Live Review: Billie Eilish @ Brisbane Entertainment Centre

From a homeschooled child in Los Angeles to a worldwide pop sensation, Billie Eilish's ascent has been nothing short of remarkable, and no one barracks harder for the muso than Australian crowds who have supported her since the explosion of her debut EP.

Having been to Australia more times than one can count on a single hand, Eilish has ventured Down Under once more to celebrate her third studio album, Hit Me Hard And Soft. Kicking off the tour and still admittedly shaking off the jetlag, the singer took to Queensland's capital, Brisbane, for the first of four shows in the city.

For this particular concert, the Brisbane Entertainment Centre moved the once wall-bound stage to the centre of the arena, giving the nosebleeds a better view. This also gave the brave souls in GA, who spent upwards of a staggering three days camped out at the venue, more room to spread around the front row.

Despite having made the 15-hour flight from the US with Eilish, Ashnikko played for only a very short time, clocking up just around 30 minutes and with little to no notice of how soon after the venue opened doors. The North Carolina-born singer brought her famous blue hair and plenty of attitude, and she also included a dance troupe to give dynamics to an otherwise huge stage. However, a lack of extra pizzazz made the performance feel a bit stark, next to what Eilish would give us. 

Being a huge environmental advocate, Billie Eilish took the hour or so between herself and Ashnikko to show a pre-recorded video dedicated to her several eco-friendly initiatives. This video first appeared at the beginning of the Hit Me Hard And Soft Tour in the US, explaining some of the steps taken to offset emissions on the tour. Alongside her merch being made with recycled materials, Eilish listed the fact that the entire touring crew was being provided plant-based meals, and coach vehicles were being powered down when not in use.

In the foyer of the huge venue, Eilish’s team had taken the time to provide an eco-village of sorts with home-based initiatives Green Music Australia, Defend The Wild, and OzHarvest. The latter would partner with the plant-based charity Support + Feed, which was famously founded by Eilish’s mother, Maggie Baird.

As the crowd listened intently to the video narrated by Eilish, accompanied by some cutesy anime scenes, a birdcage-looking prop was lowered into the middle of the stage. iPhone torch lights coordinated themselves in rhythmic patterns as patrons grew restless, listening to the likes of Rihanna and her brother, FINNEAS, blasting on the PA.

We all collectively realised what this weird prop was for when it lit up, showing TV static amongst flickering laser lights as Eilish emerged on top of the prop. The 23-year-old singer was wearing her signature baggy outfit, this time sporting an Australian-themed green and gold Ralph Lauren polo, and it was touching to see such a huge international import pay homage to First Nations people with a black, yellow and red wristband included. Her four-piece band were also donned in customised polos. 

The singer dove into CHIHIRO from her latest album to kick off proceedings. A thick bass line shone through for a funkier rendition of the song as Eilish swaggered from side to side of the stage, showing off that signature smirk.

She then transitioned into another HMHAS track with LUNCH, which was made famous as a sapphic anthem. I felt like I had been personally called unfit by Miss Eilish, who somehow managed to sprint broken-up laps of the stage, jumping and twirling, all the meanwhile still singing with no fault or shortness of breath.

She would later go on to admit she was currently sick and battling a new bout of sinus issues as well, but yet somehow still sounded identical to her recordings. “Anyways, I was sick for literally four months straight,” she said before elaborating on her being sick and sinusitis.

“Three days before I left for this tour, I got sick again. My voice sounds horrible,” she continued, followed by high-pitched disagreement from 10,000+ people. 

Eilish took it back to her sophomore album Happier Than Ever, incorporating fiery pyrotechnics for Therefore I Am, which was filmed live on movie-grade cameras. It begs the question if perhaps a doco is being put together for the tour… 

A short break left eardrums ringing with the sounds of thousands of screams and chants of “Billie” as she scanned the stadium.

“Hello, Australia. It’s been a while, huh? I love it here; I’m so excited to be back. Are you ready to have some fun?”

