In 2015, Billie Eilish was only 13 when she released her first song, “Ocean Eyes,” a bedroom pop ballad, produced by her brother, co-writer, and collaborator Finneas O’Connell, on SoundCloud. The song went viral overnight, and was Eilish’s first song to break onto the charts, hitting No. 84 on the Billboard Hot 100.
A year later, “Ocean Eyes” was accompanied by a music video and later featured on Eilish’s 2017 EP Don’t Smile at Me along with the soundtrack to the film Everything, Everything.
Videos by American Songwriter
The Meaning
In the song, written by Finneas, Eilish sings about being captivated by someone’s stare, and their ocean-blue eyes.
I’ve been watchin’ you for some time
Can’t stop starin’ at those ocean eyes
Burning cities and napalm skies
Fifteen flares inside those ocean eyes
Your ocean eyes
No fair
You really know how to make me cry
When you gimme those ocean eyes
I’m scared
I’ve never fallen from quite this high
Fallin’ into your ocean eyes
Those ocean eyes
“He came into my room in October of last year to tell me he had this song called ‘Ocean Eyes,’” remembered Eilish in 2016 of when Finneas introduced her to the song. “He’d been doing it with his band before, but of course I’d heard it because I was right next door. I sang it, and we both loved it. It’s just a beautiful song, and Finneas is an amazing writer.”
Eilish, who was dancing at the time and had to stop following a hip injury, continued, “I loved it and I couldn’t get it out of my head for weeks,” added Eilish. “I’m in a dance company, and one of my teachers asked if I could record [the song] and send it to him so he could choreograph a dance. So all of the production is based off of lyrical contemporary dance.”
[RELATED: Top 10 Billie Eilish Songs]
The Slightlys
Finneas originally wrote “Ocean Eyes” for his high school band the Slightys before realizing that the story was better suited around his sister’s vocals. “She brought life to it that I couldn’t believe,” said Finneas in 2015. “She might be the most convincing singer I’ve ever heard. I’ve never doubted a single word she sings. It’s such a gift. Her voice is like a Stradivarius violin.”
In another interview around the time of its released, Finneas revealed that the bridge of “Ocean Eyes” is actually the chorus in reverse. “Billie was sending her friend a Snapchat and put the reverse filter on while we were working on the song and it sounded sick,” said Finneas, “so I took every vocal from the chorus and reversed them and washed them out with reverb to create the bridge—crashed my computer.”
“Ocean Eyes” was a breakthrough for Eilish, who released her No. 1 albums, debut When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? in 2019, and Happier Than Ever in 2021.
“‘Ocean Eyes’ gave us something from nothing,” said Finneas in 2021. “I always have this profound gratitude for that song.”
Photo: Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for Academy Museum of Motion Pictures
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