Billie Eilish ran out of people to thank as she took the stage to accept the Grammy for Record of the Year (for “bad guy”), simply saying “thank you” in unison with her brother and producer, Finneas. That’s because the 18-year-old became only the second artist ever to sweep the four general categories of Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Album of the Year, and Best New Artist at the awards in one night — the first in nearly four decades, after Christopher Cross in 1981. (Adele also has Grammys for each award, from separate ceremonies.) When Eilish accepted Best New Artist, she thanked her touring team, whom she forgot in her Song of the Year speech, then turned her attention to her fans (who may or may not be called Avocados). “I think the fans deserve everything, I feel like they have not been talked about enough tonight, because they’re the only reason that any of us are here at all! So thank you to the fans,” Eilish said. “Thank you to the fans, you guys make this worth it.”
Just a few minutes later, Eilish was back on stage accepting Album of the Year for When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? (which she thinks should have gone to Ariana Grande for thank u, next, for the record). She didn’t have much more to add, so her brother Finneas made a speech. “We didn’t make this album to win a Grammy. We didn’t think it would win anything, ever. We wrote an album about depression and suicidal thoughts and being the bad guy, whatever that means,” he said. “We stand up here confused and grateful.” Eilish hadn’t even returned to her seat before she won Record of the Year, instead waiting backstage with Finneas.
As if there were any question, Eilish and Finneas leave the night as the top winners with five awards apiece. Eilish also claimed Best Pop Vocal album for When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?, while Finneas won Producer of the Year, Non-Classical off the project along with Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical. Eilish stunned with a stripped-down performance of “when the party’s over” during the ceremony, too, accompanied by Finneas on piano. When she said “you should see me in a crown,” she meant it.
Update 12:49 a.m.: When asked in the press room when, exactly, she knew “Bad Guy” was becoming a hit, Eilish said there was one tell-tale piece of evidence she couldn’t ignore. “It was in a lot of memes,” she said after the show. “And I was like, ‘Oh shit.’” As for her next record-making album, the singer said she’ll just have to wait for inspiration to strike: “Being in this moment is all I’m thinking about, but I don’t know what’s next. I’m gonna do whatever I feel.”