Three years have passed since Billie Eilish released her second album, Happier Than Ever. Since then, Eilish has won numerous accolades, including a Grammy and an Oscar for her hit “What Was I Made For?” from the Motion Picture Barbie. Last Friday, Eilish dropped her third album, Hit Me Hard and Soft, and fans—both new and old—are raving over its brilliance.
Eilish’s latest album has been in the works since 2021, and in a 2023 interview with Jimmy Fallon, Eilish reported that the album was “almost done.” Eilish and Finneas (her brother and musical partner) worked on the album in Finneas’s home studio. The brother-sister duo claims on an Instagram post that they “have never ever ever loved something more.” While fans were waiting for the drop date to arrive, teasers popped up everywhere, notably the “CHIHIRO” sneak-peak from an Apple Music YouTube Video and promotional billboards with lyrics like “She’s the headlights I’m the deer.” Finally, on May 17, the long-awaited album consisting of ten tracks was dropped. “LUNCH,” the most-streamed song from the album, was among the leaked and highly anticipated songs. The entire album, notably “LUNCH,” showcases sapphic themes following Eilish’s recent coming out in a 2024 Rolling Stone interview that she is attracted to men and women. “That song was actually part of what helped me become who I am, to be real,” Eilish says.
Trends have already sprouted from the album’s records, such as “BIRDS OF A FEATHER,” where social media users pay tribute to their loved ones with whom they “stick together.” That’s not the only thing that sprouted all over social media. Fans speculate that Hit Me Hard and Soft is actually a double album, and there’s tons of evidence to prove that they might not be completely wrong.
Hit Me Hard and Soft has donned its iconic color —with the album cover and merch being blue. But red has constantly been paired with this blue; Eilish has sold Hit Me Hard and Soft CDs splattered with red paint, and blue apparel with red text. This has sparked the “ilomilo” theory. Ilomilo is a puzzle video game after which Eilish named a song on her 2019 album WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? The two creatures, ilo and milo, are blue and red, symbolizing the pairing of a blue album (Hit Me Hard and Soft) and a possible red album. Twelve hours after dropping her album, Eilish posted the music video for “LUNCH,” which was also filled with blue and red.
Fans have additionally analyzed the lyric “open up the door” and the door in the album cover from “CHIHIRO” to speculate that there will be two albums since a door has two sides. Need even more convincing? The last line of the album is Eilish’s voice saying “but when can I hear the next one?,” hinting that there may be more music coming soon. In her interview with Zane Lowe for Apple Music, she neither confirmed or denied the double album, but when Lowe asked about what she teased at the end of the album, Eilish gave a smile to the camera. Moreover, track number eight on the album, “THE DINER,” ends with Eilish whispering a phone number, which when you call it, Eilish responds with “Hey, hey? Wait, I can’t hear you…Hello, hello? Hold on, let me call you back.” Fans believe that Eilish will call back when her new music is released. All in all, fans are on the edge of their seats, still searching for hints and teases, and waiting for the possible gift of a second album while still relishing the work of art that is Hit Me Hard and Soft.
