Tom Odell's 'wonderful lesson' from Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell
Tom Odell inspired Billie Eilish's brother Finneas O'Connell to pursue a solo career.
Tom Odell has revealed how a performance he once considered a personal failure ended up inspiring two of pop’s biggest stars - Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell.
The 34-year-old British singer-songwriter reflected on his 2016 show at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, admitting he left the stage feeling disheartened.
As quoted by the BBC, he said: “I was really dissatisfied with that show.
“I was frustrated, and I don't think it went how I wanted it to go. I don't even think it was a full crowd.”
But unbeknownst to Odell, two future Grammy winners were sitting in the audience that night.
Finneas, then-18, had recently uploaded a demo to SoundCloud with his younger sister Billie Eilish. The siblings were still unknown to the wider music world - but Odell’s performance struck a chord.
At a recent concert in Manchester, Finneas said of Odell: “I was already a fan, but I watched the show he put on, and his band were incredible and his songs were incredible. I credit that show as being the reason I wanted to start putting out music under my own name.”
For Odell - who has been opening for Billie Eilish on her European tour - the revelation was deeply "moving".
He said: “My career has not always been easy.
“But also, it was a wonderful lesson. We write off days where we feel like we have nothing to offer—but you never know what effect you might have on people.”
After huge success of his 2012 hit Another Love, Odell, now an independent artist, marks his success by the many special encounters he has with fans, not selling out arenas and hitting streaming numbers.
He previously told Britain's Metro newspaper's Guilty Pleasures column: "You spend enough time round those sorts of people, and it begins to distort the reasons you got into it in the first place. Actually, I think what’s common among all artists is, often, we have quite humble ambitions. For me, success is, I felt more of it in the last couple of years than I ever have before.
"It’s the moments on stage when people sing your lyrics back to you, it may just be one person you see in the crowd. It draws this connection between a stranger and in the most magical way. That makes it so worthwhile.
"All of the stats and size of venues, all of that … has gone up and down. I can compare myself to someone and feel totally unsuccessful and a failure, and what’s absurd is, someone can equally do the same thing to me. It’s a pointless task."
Odell returns with his seventh studio album, A Wonderful Life, on Friday (05.09.25).
