- We ranked all 30 songs in Billie Eilish’s discography, from her breakout hit “Ocean Eyes” to her newest single “My Future.”
- Her No. 1 hit single “Bad Guy” took the top spot, scoring just shy of a perfect 10. “Bury a Friend” and “Everything I Wanted” rounded out the top three.
- “Wish You Were Gay,” which some fans considered to be offensive, was ranked the lowest with an average score of 6/10.
- Visit Insider’s homepage for more stories.
At just 18 years old, Billie Eilish is one of the most successful and critically acclaimed musicians at work today.
The teenager released her debut single online for free in 2015. Since then, Eilish’s first full-length album – 2019’s “When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?” – hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart and helped her win five Grammy Awards. She also recently became the youngest artist ever to record a James Bond theme song.
Indeed, Eilish’s discography is rich and record-breaking – but with just one EP, one LP, and a few standalone singles, it’s also relatively brief. So, Insider’s Entertainment Team decided to rank all 30 songs in the singer’s discography.
Participating members gave each song a rating on a scale of 1-10, with an average of those scores determining the final rankings. They’re listed below in descending order.
Note: This article has been updated since its original publish date.
30. Many fans found "Wish You Were Gay" to be offensive.
Eilish faced backlash when she released the fourth single for her highly-acclaimed debut album "When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?" While fans hoped the track would be an LGBTQ anthem, they were disappointed when it turned out to be about wishing for a boy who didn't love her back to be gay.
Eilish has responded to the backlash, telling PopBuzz, "First off, I want to be so clear that it's so not supposed to be an insult. I feel like it's been a little bit misinterpreted. I tried so hard to not make it in any way offensive."
But aside from the negative discourse around it, the song also just isn't Eilish's best. From the average production to the cringey lyrics, there's nothing here that makes it worth listening to over her other, far superior tracks. - Courteney Larocca
Song highlight: It ends with applause, perfectly setting up the following track, "When the Party's Over," which is one of Eilish's best songs of all time.
Average score: 6/10
29. "Party Favor" is a creative take on a ruthless breakup.
"Party Favor" starts off with a phone ringing before a man says to "leave a message." The following soft vocals and ukulele are then formatted as a voicemail of someone breaking it off with a possessive partner.
And although Eilish warns that her partner's "number might be blocked" and threatens to "call the cops, if you don't stop," it's not until nearly halfway through the song that the singer reveals the biggest blow: she's dumping someone on their birthday.
While "Party Favor" is a creative and brutal portrayal of just how ruthless breakups can be, the song doesn't beg to be listened to on loop as some of Eilish's other breakup songs do, like "Watch" and "B----es Broken Hearts." - Claudia Willen
Song highlight: The way she describes the irreversibility of a broken relationship: "Look, now I know, we coulda done it better / But we can't change the weather / When the weather's come and gone / Books don't make sense if you read 'em backwards / You'll single out the wrong words / Like you mishear all my songs."
Average score: 6.5/10
28. "Goodbye" is an effective album closer, but it's not strong as a standalone track.
"Goodbye" completes a three-song farewell, which Eilish designed to feel like a sentence: "Listen before I go, I love you, goodbye." The final flourish stitches together moments, emotions, and pieces of production from the rest of the tracklist, so the the album ends on an immersive and cohesive note.
"I don't like when albums just end," Eilish told MTV News. "I don't like when a song just ends an album and then nothing feels like it's actually over. I really wanted something to feel like a finish line, to feel like a period at the end, you know? So the idea was to have that 'Please, don't leave me be' right at the beginning, and then basically the rest of the song is every single song on the album, starting from the bottom to the top. And then when it gets to the top, it just kind of dies down and it feels like it's a goodbye. It almost feels like an RIP."
But while "Goodbye" accomplishes this goal beautifully, outside of the full album experience, it doesn't function as a standalone song. It's not something you'd add to a playlist, for example. That doesn't decrease its inherent value, but it does decrease its listenability, which was an important factor in our ranking. - Callie Ahlgrim
Song highlight: It works perfectly as a tender goodbye when you listen to "When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?" front to back (which is actually the best way to listen to any songs on the album).
