Billie Eilish is Apple Music's Artist of the Year: 'A voice of her generation'

Along with her Grammys, Oscars and Golden Globes, Billie Eilish can add another piece of hardware to her surely sagging shelf.

Eilish has been named the 2024 Apple Music Artist of the Year. The "Bad Guy" and "Birds Of A Feather" singer was also the inaugural winner in 2019.

“She’s a voice of her generation,” Rachel Newman, Apple Music’s senior director of content and editorial, told USA TODAY, about choosing Eilish. "Hit Me Hard and Soft" is "the most beautiful album of her career so far. We started (considering her) at the music, but then you see what she achieved with ‘Barbie’ and that extraordinary song (‘What Was I Made For?’) that spoke to every woman and little girl in the world and the cultural impact she’s had. And she’s only 22!”

Eilish reacted to the award – which features golden iPhone chips in its design, courtesy of Apple – with graciousness.

“Since day one, Apple Music has supported my music and artistry, and I am both honored and humbled to receive this recognition as Artist of the Year this many years into my career,” Eilish said in a statement.

How does Apple pick Artist of the Year?

Newman said the process of anointing Apple's Artist of the Year takes about six months. She and the Apple Music editorial team of eight to 10 people “debate very rigorously” and while Eilish was in the mix from the beginning, Newman acknowledges it was an exceptionally strong year for female performers.

Previous winners following Eilish's 2019 coronation were Lil Baby in 2020; The Weeknd in 2021; Bad Bunny in 2022; and Taylor Swift in 2023.

While data from sources including iTunes, Apple Music, Billboard and Shazam, as well as the artist’s impact outside of the U.S. informs the shortlist of contenders, it is not what guides the decision, Newman said.

“Billie was always the one we came back to because of the touch points she occupied this year,” Newman said. “It wasn’t just the music or the chart success or ‘Barbie’ or the other awards or her tour. She occupied the cultural space along the entire spectrum."

More: Billie Eilish tells fans 'I will always fight for you' at US tour opener

Billie Eilish, Apple Music's Artist of the Year, is 'very much herself'

To celebrate Eilish’s achievement, Apple Music will hold a series of special events with Eilish, some of which will be streamed, and unveil her on the cover of the platform’s “Today’s Hits” playlist Thursday.

“She’s so vibrant now and very much herself,” Newman said. “It’s a joy to see such an incredibly deep artist who has a lot to say and says it beautifully. She’s incredibly authentic.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Billie Eilish named Apple Music's Artist of the Year in 2024