Billie Eilish recently had to pause her live performance at London’s O2 Arena on Saturday after several fans became unwell in the hot conditions of her sold out show. These artist led measures of crowd control are becoming increasingly regular occurrences for popular musicians around the world, especially in the wake of the tragic circumstances that surrounded Travis Scott’s live performance at Astroworld Festival in 2021. In November of that year in Travis’s hometown of Houston, Texas, 10 people sadly lost their lives in a mass casualty crowd crush during the commotion of his live show. Global recognition and criticism of the event’s handling ensued and shone a spotlight on the dangers of big crowds and how quickly things can become dangerous when variables like heat, crowds, and cramped conditions combine. Since then, it seems musicians are largely taking more precautions and care in ensuring their fans safety during concerts, with Harry Styles also pausing his show recently at Brixton’s O2 Academy to check on an unwell fan, it seems that the tragic loss of life at Astroworld has at least spurned fresh awareness and focus of the issue, with Billie Eilish also taking no chances on Saturday night.
The BBC’s Mark Savage reported earlier today that Eilish asked the O2 security team to distribute water to fans before asking “Are you all ok? It’s hot, I know, Don’t try to save feelings”, and eventually pausing the show to ask fans to “Take a step back” and “Give everybody some space. If someone looks a little woozy, just tell someone.”
Thankfully everyone ended up being okay, after fans took it upon themselves to form a protective circle around the effected party and shined phone lights on them until security arrived, her set carried on as usual. However, it’s not the first time the star has had to pause a show to check on her fans safety. Back in February, she interrupted her Happier Than Ever tour show in Atlanta after noticing someone struggling to breathe and refusing to proceed until they could access an inhaler. She also had to stop her show later that month at Maddison Square Garden in New York saying “If you want to sit down, you are allowed. Go ahead, you’re good. Sit down, take a breath.”
Eilish is currently in the middle of her UK tour promoting new album Happier Than Ever. She will perform again at London’s O2 tonight before continuing on to Glasgow’s Ovo Hydro Arena on Tuesday 14th June, Birmingham’s Utilita Arena on the 15th, and returning to the O2 in London to finish the UK leg with two final shows on the 16th, 25th, and 26th. You can grab any remaining tickets here.