Average score: 7.28/10
27. "Bored" is a pretty song about dumping someone.
"Bored" is a delicate, etheral song built on gentle harmonies that, upon first listen, masks the contempt Eilish feels for an ex who's made one too many mistakes. The most gorgeous moments on the track are when she hurriedly whispers lines like "I don't want any settled scores / I just want you to set me free."
It was included on the "13 Reasons Why" season one soundtrack, but later got its own music video, which might be the best part. In the video, the singer climbs a ladder that leads to nowhere, and her explanation for the visual gives the entire song a deeper meaning.
"The video was inspired by being trapped in a relationship that was going nowhere... when you're in such a toxic place with someone and you're treated so badly for such a long time that eventually you're used to it," Eilish told Elle.
She added: "The thought of being on an endless ladder in a kind of timeless, anti-gravity space where no rules apply, is just really sick to me, and goes with the concept of the song-getting nowhere in a relationship." - Courteney Larocca
Song highlight: The layering of her vocals throughout.
Average score: 7.3/10
26. Eilish collaborated with Khalid on the song "Lovely."
Eilish is joined by Khalid on "Lovely," which was released in 2018. The slow track incorporates piano and strings and begins with Khalid's voice echoing Eilish's vocals. Eventually the artists come together to harmonize in the chorus, singing about the feeling of being trapped inside of one's own mind.
"I hope someday I'll make it out of here / Even if it takes all night or a hundred years," they sing, adding, "Need a place to hide, but I can't find one near / Wanna feel alive, outside I can fight my fear."
Both artists have openly spoken about their struggles with mental health, and the song was included on the soundtrack for Netflix's "13 Reasons Why." When asked about "Lovely" during an interview with Genius, Eilish said the track is about how "as many people can try to help me and talk to me and whatever... it doesn't change anything." - Claudia Willen
Song highlight: "Isn't it lovely, all alone? / Heart made of glass, my mind of stone / Tear me to pieces, skin to bone."
Average score: 7.47/10
25. Eilish wrote "8" in an effort to empathize with someone she hurt.
A lullaby-like song featuring sped-up vocals and ukulele chords, "8" captures the confusion - and eventual acceptance - that comes with being left behind by a distancing partner.
Lyrics such as "I never really know how to please you / You're lookin' at me like I'm see-through" have led fans to interpret "8" as a track about the singer's heartbreak, Eilish explained to Apple 1's Zane Lowe. She clarified that she wrote the song, originally titled "See Through," about herself from the perspective of someone she once hurt.
"The only way I could deal with it was to stop for a second and put myself in that person's place. Every lyric in that song is toward me," Eilish said while describing the "soundcloud loop type song."
And while "8" is, in fact, easy to listen to on loop despite its melancholy message, Eilish's pitched vocals alongside her raw ones don't come together in quite the same way that her higher ranked tracks do. - Claudia Willen
Song highlight: Imagine writing "You're lookin' at me like I'm see-through / I guess I'm gonna go / I just never know how you feel / Do you even feel anything?" about yourself.
Average score: 7.38/10
24. "When I Was Older" experimented with creative production techniques.
Eilish and her brother Finneas O'Connell drew inspiration for "When I Was Older" from Netflix's 2018 film "Roma," which follows a housekeeper in 1970s Mexico City. When they heard Marco Graf's character say, "When I was older I used to be a sailor, but I drowned in a storm," they began writing.
An experimental foray into Auto-tune for Eilish, the song maintains a similarly somber air as her previous work.
As Rolling Stone's Angie Martoccio wrote, "'When I Was Older' is part haunting lullaby and part electronic eulogy, with Eilish's silky vocals giving the impression she's singing underwater, but it's where she wants to be."
Billboard reported that the brother-sister duo layered sounds from the film, like the ocean and rustling trees, into the song.
"We were also able to take sounds like the student protest shouts and Borras barking and turn them into rhythmic percussive elements to help drive the song," they said in a joint statement, according to Billboard.
