take advantage of the unpredictability of the creative process.
