While accepting the award for 2025 Music Innovator on Oct. 29, Billie Eilish made an inspirational, yet controversial speech at the WSJ Innovator Awards. She received a great deal of praise when she bluntly stood up against the billionaires in the audience. However, billionaire and CEO of Meta, Mark Zuckerberg, allegedly withheld his ovation.
Eilish’s speech was intended to encourage her colleagues to donate to charities during a difficult time in the world. The Grammy winner spoke out, saying, “We’re in a time right now where the world is really, really bad and really dark, and people need empathy and help more than, kind of, ever, especially in our country. And, I’d say if you have money, it would be great to use it for good things, maybe give it to some people that need it.”
Hearing a round of applause from the audience, Eilish finished her speech by saying, “Love you all, but there are a few people in here that have a lot more money than me. If you’re a billionaire, why are you a billionaire? No hate, but yeah, give your money away, shorties.” After this comment, the room continued to clap with slight hesitation. According to People Magazine, eyewitnesses reported that Zuckerberg no longer applauded with the rest of the crowd.
The Meta CEO is currently the sixth richest person in the world with an estimated net worth of $214.4 billion, says Forbes. While he may have been an indirect target in Eilish’s speech, Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, have vowed to donate 99% of their Meta shares, spanning the course of their lifetime.
Although she’s not yet a billionaire, Eilish stayed true to her words that night. Prior to accepting her award, Stephen Colbert announced that the singer is generously donating $11.5 million of the proceeds from her “Hit Me Hard and Soft” Tour. Eilish is making the charitable contribution to “support organizations, projects and voices dedicated to food equity, climate justice, reducing carbon pollution and combating the climate crisis,” said Colbert.
Eilish’s call-to-action remains an honorable way of using her platform. Raising the question, “If you’re a billionaire, why are you a billionaire?” took courage to advocate in a room full of powerful figures. Eilish leaves us to wonder if there is such a thing as “ethical billionaires,” especially when much of the world is in crisis and plenty of charities are in need.