Eilish and O'Connell continued, "Nothing about this song would exist without the film, which is exactly what we love about it." - Claudia Willen
Song highlight: The line that served as the foundation for the entire song: "When I was older / I was a sailor / but I drowned in a storm."
Average score: 7.43/10
23. In her breakup anthem "Watch," Eilish threatens to light a car on fire before she was old enough to have a driver's license.
At 15 years old, Eilish released this fire-fueled breakup anthem as the third single from her first EP, "Don't Smile at Me." Written by O'Connell, "Watch" builds Eilish's vocals into smooth harmonies as she tells the story of someone saying goodbye to a toxic relationship - and to the person they became while they were in it.
"In a relationship, you're not just in a relationship with that person - you're in a relationship with that person being in a relationship with you," Eilish told Vice about the song. "And if you're self-aware enough - like, this person is treating me really badly, and I feel like nothing, and I feel like waste and not worth anything, then it's time to leave that relationship! So that's kind of what the song is about."
From the periodic flickering of a match to the singer's declaration that she'll "sit and watch your car burn / With the fire that you started in me / But you never came back to ask it out," "Watch" provided a mere glimpse of the greatness to come in Eilish's career. - Claudia Willen
Song highlight: "When you close your eyes, do you picture me? / When you fantasize, am I your fantasy? / Now you know / Now I'm free."
Average score: 7.73/10
22. "Come Out and Play" holds an empowering message.
Eilish's music has a tendency to tackle tough subjects, but she showed a soft, heartwarming side when Apple approached her and O'Connell to write a song for its 2018 "Share Your Gifts" holiday campaign. The sibling duo watched the animated video and created the song: "Come Out and Play."
The lyrics encourage someone to break out their comfort zone and overcome their fears. Eilish sings, "You don't have to keep it quiet / And I know it makes you nervous / But I promise you, it's worth it / To show 'em everything you kept inside / Don't hide, don't hide."
She told Beats 1, "It was very different because we had never written a song about empowering yourself. Your talent and what you love is a gift to you. Whether or not you're good at it, it doesn't matter. If it's something you enjoy, share it. It's very Christmassy and cute."
Soft guitar backs up Eilish's vocals throughout the song, which ends up sounding like a sweet lullaby. After listening to "Come Out and Play," I'm wondering if we'll see the day Eilish and O'Connell release a holiday album. - Claudia Willen
Song highlight: The last 45 seconds of the animated music video.
Average score: 7.9/10
21. "No Time to Die" is Eilish's best soundtrack song.
It's no surprise that, out of every song Eilish has made for something that wasn't her own discography, the best one would be the haunting piano ballad "No Time to Die." It is a James Bond theme song, after all.
Eilish and O'Connell made the track for the upcoming Bond movie of the same name, completing it in just three days on a tour bus in Texas.
Eilish previously said the songwriting duo had been "wanting to make a Bond song for years," and when they finally got the opportunity, they combed through every Bond song to come before theirs to make sure the one they were working on was 100% original.
"In your career, there are few things that are as desirable as doing a Bond song, and we did not take the opportunity lightly," O'Connell told BBC. "And we really just tried to work as hard as we could to prove ourselves worthy of that." - Courteney Larocca
Song highlight: The fact that this song made Eilish the youngest artist in history to record a Bond theme song.
Average score: 8.03/10
20. Eilish mixed genres to create the breakup song "B----es Broken Hearts."
Eilish, then 16 years old, released "B----es Broken Hearts" as a single in 2018. Light and tinged with a hint of R&B influence, the sultry track delves into the post-breakup stage of a relationship, during which the other person pretends to no longer care about their former partner.
"You can pretend you don't miss me / You can pretend you don't care," she sings, adding, "What is it you want? / You can lie but I know that you're not fine."
And while Eilish continues to note the couple's incompatibility, calling them "suicide and stolen art," she also knows they'll both eventually move on with other people. She sings, "Somebody new is gonna comfort you / Like you want me to / Somebody new is gonna comfort me / Like you never do."
Eilish's smooth vocals float seamlessly through the track, effectively capturing the fleeting nature that often comes with young love. - Claudia Willen
Song highlight: "Everybody knows / You and I are suicide and stolen art."
