How Billie Eilish Indirectly Influenced Jujutsu Kaisen's Anime Adaptation

"Jujutsu Kaisen" is one of the biggest anime series airing now, and it is easy to see why. This is a show that's both familiar and fresh. Author Gege Akutami is a huge fan of manga and anime, and the millennial artist infuses his work with references and homages to everything from "YuYu Hakusho," to horror films, and "Naruto."

The style of humor, themes, and pacing of "Jujutsu Kaisen" are comparable to those of "Hunter x Hunter," or "Demon Slayer," but with horror undertones and imagery that makes this wholly unique in current anime. Granted, we've had plenty of shonen action shows with horror themes and imagery, from "Death Note" to "Tokyo Ghoul." But "Jujutsu Kaisen" takes more than visual cues — it is genuinely spooky at times.

This show can also be genuinely goofy and funny (like having an entire episode devoted to a baseball game) while also having scenes of heartbreaking emotion (like most of the prequel movie "Jujutsu Kaisen 0"), and of course, absolutely insane action with fluid animation. A rather underrated aspect of "Jujutsu Kaisen," however, is its electric soundtrack. It is full of catchy tunes (seriously, the opening and ending in the first season are incredible), and a score that's unusual for shonen anime in that it is heavily influenced by EDM, Hip Hop and R&B, and somehow also ... Billie Eilish?

That's what "Jujutsu Kaisen" music producer Yoshiki Kobayashi told Crunchyroll during an interview, saying it was Gege Akutami himself who suggested it. 

"When we had our meeting with Gege Akutami-sensei, he suggested we go with a stylish, Billie Eilish direction. Then director Sung Hoo Park added on that he wanted some hip hop and rock."

It makes complete sense Akutami would be a fan of Billie Eilish and would be inspired to include her style in the anime adaptation of "Jujutsu Kaisen." This is an anime full of pop culture references, specifically 2000s and 2010s references. A big part of a character dynamic in the first season (also present in the manga) is a character saying he likes Jennifer Lawrence. There's a scene where protagonist Yuji Itadori watches "Lord of the Rings" in order to train his powers, and fan-favorite Satoru Gojo explains the plot of an episode using "Digimon." Given Eilish's style is already rather similar to the goth-pop tone of "Jujutsu Kaisen," it makes sense her music would influence the sound of the show.

Even if we don't actually have any Billie Eilish music in "Jujutsu Kaisen," the anime does have an eclectic music style that's unusual for anime because of how international it is. The soundtrack includes international artists, like UK rapper Che Lingo, Haitian American Paranom, Boston-born Aztech, Japanese rapper RIN, and more. Given the modern setting of the story, having rap featured heavily in the soundtrack fits thematically, and having an international star like Billie Eilish influence the music of the anime adaptation shows why "Jujutsu Kaisen" is so special and different from its contemporaries.