Why Billie Eilish’s ‘Hit Me Hard and Soft’ could be the album to beat at the 2025 Grammys
Billie Eilish’s third studio album, “Hit Me Hard and Soft,” was released May 17, yet it seems like everyone is still on a high about it. The singer-songwriter’s new record has been a huge commercial success, and it has also managed to captivate critics too, with many hailing it as the best of the year and Eilish’s brightest work yet. The album’s run has just started, but it is already a possible ticket for Eilish to score her second Album of the Year win at the Grammys.
A second win for Eilish would definitely be impressive, but not shocking. Throughout her short career, she has already taken home nine Grammys, six of those being in the general field. She’s one of the few people to win the awards for Record and Song of the Year twice, and she did so with three different songs, showing that her staying power at the Grammys is quite strong. Plus, other people have won Album of the Year multiple times, including Adele and Taylor Swift quite recently.
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Working against a possible “Hit Me” win is that her last Album of the Year win was not that long ago, but Adele and Swift didn’t have to wait very long between victories, and you could also argue that Eilish’s previous album, “Happier Than Ever,” underperforming at the Grammys (it went zero-for-seven) shows that Eilish hasn’t really been over-rewarded. Voters haven’t voted for Eilish just because, so an additional victory wouldn’t seem like overkill.
So, why this year? First off, “Hit Me Hard and Soft” has been a critical behemoth. The album has an 89 right now on Metacritic, the second highest rating this year for a mainstream album, after Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter.” However, the difference between it and “Cowboy Carter” is that, despite its experimentation, “Hit Me” is relatively accessible to most consumers. It also is, essentially, a pop album, a genre that tends to be more palatable to a wide range of voters than a country-rap-R&B fusion like Beyoncé’s album.
And compared to another acclaimed hit pop album this year, Ariana Grande’s “Eternal Sunshine,” Eilish’s album was more successful out of the gate, debuting with more units on the Billboard 200. Of course, the biggest hit of the year is also a pop release — Taylor Swift’s ginormous “The Tortured Poets Department” — but Swift just won the category for the fourth time, and the critical reception for this new album doesn’t seem enthusiastic enough to foretell a win, especially this soon.
SEEBillie Eilish’s ‘Lunch’ could devour the Grammys and make history in more ways than one
To add to all of that, Eilish and her brother, producer and co-writer Finneas are coming hot off their second Oscar win for Best Original Song, the album is a new commercial and critical peak for Eilish, and it’s looking to score more than one big hit. While “Lunch” is the lead single, the track “Birds of a Feather” is now smashing on streaming charts, as is “Chihiro” to a lesser extent. While a good streaming run doesn’t equal single success by itself, it seems like Eilish’s team could have a lengthy era on their hands if managed properly.
Compared to its main competitors, this might be a significant advantage. “Cowboy Carter” has so far failed to score a second big hit after “Texas Hold ‘Em.” “The Tortured Poets Department’s” lead single “Fortnight” has not really performed as well as some of Swift’s previous singles, and there hasn’t been an indication of a second hit on the horizon. And while “Eternal Sunshine” does have two number-one hits, the hype seems to be concentrated on “We Can’t Be Friends (Wait For Your Love).” If by year’s end Eilish’s album has the most hits, it’s going to be hard to deny it a win.
There’s still time for new contenders to arrive before the August 31 eligibility deadline. But in the meantime, Eilish seems like a solid bet as a frontrunner, really having all that an artist needs to win. A beloved Grammy darling with a hit album that’s also massively acclaimed? That’s a combination that’s hard to beat.
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