Average score: 8.05/10
19. "Xanny" describes the pitfalls of prescription drug abuse.
"What is it about them?" Eilish croons in a near-whisper at the beginning of the third track from "When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?" As the song progresses, Eilish's vocals morph from clear and delicate to hazy and rough, seemingly mirroring the slow descent into a drug-induced haze that many of the Xanax users in "Xanny" experience.
For despite her cool-girl image, Eilish is clearly disdainful of someone who "need[s] a xanny to feel better" - instead of being "too inebriated now to dance," she's quietly "drinking canned coke" in the corner.
But Eilish isn't a wallflower by any means, and as she commands the listener "don't give me a xanny now or ever," it's clear that she'd rather stick to the sidelines than be "mak[ing] the same mistakes" as her drug-using friends.
While "Xanny" lacks the slick hooks or sardonic lyrics of other songs on the album, Eilish's breathy vocals and dismissive attitude towards recreational pill use make it one of the project's hidden gems. - Libby Torres
Song highlight: After the first chorus, when Eilish's delicate vocals turn hazy, and give way to distorted bass and staccato drum beats.
Average score: 8.23/10
18. "You Should See Me in a Crown" is scary in the best way.
"You Should See Me in a Crown" is more than just a powerful anthem about taking no prisoners and craving world domination - it was inspired by a moment from "Sherlock" season two episode "The Reichenbach Fall" in which villain Jim Moriarty (Andrew Scott) steals the crown jewel.
"There's a scene where he's talking to Sherlock and he's basically just like, 'Honey you should see me in a crown.' And me and Finneas were obsessed with the show forever and we just thought that line was dope, and we were just like, 'F--- it. Let's make it into a song,'" Eilish told Billboard.
This song also deserves credit for pivoting Eilish away from sad songs to her creepy, horror aesthetic that she's known for now. While talking to Billboard, she said her goal with "You Should See Me in a Crown" was to "freak everybody out."
"My songs have in the past just been sad, and more sad and some more sad and so to write a song that's kind of almost empowering, that was not even something I ever thought of doing or wanted to do, even," she said. - Courteney Larocca
Song highlight: The sound at the beginning is Eilish's dad sharpening a knife.
Average score: 8.23/10
17. "Copycat" walked so "Bad Guy" could run.
Backed by a pulsing beat, Eilish flexes her vocal skills on "Copycat," an absolute banger of a song from her EP, "Don't Smile at Me."
Gone are the whispery, delicate vocals that lend an ephemeral quality to songs like "Ocean Eyes" - instead, Eilish uses her voice as an abrasive, snarling at the "Copycat" in question: "Watch your back when you can't watch mine."
The powerful vocals and aggressive lyrics on "Copycat" are a precursor of sorts to "Bad Guy" - there's even a softly-spoken interjection in the bridge ("sike" instead of "duh," but the effect is the same).
And while "Copycat" lacks the driving bass and increasingly-layered vocals that make "Bad Guy" such a bop, it's still a worthy song that provides a tantalizing glimpse of Eilish's early potential. - Libby Torres
Song highlight: "Sorry, sorry, I'm sorry, sorry / Sike."
Average score: 8.4/10
16. "Listen Before I Go" is a poignant ballad about depression and heartbreak.
Eilish's light-as-air vocals are put to good use on "Listen Before I Go," one of most heartbreaking songs from her most recent album.
"Take me to the rooftop / I wanna see the world when I stop breathing, turning blue," Eilish sings in the first verse of the song, urging her listener later, "If you need me, wanna see me / Better hurry 'cause I'm leaving soon."
But even though she feels bad about leaving those she loves behind ("Call my friends and tell them that I love them / And I'll miss them"), Eilish stays true to her decision to leave, telling the listener, "I'm not sorry."
The song is heartbreaking and utterly relatable all at once, and shows just how deep Eilish's songs can go. - Libby Torres
Song highlight: "Taste me, these salty tears on my cheeks /That's what a year-long headache does to you" perfectly sums up the debilitating effects of mental illness.
Average score: 8.53/10
15. "My Boy" is funky, danceable, and delightfully cheeky.
