In a room packed with illustrious names such as Mark Zuckerberg, Hailey Bieber and Spike Lee, Billie Eilish took the stage at WSJ. Magazine Innovator Awards to receive the Music Innovator of the Year award. But instead of limiting herself to the ritual thanks, the 23-year-old singer-songwriter decided to point the finger at one of the most uncomfortable realities of our time: the concentration of wealth.
During her speech, Billie stated:
We are in a time where the world is in really bad shape and very dark. People need empathy and help more than ever, especially in our country. I would say that if you have money, it would be great to use it for good and maybe give it to someone who needs it.
The exhortation to charity
The atmosphere in the room at the Museum of Modern Art in New York became electric as Eilish continued, addressing the audience of moguls and philanthropists directly:
I love you, but there are some people here who have a lot more money than me. If you’re a billionaire, why are you a billionaire? It’s not hate, but yes, give your money away.
Lukewarm applause followed his words, but according to those present, Mark Zuckerberg – the third richest man in the world – remained impassive. Ironically, that same evening his wife Priscilla Chan was being honored for science philanthropy, representing the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, which has promised to donate 99% of its Meta shares over her lifetime.
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The $11.5 million donation
Eilish didn’t limit herself to words. Shortly before her speech, Stephen Colbert revealed that the singer would donate $11.5 million from the tour proceeds Hit Me Hard and Soft to projects dedicated to climate justice, food equity and pollution reduction.
Words we desperately needed
Billie Eilish’s words are not only right, but necessary. In an era in which the wealth of a few grows exponentially while the planet and millions of people grapple with the climate crisis, poverty and social injustice, his voice resonates as an ethical reminder – lucid, direct, uncomfortable.
In his speech he did not seek scandal, nor easy provocation. He asked a fundamental question: What is the point of accumulating unlimited wealth in a limited world? It is a reflection that goes beyond the glamor of the evening and touches the heart of the contemporary debate on the moral responsibility of economic power.
What makes his words even more credible is their coherence. While many talk about charity as an act of image, Eilish acts by donating 11.5 million dollars to support environmental and social causes, a gesture that is worth more than a thousand speeches.
His is not an attack, but an invitation: to transform privilege into responsibility, luck into opportunities for others. Perhaps this is the most powerful message that an artist of her generation could deliver. Not only to the powerful on Earth, but to anyone who has the opportunity to do good and chooses, finally, to do so.
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