Nearly a decade ago, Billie Eilish, then 13 years old, put “Ocean Eyes” on SoundCloud and catapulted to global superstardom.
It was the kind of ascent aspiring singers dream of, propelled by a platform that at the time wasn’t known for unearthing pop stars. But if you ask her now, even Eilish, now 24, doesn’t know if someone else could replicate her success. “Oh my god!” she says when asked where the next Billie Eilish might be discovered. “I have no idea.”
Photograph: Darrell Jackson
These days it’s common for new artists to share their music on SoundCloud, but back then it was still relatively new. “I’m very curious to see what the future holds,” Eilish says. “I don’t know where the next whoever is gonna come from. I can’t wait to see them and I can’t wait to cheerleader them, whoever it may be.”
If they ever come. Ten years ago artists could build followings, like Eilish did, through livestreams, Instagram posts, and videos on social media. In 2026, the landscape looks very different. Everyone seems to know, or claims to know, how to beat the algorithms to get streams and views, but very little of it feels authentic, especially in a world full of AI slop. Eilish and her fans grew up online, but they may not want to hang out there the way they once did.
Eilish, to be clear, still believes true talent can break through the noise. Art, she says, should be “attainable for everyone” and the internet, while messy, enables that. “There’s all sorts of technologies now where it seems like we’re all doomed, but we’re not,” Eilish tells WIRED. “If we keep making real stuff, real art made by humans—live music, live audiences—I don’t see that ever dying.”
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