"My Boy" starts off slow and mysterious, almost jazz-like with its hi-hat pattern and sparkly keyboards. But just when you think you have the song figured out, the music drops out for a moment, like its holding its breath - only to come back with a brand new tempo and a devastating attitude that only a teenage girl could pull off.
The chorus of "My Boy" is so springy and elastic that it's almost distractingly danceable.
If you were too busy bopping your head or jerking your shoulders, you may not have noticed that it also boasts Eilish's cheekiest and pithiest punchline ever: "My boy, my boy, my boy / Don't love me like he promised / My boy, my boy, my boy / He ain't a man, and sure as hell ain't honest."
If any set of lyrics is begging to be followed by the fire sign emoji, it's that one. Eilish should put this track back on her setlist. - Callie Ahlgrim
Song highlight: The one-two punch of "My boy loves his friends like I love my split ends / And by that, I mean, he cuts 'em off," followed by the funky tempo change.
Average score: 8.6/10
14. The title of "Ilomilo" came from one of Eilish's favorite computer games.
Named after Eilish's favorite computer game, "Ilomilo" deftly transposes the narrator's separation anxiety into a catchy, mid tempo song with insanely relatable lyrics.
"Where did you go? / I should know, but it's cold," Eilish sings to her missing companion, asking them to "show me the way home / I can't lose another life."
While it's a bit unclear if she's talking about an ex-lover or just a friend, "Ilomilo" does its best to parse the emptiness left by someone important. - Libby Torres
Song highlight: The song's title is pretty cute, especially considering the hidden meaning behind it - Eilish was inspired by an old XBox game in which two characters, named Ilo and Milo, are separated but try to find each other. When you win the game and they're reunited, they hug.
Average score: 8.6/10
13. "Hostage" has a steady pace and builds in intensity.
Slow, steady, and haunting, "Hostage" is a stripped-down track about an intense romantic love that doubles as an overwhelming desire to possess someone. The eighth song on "Don't Smile at Me" exercises simplicity, because in this case, there's no need to distract from Eilish's vocals.
"I wanna steal your soul / And hide you in my treasure chest," she sings, adding later, "Nothing hurts when I'm alone / When you're with me and we're alone."
It's no mystery that the relationship is unhealthy, but "Hostage" artfully exposes a battle between complete adoration and problematic obsession. Most of all, it's an early showing of Eilish's willingness to be vulnerable in her music.
"Hostage" does what her music, in my opinion, does best: transport the listener to the darkest, most intimate corners of Eilish's mind. - Claudia Willen
Song highlight: "Let me crawl inside your veins / I'll build a wall, give you a ball and chain / It's not like me to be so mean."
Average score: 8.75/10
12. "My Future" is Eilish's funkiest, most optimistic song to date.
"My Future" is a gorgeous, poetic, extremely timely ode to independence.
Written and released in the middle of a pandemic, which has forced people to spend more time alone than ever before, Eilish reimagines loneliness as an opportunity - and, ingeniously, the song's structure parallels its paradoxical theme.
"My Future" begins slow and somber, with Eilish bemoaning, "you don't seem to notice I'm not here." This is pretty standard fare for everyone's favorite sad girl.
But Eilish flips that expectation, using all the hallmarks of a traditional breakup ballad to lull the listener into a false sense of familiarity. Then, she surprises us halfway through with a funky beat switch, introducing bright guitar plucks and lush melodies that almost recall the jazzy flair of Amy Winehouse.
The second half of "My Future" is where the song becomes spellbinding, and thanks to O'Connell's magic touch, the production remains appropriately gentle. It never feels glib or over-the-top optimistic.
If the balladry of the first verse and chorus could've ceded the spotlight sooner, "My Future" would be far more potent - à la Ariana Grande's "No Tears Left to Cry." It takes too long to reach the real meat of the song, which damages its replay value. - Callie Ahlgrim
Song highlight: Eilish's vocals have truly never sounded better. Her effortless, hypnotic vocal runs are noticeably more drawn-out, elaborate, and confident - and knowing that she and O'Connell refuse to use autotune just makes it all the more impressive.
