Billie Eilish and Finneas credit Glen Hansard’s music as formative influence

Billie Eilish, Finneas and their mother Maggie Baird have shared personal tributes to Glen Hansard, the Dublin-born musician and actor who died in a motorcycle accident on 29 July, aged 56.

Finneas posted a photograph with Hansard, recalling that "Falling Slowly"—the Oscar-winning song Hansard co-wrote and performed for the 2007 film Once—was the first song he performed on stage at age 11. "His songs made me want to write songs," Finneas wrote, adding that when the family met Hansard in Dublin in 2019, "he greeted us like old friends even though we were just his fans."

Maggie Baird expanded on the family's connection, stating: "I know Finneas and Billie would not be who they are without his music." She recalled seeing Once and attending Hansard's 2013 performance at the Grammy Museum, which she said profoundly influenced her own filmmaking. "He was a force in all of our family's lives," she wrote. Eilish reposted her mother's tribute on her Instagram story, adding: "devastated… wouldn't be who I am today without glen."

Hansard's career spanned from busking on Dublin's streets to international recognition. His 2016 solo album Didn't He Ramble earned a Grammy nomination for Best Folk Album. The song "Falling Slowly," which he performed with co-star Markéta Irglová in Once, won the 2008 Academy Award for Best Original Song. He is survived by his wife, poet Maire Saaritsa, and their son.