Eli is facing online backlash after using her set at Olivia Rodrigo’s Daisy Chain Fields festival to call for wealth redistribution and lead an “eat the rich” chant. The remarks, delivered during the August 29 charity event in Irvine, California, quickly sparked debate over whether the message was undermined by the singer’s privileged upbringing and family background.
During her early performance on the Dandelion Stage, Eli framed the speech as a “journal entry” and spoke about dismantling systems of wealth and division. She called for wealth redistribution, urged the audience to “eat the identity politics that deceive and divide us all, as well as eating the rich,” and argued that society should work toward “heaven on earth.”
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Eli also used the moment to announce personal donations to two organizations, aligning her remarks with Daisy Chain Fields’ broader charitable mission. The festival, founded by Olivia Rodrigo, brought together an all-women and women-fronted lineup at Great Park, with artists performing without fees and net proceeds directed toward organizations supporting women and girls.
Clips of Eli’s speech spread rapidly across X, where the reaction quickly shifted toward her family and upbringing. Critics accused the singer of hypocrisy, pointing to claims about her father’s wealth, his professional background in investment management, her brother’s employment in the same industry and the financial support she allegedly received while developing her career.
One viral post claimed Eli was “screaming eat the rich” despite having a father who is a “multimillionaire” and an early career supported by wealthy parents. Another accused her of speaking about economic hardship despite never having experienced struggles with rent, loans or other financial pressures.
Those claims require some qualification. Public reporting has documented Eli’s upbringing in Norfolk, Massachusetts, an affluent Boston suburb, but has not established that her father is worth hundreds of millions of dollars or that he is a billionaire. Eli grew up as the middle child of Cindy and Jeff Miller in a financially comfortable household, and her father was quoted in a 2014 Boston Globe profile discussing the sudden attention surrounding her early career.
Born Jeffrey Elias Miller on October 12, 2000, Eli first gained a following as a teenager on Vine, where she posted six-second covers under the name Jeffrey Eli. She eventually amassed more than one million followers, appeared on Good Morning America, released the EP Seconds and performed at a festival in San Diego.
Her path to pop stardom later included leaving NYU’s recorded-music program, moving to Los Angeles and signing with Zelig Music and RCA. As Eli, she rebuilt her career around campy 2000s-inspired pop, releasing her debut album Stage Girl in 2025.
The controversy arrives as Eli enters a higher-profile phase of her career. Daisy Chain Fields marked her first major festival appearance of this scale, placing her on a bill alongside Chappell Roan, Doechii, Mitski, Bikini Kill, Garbage, The Breeders and Rodrigo.
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