Billie Eilish: Pop Icon for a New Generation

Listening comprehension by Martin Ehrensberger

Billie Eilish: Pop icon for a new generation

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Pre-listening

1. Are you a music expert? a) Combine the famous female pop stars with the songs they sang. There will be two songs for each singer. Write the names of the songs below each singer’s name.

Rihanna Ariana Grande Billie Eilish

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Song titles “7 rings” “Bad guy” “Bury a friend” “Diamonds” “No tears left to cry” “Umbrella” b) Which of the three singers do you like best? What do you know about them? Do you know any of their other songs? Make a ranking of the three singers with your classmates. Which of the three is the most popular pop star in your class?

2. Read the headline of the text you will hear. What do you think the expression “new generation” means? Write three possible meanings below and compare your ideas with a partner.

“Billie Eilish: Pop icon for a new generation”

3. Read the subhead of the text: “Her music, her style, and how she became famous, break the mold.”

What does “to break the mold” mean? Mark the correct definition.  to strongly influence the way somebody’s character, opinions, etc. develop  to change what people expect from a situation, especially by acting in a dramatic and original way  to bring food from the stomach back out through the mouth

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4. Vocabulary: read the definitions and find the nouns in the grid.

C H O R U S N K D R C

O I N F L U E N C E E

L A F L Y R I C S J Y

L P G I B I G R Y D C

A P X Y I Q H E K A C

B R C E L E B R I T Y

O O A P L C O W J T C

R A H W I T R B I E O

A C Q S O W H D A N N

T H C Z N J O F C T C

O X O L G L O A S I E

R S Y E G P D M N O P

A T T I T U D E C N T

billion • attention • neighborhood • lyrics • celebrity • fame • concept collaborator • approach • attitude • chorus • influence

Words Definitions

a) a district or an area of a town; the people who live there a person who works with another person to create or b) produce something such as a book

c) a famous person the effect that somebody/something has on the way a d) person thinks or behaves or on the way that something works or develops the act of listening to, looking at or thinking about e) something/somebody carefully the way that you think and feel about f) somebody/something; the way that you behave towards somebody/ something that shows how you think and feel a way of dealing with somebody/something; a way of g) doing or thinking about something such as a problem or a task

Billie Eilish: Pop icon for a new generation

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an idea or a principle that is connected with s.th. h) abstract i) one thousand million

j) (often in names) a large group of singers

k) the words of a song the state of being known and talked about by many l) people

Definitions are from www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com.

5. Vocabulary

Fill in the grid below by matching the definitions on the left with the corresponding words on the right. a) to start to be seen A release b) to examine people or things to see how they are similar and how they B discover are different c) to reflect something to show or be a sign of the nature of something C agree or of somebody’s attitude or feeling D appear d) to be the first person to become aware that a particular place or thing exists E develop e) to arrange something in groups according to features that they have F compare in common f) to become or make something worse than it was before G gather g) to make something available to the public H classify h) a new or difficult task that tests somebody’s ability and skill I glide i) to make something known to somebody j) to think of or produce a new idea, product, etc. and make it successful J reflect k) to move smoothly and quietly, especially as though it takes no effort K reveal l) to come together, or bring people together, in one place to form a group L worsen m) to have the same opinion as somebody; to say that you have the same opinion M challenge

a) b) c) d) e) f) g) h) i) j) k) l) m)

Definitions are from www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com.

Billie Eilish: Pop icon for a new generation

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Listening comprehension

1. Listen to the text and then write down three or four sentences describing what it is about. Use at least four of the following words.

pop stars • streaming • music • success • interest • song • voice sound • fashion • Tourette Syndrome • fame • family • fans

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2. Listen to the text. Then, mark () the correct ending to complete the sentences below. a) Billy Eilish…  released her first album on March 19, 2009.  has become famous through fans who are discovering new music over streaming services.  had her first brush with the music industry at the age of 30. b) “Ocean Eyes”…  became a hit when she was 13.  was part of her first EP, which was released in August 2017.  got almost a million streams on Spotify. c) Billie Eilish’s music…  can’t be classified easily.  is a mixture of hip hop with R&B and heavy metal.  is often quite happy. d) Billie Eilish’s style…  is always dark with baggy clothes and gothic rings.  is completed with a disinterested stare and hip-hop attitude.  is so strange because she wants to hide her Tourette Syndrome.

3. Answer the questions below. You don’t have to write complete sentences, but one word isn’t enough. a) Why is Billie Eilish on the way to becoming a household name?

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Billie Eilish: Pop icon for a new generation

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b) Why did Billie’s parents homeschool her and her brother?

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d) What do you know about her songs? (2 aspects)

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e) How does Tourette’s Syndrome affect her?

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Post-listening

Writing

Listen to a few of Billie Eilish’s songs, and write down your opinions about her music. Do you agree with the description of the text? What is your impression of her music? Write approximately 50 to 60 words.

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Billie Eilish: Pop icon for a new generation

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Answer key

Pre-listening

1. a) Rihanna: “Diamonds” and “Umbrella” Ariana Grande: “7 rings” and “No tears left to cry” Billie Eilish: “Bad guy” and “Bury a friend”

2. Sample answers • refers to young people like her • as an icon, she has her own special style • she became famous through the internet

3.  to change what people expect from a situation, especially by acting in a dramatic and original way

4. C H O R U S N O I N F L U E N C E L A L Y R I C S L P B G A P I H A B R C E L E B R I T Y O O L O T C R A I R E O

A C O H N N T H N O F T C O O A I E R D M O P A T T I T U D E N T a) neighborhood • b) collaborator • c) celebrity • d) influence • e) attention • f) attitude g) approach • h) concept • i) billion • j) chorus • k) lyrics • l) fame

5. a) b) c) d) e) f) g) h) i) j) k) l) m) D F J B H L A M K E I G C

Billie Eilish: Pop icon for a new generation

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Listening comprehension

1. Sample answer Billie Eilish is a 17-year old woman who has become a pop star. She has had a lot of success thanks to music streaming services. She has Tourette Syndrome. Her music style, which cannot be classified, is reflected in her sense of fashion. Despite her success, she still works with her family and remains connected to her fans. Her sound is also hard to classify, and her voice is raspy.

2. a) has become famous through fans who are discovering new music over streaming services. b) became a hit when she was 13. c) can’t be classified easily. d) is completed with a disinterested stare and hip-hop attitude.

3. a) because of fans who are discovering new music over streaming services (para. 1) b) to allow them to focus on their interests (para. 3) c) pick any two of the following: difficult to classify in mainstream pop • mix of hip hop elements with indie-pop effects or glide through cool R&B inspired beats • accompanied by her controlled raspy voice • filled with morbid themes like serial killers and monsters (para. 4) d) worsens when she’s nervous, so she tries to keep her facial tics under control the best she can (para. 5)

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