Average score: 9.0/10
11. Samples from NBC sitcom "The Office" make "My Strange Addiction" one of Eilish's more unique songs.
Only Eilish can successfully incorporate samples from "The Office" (her favorite TV show) into a song.
Focusing on "addictions" of various types, the song's catchy beat and sly lyrics, not to mention the cleverly integrated "Office" samples, make it one of the album's standouts - and one of Eilish's best songs in general.
"I'm the powder, you're the fuse / just add some friction," Eilish sings of her inexplicable attraction to an unnamed person, accurately describing the volatility that can characterize an unequal relationship.
While Eilish's most obvious "strange addiction" is the NBC show, the other is clearly someone who isn't good for her, but who she feels drawn to anyway. "My doctors can't explain / my symptoms or my pain / But you are my strange addiction," she sings by way of explanation.
Eilish's experience with her "strange addictions" is instantly recognizable to anyone who's ever felt unhealthily obsessed with something, or someone, and overall, the song puts a clever twist on teenage infatuation. - Libby Torres
Song highlight: Any dialogue from "The Office" sampled in the song, but especially the opening line, which features Michael Scott (Steve Carell) saying exasperatedly, "No Billy, I haven't done that dance since my wife died."
Average score: 9.1/10
10. "I Love You" is one of Eilish's most classic, timeless songs.
Both Eilish and O'Connell have described "I Love You" as one of their favorite songs in her discography ("I think me and Finneas can't even believe we wrote that song," she told DWDD).
The tender ballad is both heart-wrenching and serene. Listening to it, especially within the context of the album, feels like you're in the hazy eye of a storm.
This feeling of stillness in the midst of chaos is subtly highlighted in the second verse. When Eilish sings "Up all night, on another red eye / I wish we never learned to fly," scraps of an airline safety speech can be heard in the background.
"I wanted it to be really quiet, the idea that you're already sitting in your seat and the chaos is happening around you," O'Connell, who harmonizes with his sister throughout the song, explained to LNWY. "There's nothing you can really do about it, but you're just sitting there and it's all in your own head and it's in the background." - Callie Ahlgrim
Song highlight: When the bridge melts into the outro, which mirrors the chorus in melody but feels like a knife-twist lyrically: "We fall apart as it gets dark / I'm in your arms in Central Park / There's nothing you could do or say / I can't escape the way I love you."
Average score: 9.2/10
9. "All the Good Girls Go to Hell" makes being evil seem really cool.
Forsaking heaven for hell has never sounded so good, as Eilish proves with this absolute gem from her latest album. "My Lucifer is lonely," Eilish purrs at the start of the track, before making a compelling case for ditching the "pearly gates [that] look more like a picket fence" and turning to the dark side, where most of her friends seem to be.
In addition to disrupting the widely-disseminated belief that goodness automatically results in a place in heaven, "All the Good Girls Go to Hell" makes cheeky references to Catholicism too; as Eilish explains, her debauchery will go largely unpunished by the saints since "Peter's on vacation, an open invitation."
Backed by a jaunty piano, Eilish's invitation to come and join her and her friends in hell sounds pretty damn appealing. - Libby Torres
Song highlight: The way Eilish croons "My Lucifer is lonely" at the beginning is both scary and sort of appealing.
Average score: 9.2/10
8. "Idontwannabeyouanymore" is a quietly upbeat song that showcases Eilish's delicate vocals perfectly.
Focused on Eilish's disillusionment with herself, this is one of the best tracks from Eilish's 2017 EP "Don't Smile at Me." At the start of the song, she urges herself, "Don't be that way / Fall apart twice a day" - but as it progresses, Eilish slowly comes to terms with her dissatisfaction until she finally admits, "I don't wanna be you anymore."
"I've never said anything that I meant more than that," she explained in a video for Genius. "You are always you, forever. That's terrifying. And that line is actually my favorite line I've ever written in my life."
Although Eilish seems determined to break out on her own and become her own person, the chorus suggests that she feels complicit or to blame in her failed relationship with herself.
