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23-year-old Billie Eilish was perhaps “Happier Than Ever” after she called out billionaires in a room of rich attendees, which included Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg. The pop star was on stage, receiving the “music innovator award” at WSJ. Innovator Awards in New York City, when she spoke directly to the wealthy about the wealth inequality in the world. “Love you all, but there’s a few people in here that have a lot more money than me,” Eilish said. “If you’re a billionaire, why are you a billionaire? No hate, but give your money away, shorties. Love you guys. Thank you so much.” Zuckerberg, who has an estimated net worth of $235.2 billion according to Bloomberg Billionaire Index figures, was present at the event with his wife, Priscilla Chan, but did not appreciate Eilish’s blunt words. At the conclusion of her Eilish received a rousing applause from the audience, but Zuckerberg did not join the rest in clapping for the musician, a report in People revealed. Billie Eilish’s Moving Speech The American pop star weighed in on the current times and expressed that the world and people needed empathy. The singer further urged the rich to donate the money to those in need. “We’re in a time right now where the world is really, really bad and really dark and people need empathy and help more than, kind of, ever, especially in our country,” People quoted her as saying. “I’d say if you have money, it would be great to use it for good things, maybe give it to some people that need it.” During the event, Stephen Colbert announced Eilish’s $11.5 million donation to organisations combating food inequity and climate change, WSJ reported. Billie Eilish had a message for billionaires at the WSJ Innovator Awards: “Give your money away, shorties." Eilish was one of eight who was honored for her work. At the event, Stephen Colbert announced Eilish is donating $11.5 million of the proceeds from her most recent tour to… pic.twitter.com/K555kWDTZj — The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) October 30, 2025 Online Reactions Reddit, responding to the report of Zuckerberg not clapping for Eilish’s piercing words aimed at billionaires, had a field day. “His [Zuckerberg] processor was still trying to compute a result,” wrote one. “There was a time where the ultra rich used to treat giving back to the public as a status symbol in their circles; building museums, hospital wings, scholarships and such. Somewhere along the line that culture clearly changed, and now they compete to see who can personally go to mars first, (sic)” typed another user. “Real Parasites” The war was waged against the billionaires, and Reddit users minced no words whatsoever. “Billionaires spend more money in elections to defeat politicians who will tax them a net lower amount of money for funds that will go toward the public good. F*ck them, they are the real parasites.” Unlike Zuckerberg, Reddit applauded the pop star for speaking up. “Good for her. Her wealth is not even close to what a Zuck has.” “I (and I cannot stress this enough) do not and will never care about any billionaire’s feelings at any given time. Not even once. Not ever. You own the world and still have tantrums? Groundbreaking. Vent to the Titanic she loves company,” a user on X commented. While the bulk of social media users sided with Eilish’s frank speech, calling out the wealthy, there were a few who desperately sought irony in her words. “Why stop at billionaires? Billie is a multimillionaire. Why isn’t she living in a two-bedroom apartment like me? Very selfish of her.” “Nothing more inspiring than millionaires castigating billionaires,” quipped an X user. When a person asked Elon Musk’s Grok about Eilish’s net worth, the AI chatbot cited a few reports and stated that the singer’s net worth was approximately $50 million.
