Not long ago it was popular chatter on the Internet that Grammy-winning musicianBillie Eilish’s mom was a voice actor forMass EffectandFinal Fantasy, among various other series. A love of video games clearly penetrates deep in their family, as Eilish talked about how the theme song to PopCap Games’Plants vs. Zombieswas one of the samples used to create her hit songBad Guyduring an interview with Rolling Stone.
The Rolling Stone interview where Eilish and her brother Finneas talked aboutPlants vs. Zombieswas uploaded to YouTube. Around the six minute mark, she says that the chorus hook uses “not at all the same melodies, but it’s literallyPlants vs. Zombies,” to which her brother adds that it also has similarities to the intro for Disney Channel’s 2007 showWizards of Waverly Place.
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While it’s generally far from the public consciousness today,Plants vs. Zombieswas one of the titles that helped push a now-massive mobile gaming industry into the mainstream during the oughts alongside games like Rovio Entertainment’sAngry Birds. The strategy tower defense gameplay ofPvZhas spawned a long-running franchise withrecent spin-offs likeBattle for Neighborvillein 2019.
It’s just one of the many bizarre things incorporated into Eilish’s song, which also includes her laughter altered into an unrecognizably higher pitch and the sound of an Australian crosswalk signal according to the Rolling Stone video. Clearly that unconventional approach paid off, asBad Guyreceived Song of the Year at the 2020 Grammy Awards and helped open opportunities for the young artist likecreating the nextJames Bondtheme.
Bad Guyis not Eilish’s only song with ties to video games. Another track in her debut studio album “When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?” is named afterthe 2010 puzzle gameilomilo— released right around the same time asPlants vs. Zombies.
Toward the end of the Rolling Stone video, Eilish says thatBad Guywas “one of the most fun songs to make ever,” and Finneas confirms that “usually songs suck to make.” It’s safe to say that the world can be thankful their deep-seeded love of video games aided in the creation of a musical masterpiece, and maybe fans should play her song a few more times while waiting for thestill under-constructionPlants vs. Zombies 3.