Combined with her airy vocals and gently flowing piano, "Idontwannabeyouanymore" is basically a perfect song. - Libby Torres
Song highlight: The chorus ("If teardrops could be bottled / There'd be swimming pools filled by models") absolutely slaps.
Average score: 9.28/10
7. "&Burn" is a superior, headier version of "Watch."
"&Burn" is a reprise of the single "Watch," which was originally meant to be titled "Watch & Burn" ("like 'Watch & Learn,' but you're burning," Eilish explained). Instead, she and her brother created two completely separate versions and included both on a rerelease of her EP.
The newer version keeps the ingenious flourishes of O'Connell's original production, like the sound of matches being struck that's sprinkled throughout the song - but it's reborn as a bolder, more dramatic statement.
"Watch" feels more vulnerable and nostalgic, while "&Burn" sounds powerful and resolute.
Instead of a swelling, orchestral chorus, the more traditional instrumentals on "Watch" are replaced by a chattering drum pattern, giving "&Burn" a modern edge that the original lacked - and then Vince Staples' short, sharp, spitfire cameo swoops in to seal the deal. - Callie Ahlgrim
Song highlight: The elongated intro features a booming drum pattern that immediately draws you in.
Average score: 9.33/10
6. "Ocean Eyes" put Eilish on the map for a reason.
The concept of being talented in middle school is so foreign to me, and yet, Eilish just casually had the voice of an angel and an abundance of talent at 13 years old.
"Ocean Eyes" was uploaded to SoundCloud in November 2015 before officially becoming the singer's debut single. Her brother, who also produced the song, initially wrote it for his high school band before realizing it was a perfect fit for Eilish's ethereal voice.
"She brought life to it that I couldn't believe," he told Ones to Watch. "She might be the most convincing singer I've ever heard. I've never doubted a single word she sings. It's such a gift. Her voice is like a Stradivarius violin."
It was the right choice - after posting the track to SoundCloud, it went viral and one could easily question if Eilish would be the household name she is now without the success of this stunning, dreamy love letter to a crush with ocean eyes. - Courteney Larocca
Song highlight: The earnestness to which she croons, "No fair / You really know how to make me cry / When you gimme those ocean eyes."
Average score: 9.6/10
5. "Bellyache" is the best song from "Don't Smile at Me."
"Bellyache" tells a fictional story of a girl who murdered her friends, and was inspired by Eilish's love of Tyler the Creator, who created subversive alter egos for past albums. While at first the song appears to lack the pulsating power of other Eilish hits, when the chorus begins about a minute and a half in, the softly-strummed guitar and breathy vocals give way to throbbing beats and soft shrieks - adding to the song's foreboding undertones.
The violent and dark lyrics belie the song's quietly upbeat melody, and prove, once again, that Eilish and O'Connell are some of the most talented and versatile artists making music today. - Libby Torres
Song highlight: The casual flex of making a pop song about killing your lover and ditching his body in a gutter.
Average score: 9.68/10
4. "When the Party's Over" is the perfect ballad.
"When the Party's Over" is the perfect blend of Eilish's fluttery, melancholic vocals and O'Connell's empathetic songwriting abilities.
It's one of just two songs on her album that Eilish did not help her brother write, but her emotionality and passion brings it to life; when she sings that she's on her own, it feels so palpably true.
This is one of those songs that marinates in your belly and makes you nostalgic for all the loves you've thrown away, all the loves you've felt wronged by, and all the loves you can imagine having in an alternate dimension. - Callie Ahlgrim
Song highlight: "I'll call you when the party's over" is such a simple line, but it's so deeply evocative.
Average score: 9.68/10
3. "Everything I Wanted" captures the magic of Eilish and O'Connell's relationship.
On its surface, "Everything I Wanted" is a meditation on Eilish's sudden global success and the pitfalls of surface-level adoration.
This isn't exactly an original concept, but Eilish's take on this theme is elevated by a warm current that runs through it, like an oxygen-rich artery: The song is actually about her brother, their relationship, and the unconditional love they share.
O'Connell, who cowrote and produced the song, also sings with his sister on the chorus, which acts as an antidote to her spectral feelings of inadequacy and distrust in the verses: "You say, 'As long as I'm here, no one can hurt you,'" she sings, a line that O'Connell actually came up with.
