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Billie Eilish Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour 2025 in Cologne
- Agne
- Jun 2
- 4 min read
On May 29th, I had the chance to see Billie Eilish live at Lanxess Arena in Cologne during her Hit Me Hard and Soft Tour 2025. If you're curious about what it was like – from queuing chaos to stage setup and performance highlights – keep reading!
Tickets for Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour 2025
I actually got my tickets pretty easily during the general sale on Eventim DE. No queuing drama or anything – just bought a GA standing ticket for €150 and that was it.
Concert Day Timeline
Here’s how the evening went down:
5:30 PM – Arrived at the venue
5:30 PM – Doors opened
7:00 PM – Opening act: Tom Odell
8:15 PM – Billie Eilish
9:55 PM – Show ended
Queuing at Lanxess Arena, Cologne
Before the concert, I saw tons of posts online about hardcore fans camping and queuing for hours. My sister and I arrived in Cologne the day before, but we decided to skip all that madness and just show up around doors opening. We got to the arena around 5:30 PM and were immediately hit with a flood of people. It was honestly chaotic – I couldn’t even figure out where the end of the queue was.
Still, we eventually found our spot and the line moved surprisingly quickly. By 6 PM we were inside the venue. But that wasn’t the end of it: there was another queue inside for the GA standing area, because at some point they weren’t letting more people in. We waited there for about 45 minutes, and just 15 minutes after getting in, Tom Odell started playing. So in total, there wasn’t too much waiting inside the standing sector, which was actually good as it was very hot inside the crowd.
We ended up in maybe the 6th row, pretty close to the stage on the left-hand side. The band was to our left, the drums on the right. When Billie came to our side, we saw her from super close – so I think skipping the early queuing was the right decision in the end.
Opening Act: Tom Odell
Tom Odell opened the show – yes, the man behind the iconic song Another Love. He started earlier than expected, around 7 PM (I almost missed the beginning thanks to a quick bathroom run, hahah). He really got the crowd going, and of course, everyone went crazy during Another Love. Also, he just announced his Wonderful Life Tour 2025 – go check it out here!
Billie Eilish: The Performance
Billie came on around 8:15 PM, appearing inside a giant transparent cube that doubled as massive screens – and the arena exploded. Honestly, for the first few songs I couldn’t hear her at all over the screaming (and let’s be real, her signature whispery voice doesn’t help, hahah). I’d have loved to hear her a bit louder because the crowd around us… let’s just say their singing was giving major springtime cat energy, if you know what I mean. Don’t get me wrong, I like singing myself and I love hearing the audience engaged and singing along, but this was another level. I think it was one of the loudest concerts I’ve ever been to.
Coming back to Billie, she opened with CHIHIRO, then straight into LUNCH, NDA, and Therefore I Am, which turned the entire arena into one giant dance floor. One really cool moment was during when the party's over, when she asked the crowd to go completely silent so she could record background vocals live using a loop station. Cologne passed the challenge – impressive achievement for such a loud crowd!
The setlist included every song from the new Hit Me Hard and Soft album and quite a few iconic tracks from previous albums. Billie gave a dynamic, emotional, and high-energy performance. She played acoustic guitar, piano, and electric guitar – seriously, a musical genius.
If I had to nitpick, I wish songs like ocean eyes or ilomilo weren’t shortened, and I missed you should see me in a crown. The whole show lasted about 1 hour 40 minutes – amazing, but it felt a bit short. Just my personal opinion though! You can see the full setlist here.
Hit Me Hard and Soft Tour Stage Setup
Okay, unpopular opinion time: I’m not a huge fan of 360° stages. Yes, I get the idea – it brings the artist closer to more fans. But for me, this time it meant I saw Billie’s back like 70% of the time. My millennial self will forever prefer a classic stage with a runway.
The stage was huge and chaotic in a cool way: Billie was inside the cube, then on top of it, then filming herself in the band pit, then running around giving high-fives and so one. It was fun but also made it harder to stay connected with the performance.
If I’d known what the stage would be like, I think I would’ve gone for seating tickets instead – better view, less stress.
Billie Eilish’s Sustainability Efforts for the Hit Me Hard and Soft Tour
Before the concert, there was a short film about Billie’s efforts to make her tour more sustainable. From recycled cotton merch to vegan food at venues (Billie and Finneas have been vegan for years), it was really inspiring.
There’s even an Eco-Action Village at her shows where fans can learn more about climate action and sustainable practices. I really admire artists using their platform for good – especially when it comes to reducing the touring carbon footprint. You can read more about her sustainability efforts here.
Final Thoughts
Overall, I really loved seeing Billie Eilish Hit Me Hard and Soft Tour. The energy, the production, the music – all top-notch. I’d definitely go again if I get the chance… though next time I’ll probably book a seat.
