Finneas O'Connell Calls Sister Billie Eilish a 'True Artist’: ‘I Admire That Endlessly in Her’
It’s a family affair at the 2020 Grammy Awards.
“We’ve got the whole group, dad and mom, me and Billie,” Finneas O’Connell, Billie Eilish’s older brother and producer, said during PeopleTV’s Grammys red carpet pre-show on Sunday. “Someone will embarrass somebody of course. That’s the whole deal and that’s the best part.”
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O’Connell, 22, received five Grammy nominations, three of which were with his 18-year-old sister — who earned a total of six nods this year — in the album of the year, record of the year and song of the year categories.
His work on Eilish’s When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? already won O’Connell the Grammy statue for best engineered album, non-classical, plus he scored producer of the year, non-classical category.
“To me, one of the many reasons that when we first started making music I was never interested in calling it a duo, like having a band name, is because her vision,” O’Connell told PeopleTV’s PEOPLE Now host Jeremy Parsons and PEOPLE senior editor Janine Rubenstein. “It’s like 18-18, it’s like even sharper than 2002. It’s like, she knows exactly what she wants. She knows how to get what she wants. She knows what it’ll take. She knows even clearer when something isn’t quite right how to get it to where it needs to be. That to me is what a true artist is.”
Be sure to check out PEOPLE’s full Grammy Awards coverage to get the latest news on music’s biggest night.
O’Connell worked with Eilish on her chart-topping hit “Bad Guy.” “Even though we’re all together making songs and I produce them, it’s so her vision,” he continued. “Especially when we walk out on stage every night. It’s so meticulously thought through by Billie and I admire that endlessly in her.”
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The producer and songwriter also talked about how proud he is of Eilish for opening up about her struggles with depression and anxiety.
“I’m so glad she’s being open with it because I think depression and anxiety, especially in people under the age of 25, is so, so important to talk about, so prevalent,” O’Connell said. “I think watching your sister or anyone that you are close with and love suffer from anything like that is such a scary thing because it’s not always something that you can have an impact on really other than being a good listener, being there for them.”
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O’Connell encouraged everyone to be “supportive and encouraging” of anyone going through a tough time. “It’s always important to be checking in with people you love,” he said.
PeopleTV’s PEOPLE Now host Jeremy Parsons, PEOPLE Senior Editor Janine Rubenstein and Entertainment Weekly Senior News Editor Gerrad Hall are co-hosting a live red carpet pre-show ahead of the awards ceremony. Catch the full livestream above at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT or on PEOPLE’s Facebook and Twitter pages. You can also watch on the PeopleTV app, available on all of your favorite streaming devices.
Tune into the 62nd annual Grammy Awards at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on CBS.
