James Bond theme songs go together like 007 and martinis. Over the years the artists behind these songs have run the gamut. Paul McCartney lent his talents to 1975's LIVE AND LET DIE. Duran Duran brought its signature British New Wave style to A VIEW TO A KILL. Even the band Garbage did one for Pierce Brosnan's THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH. During the Daniel Craig era the theme songs have ranged from forgettable (Chris Cornell for CASINO ROYALE), to terrible (Sam Smith for SPECTRE), to iconic (Adele for SKYFALL).
With the release date for Daniel Craig's last outing as James Bond in NO TIME TO DIE looming, the production is under a bit of a time crunch. Hans Zimmer recently signed on to score the film after Dan Romer departed. Reports indicate that the score needs to be completed by mid-February, not an easy feat. Thankfully, MGM doesn't have to worry about who will be doing the film's theme song as it's been confirmed that American alternative pop star Billie Eilish will perform the song which she co-wrote with her brother Finneas.
The Grammy nominated artist took the music world by storm last year with the release of her debut album When We Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? The album went platinum and contains six Billboard Hot 100 singles including "Bad Guy" and "You Should See Me In A Crown." That's quite a list of accomplishments for someone who just turned eighteen last month.
James Bond fansite MI-6 originally broke the story a few days ago and Eilish herself stirred rumors when she shared a series of Bond girl pictures over the years on her Instagram account that included Eva Green and Halle Berry. While not a definitive statement in and of itself, Eilish's latest post was:
Eilish then followed up this image with a confirmation statement:
“It feels crazy to be a part of this in every way. To be able to score the theme song to a film that is part of such a legendary series is a huge honor. James Bond is the coolest film franchise ever to exist. I’m still in shock.”
Bond producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli also confirmed Billie Eilish's involvement in a separate statement.
This is certainly a change in direction music wise for James Bond. Recent theme songs were reminiscent of smooth Jazz. There tends to be an ethereal yet tense feel to most James Bond themes. However, Eilish's lyrics possess a creepy, dark tone to them. They also tend to skew towards a younger audience. Indeed with this announcement, Eilish officially becomes the youngest artist ever to record a James Bond theme song. I would anticipate that her upcoming rendition will have a bit broader appeal than just millennials though.
So what do you guys think of this announcement? Do you like Billie Eilish? Is her type of music right for a James Bond film? Sound off in the comments below!