After the gut-wrenching single Wildflower, Eilish continued to twist the knife. She sat on the floor, and her biggest fans immediately knew what she was doing. 

“For the next 40 seconds or so, we’re going to need complete silence,” she said. Eilish then explained how she would be singing layers on a loop to stack them up, Imogen Heap-style, for the melancholic hit when the party’s over.

This undoubtedly proved the highlight of the night, showcasing how a crowd of thousands can provide such stillness against Billie Eilish's hauntingly beautiful soprano. Four spotlights enveloped the singer as she lay on the floor, looking as if she could erupt into tears.

Eilish has been a favourite for Australian crowds for quite some time. “Every time I come back here, it feels very familiar and like home to me,” she said. “This is, like, the first place I ever toured when I came here for Laneway [Festival].”

As someone who was at her Brisbane Laneway set in 2018, it's fair to say that the singer’s growth has been extraordinary albeit deserved. Playing at around 2 pm in a mid-sized tent to not even half a crowd at the time, Eilish boasted cartwheels and high energy back then and still keeps the same kinetic gusto to this day.

Eilish had only just launched her debut EP, Don’t Smile At Me, at that Laneway, but the singer took the timeline back even further to recount having first played when the party’s over live at Sofar Sounds in Melbourne when she was fifteen, circa 2016. 

Fast forward to 2025, and Billie Eilish has recently broken a record of the most songs voted into triple j’s Hottest 100, with half of her latest album on the Australian countdown, not to mention several singles being certified platinum worldwide. The success hasn’t gotten too much to the everything i wanted singer’s head, as indicated by her still-grounded values. 

“Things are really bad in the US right now,” Eilish admitted of the new Donald Trump administration. Crowd members responded by cussing out the second-term president. “Yeah, I know, believe me,” she responded before launching into Your Power, acoustic guitar in her lap. “Try not to abuse your power” is the first line to echo through the crowd, and the brevity is not lost on us. 

For those who couldn’t make it to the 2025 edition of Laneway, Eilish amped up the mood by playing the Charli XCX song Guess, which she features in the Brat spinoff remix album Brat and It's Completely Different but Also Still Brat. Brat-green lights went ballistic as Eilish danced around a new, smaller stage at the front of the room until her iconic part came up.

“I love you so much, and I’m thankful to be here tonight. I think I have four shows here [at Brisbane Entertainment Centre], right? I’m happy to be in your city for more than one night,” Eilish gushed before surprising the crowd with a track that was thought to be off-limits.

Eilish’s two-time Grammy-winning song What Was I Made For was performed towards the end of the set, accompanied by muted pink lighting as a homage to the Barbie movie. In previous months, the song had lost its meaning due to audiences copying a popular meme of the song being mewed for cats.

With the number of memes generated via Eilish songs, the singer still took a light jib from another viral video, getting the crowd to sing the lines “all the enjoyment”. For such a heavy song, it was touching to watch Eilish get right up to the edge of the stage to find pockets of young girls sharing the experience of the complexity of womanhood. 

Keeping a sentimental feeling going, Billie ended the night with the songs Happier Than Ever and the Valentine's anthem, BIRDS OF A FEATHER. 

As the final notes of BIRDS OF A FEATHER rang out and confetti in the shape of Eilish’s logo rained down, it was clear that Billie Eilish had once again left an indelible mark on her Brisbane audience, and she truly meant every word about Australia being special to her. 

Balancing a huge discography spanning barely a decade, the singer’s brevity, paired with the crew’s attention to detail, made the night feel immersive in a way that made the hefty ticket price worth it. It was meant to be that this crowd maintained wonderful etiquette as well, keeping the volume down for vulnerable songs and refusing to heckle the muso. 

Whether it was her playful interactions with the crowd, her steadfast political and environmental values, or her effortless ability to command a stage and balance singing with action, Eilish reinforced why she remains one of the largest artists of her generation. Eilish was made for a long career in music.