In fact, Eilish and O'Connell began work on the song back in September 2018, before Eilish had truly reached superstardom. It began as an expression of Eilish's depression - "I was in a really bad place mentally," she explained to the New York Times - but O'Connell refused to help her write a hopeless song about suicide.
"It was a period where I was really worried about my sister, and I felt like an enabler in helping her write a song as bleak as that song was," he told the Times. "A lot of songs are written in retrospect, but this one felt like it was being written in real time, and I was like: 'This is something we've got to write on the other side of this hill. We have to go through this in real life.'"
They returned to finish "Everything I Wanted" the following year, when Eilish was in a much better mental state. And this caring, thoughtful dynamic is exactly what the song captures, both literally and spiritually.
Not only do the lyrics describe their bond, but the entire song is a breathtaking portrait of their in-sync collaborative skills.
There's a sense of empathy and tenderness in the production that feels unique to the duo's connection, like a natural extension of O'Connell's protective instincts and how the siblings seem to understand each other. They transformed the song from an expression of discomfort and despair into a familial sanctuary, a refuge from those very feelings. - Callie Ahlgrim
Song highlight: Eilish actually recorded the line "I tried to scream / But my head was underwater" while her head was underwater.
Average score: 9.73/10
2. "Bury a Friend" has no business being this good.
"Bury a Friend" best embodies Eilish's power and appeal, because no one else could write a song like this and actually pull it off.
Adopting the persona of the monster under your bed, Eilish writes a love letter to your self-destructive tendencies and croons about your worst fears realized. It's a pretty creepy, unsettling basis for a catchy, body-friendly pop song (if you can even call it "pop").
Not to mention, the structure makes no sense, and the production includes iPhone recordings of dental drills and Easy-Bake Oven timers - and yet, the song absolutely slaps. I've never once pressed next before "Bury a Friend" was over. Each moment is captivating. Every misplaced hook or unexpected tonal shift keeps you on your toes.
"When the song came out," O'Connell told the New York Times, "I said to Billie, 'I think we just get to do whatever we want now.'" - Callie Ahlgrim
Song highlight: The textural sounds bring the song to life: When Eilish sings "step on the glass," you hear glass shattering; when she sings "staple your tongue," you can hear the smack of a staple gun; when she sings "bury a friend," the faint sound of shoveling dirt.
Average score: 9.8/10
1. "Bad Guy" is the most bizarre and infectious hit song in recent memory.
"Bad Guy" makes little sense as a hit pop song. Eilish's voice hardly shifts in volume or pitch, opting instead for whispery harmonies. When she sings the titular lyric, it sounds like an evil snake is caught in her throat.
Then, when the music falls out and you expect to hear a beat drop, you actually hear a teenage girl rolling her eyes. The iconic "duh" was literally added because Eilish didn't want people to take the song too seriously. Instead of a hook, there's a seven-note refrain that would feel at home in a Nintendo video game. Think those are hi-hats you hear? It's actually a utilitarian pedestrian signal in Sydney, Australia.
Oh, and just when you think you're finished, the bad guy comes back with an entirely different weapon. That thumping, dark-red sneer - which was originally written as a completely separate song - swoops in when it should be over and elevates "Bad Guy" to weirdo legend status. "I like when you get mad," indeed.
Eilish may as well be addressing music industry traditionalists. She gives everyone the finger for three straight minutes, and we eat up every second of it.
Eilish says she never expected "Bad Guy" to be a hit, but it works precisely because it's bizarre, because it breaks the rules and burrows itself into your gut. It doesn't sound like anything else.
As I previously wrote (when I named "Bad Guy" one of the nine best songs of 2019 and the 41st best song of the decade), it already feels like something we'll remember as the inspiration behind many copycats, as a song that paved the way for a new kind of radio hit - and perhaps as more than Eilish's defining anthem, but a generation's. - Callie Ahlgrim
Song highlight: The always-thrilling beat switch at 2:30, followed by Eilish's pitched-up cackle.
Average score: 9.98/10