Billie Eilish is bringing her dad Patrick O’Connell into the limelight for a brand-new show. Apple Music is launching Me & Dad Radio, a new program from Eilish and O’Connell in which these members of the musical family will take turns playing their favorite songs and introducing the other to new music.
AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT
“My dad and I have had this relationship over the years of sharing music with each other. My dad has shown me some of my favorite songs in the world and I’ve shown him songs that he loves and adores also,” Billie told Zane Lowe of Apple Music per a press release.
O’Connell added that concept was “the genesis of this whole show: I’ll play you a bunch of stuff you don’t know that I think is great."
For Eilish, music has always been a family affair. Her producer is brother Finneas O’Connell, and the two took home multiple Grammys at this year’s award ceremony in January. They first hit the music scene just three years ago when they uploaded Eilish’s song “Ocean Eyes,” which was recorded in their childhood home, to SoundCloud.
Though O’Connell and Eilish’s mother Maggie Baird are both actors, Finneas recently hit back on Twitter about how his family’s supposed entertainment industry connections did not secure them a place in music.
"During my lifetime, our parents were never able to fully financially support us off of their work as actors," Finneas wrote in a since-deleted tweet. "Our dad worked 12 hour days, seven days a week as a construction worker for Mattel and our mom was a teacher."
He added that Eilish now “pays them each salaries to tour” though they have said that they would work for free.
While Eilish’s When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? Tour is postponed due to COVID-19, it sounds like she and her dad have found another way to work together. This time, it’s not making or performing music, but instead, simply enjoying it.
Listen to Me & Dad Radio on Apple Music this Friday, May 8th at 3 p.m. ET. The full playlists from each episode will be available to stream on Apple Music.