At just twenty-one years old, singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo has paved her way to success by relating to a younger audience while taking inspiration from rock artists of past decades. Her relatable and candid lyrics attract young listeners, introducing a generation raised on pop music to traditional rock sounds. This distinctive pairing of authenticity and tradition has helped Rodrigo win Grammy awards, chart top Billboard spots, and sell out her most recent tour. Her success embodies a new era of music.
On February 23, an audience of roughly eleven thousand fans excitedly cheered as Olivia Rodrigo took the stage on the first night of her Guts World Tour in Palm Springs, California. She begins her concerts with the lively pop-punk songs “Bad Idea Right?” and “Ballad of a Homeschooled Girl.” These songs, among others from her newest album, Guts, experiment with a pop-rock sound reminiscent of early 2000s hits inspired by artists such as Fiona Apple and Avril Lavigne. In an interview with The New York Times, Rodrigo notes that the artists she admires use “rock music, but they’re not trying to recreate a version of rock music that guys make.” She has found a way to make her songs feel unique, personal, and feminine while including her lifelong love for rock music.
In addition to pulling inspiration from rock music, Rodrigo remarks that sharing stories and being vulnerable in her songs is vital to her sound: “For me, [music is] expressing those feelings that are really hard to externalize, or that you feel aren’t societally acceptable to externalize… especially as a girl.” With songs referencing past relationships, insecurities, and jealousy, Rodrigo brings to light feelings that she and her fanbase – primarily comprised of young girls – are experiencing. The singer’s candid lyrics validate emotions that her followers may feel uncomfortable discussing otherwise and encourage girls to express their emotions, including anger, healthily. Greeley students appreciate Rodrigo’s vulnerability and can relate to her music and lyrics. “I love the way she’s made a character through her music that captures a teen girl and how she might react to moments like a breakup, or just anger that comes with being a girl at a young age,” remarks Greeley sophomore Julianne A. Julianne’s testimony reveals the emotional appeal of Rodrigo’s songs, especially for a younger, female audience.
Indeed, some of Rodrigo’s most popular songs allude to the confusing and illogical emotions that define adolescence like insecurity and social anxiety. In her hit song “Ballad of a Homeschooled Girl,” Rodrigo expresses her struggles to fit in with her peers. She reminisces about her regrets and awkward actions, repeating the lyric “Each time I step outside, it’s social suicide” in each chorus. However, not all of her songs hone in on her insecurities; her discography is also full of songs about her views on prior relationships. “Vampire,” the most popular track from her sophomore album Guts, describes a relationship that drained her until she freed herself from it. Another fan-favorite from the album, “Get Him Back!” depicts the theme of confliction – wanting to both reconnect with and get revenge on an ex. The chorus of the song contrasts Rodrigo’s feelings towards the relationship: “I wanna get him back / I wanna make him really jealous, wanna make him feel bad / Oh, I wanna get him back / ‘Cause then again, I really miss him, and it makes me real sad.” Taken together, these songs contradict yet complement each other as Rodrigo explores the toxicity of relationships and the nonsensical appeal of ex-lovers. In doing so, she captures the tumultuous nature of teenage relationships and breakups. It is hardly a surprise that “Vampire” earned the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart.
Fans hoping to enjoy Rodrigo’s most popular songs live are in luck. Concerts on her Guts World Tour include a 90-minute setlist featuring all of the songs from Guts and nine from her debut album Sour. Outfit changes, choreography, and visual effects complement her songs and engage the audience throughout the show. The tour will reach cities across the US, Canada, and Europe, with more shows yet to be announced. Even though every show is sold out, resale tickets are available on StubHub and other third-party ticket sites. Rodrigo is scheduled to complete this leg of the tour in Los Angeles on August 17, and her concerts will be held at venues with capacities ranging from ten to twenty thousand people.
Given its scale, the Guts World Tour will bring in significant revenue for Rodrigo. In recent years, income from live shows has become more important to artists as physical music sales continue to decline. When CDs and records dominated music sales, artists typically earned over a dollar for every unit sold; now, with the rise of streaming platforms such as Spotify, artists earn less than a cent each time a song of theirs is played, according to USA Today. Though Rodrigo’s ticket sales are crucial to her success, the cost of attendance limits many fans’ ability to see her live shows, especially for her younger audience who may have limited budgets. Fans across social media were outraged by high ticket costs. Even though Ticketmaster claimed ticket prices would not surpass $200, by the time some got to purchase tickets, the only ones available were labeled as “Premium pricing” and cost nearly $1000 per ticket due to high demand, says Forbes. The modern age of music has posed new monetary challenges for both artists and fans alike.
Nevertheless, fans are pouring into stadiums worldwide to see Rodrigo perform. By blending traditional influences and raw emotion, Olivia Rodrigo has rebranded rock, securing her role as one of the most influential musicians today as she enhances the music industry and paves a path for the future of her career.