by Kianna Znika
As someone who’s been listening to a lot of early 2000’s alternative/female pop rock lately, I really like the new Olivia Rodrigo album. The girl just gets it, truly.
“GUTS” makes me feel like I’m the main character in an early 2000’s film, reminding me of some of my childhood favorite movies like “Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen.” She reminds me of Avril Lavigne and P!nk, delivering stories in her lyrics that even I as a twenty-five-year old can relate to. I love alternative music and I think, as far as pop stars in mainstream music go, Rodrigo does just get it. Everyone who disagrees, I think you’re just being a hater – genuinely.
I think a lot of people don’t validate Rodrigo’s angst because she is a young popular artist, but honestly just a few minutes into the album you’ll hear the grunge influences in her track “all-american bitch.” Close your eyes and listen to the chorus and tell me that isn’t Hole. Tell me that isn’t modern-day feminist punk music. I’m in a feminist punk band, I listen to niche artists, and I’m telling you right now: I love Rodrigo’s sound.
People on the internet were trying to make fun of her screaming in the record, but I think they just didn’t get what she was going for. I don’t think Rodrigo is trying to be the next Bring Me The Horizon; let’s be so for real. I think her choice to scream like that was intentional, an artistic choice that reminds me of Regina George screaming in Mean Girls. If you keep that image in mind, you’ll see that Rodrigo perfectly channels the thoughts and feelings of an angry teenage girl. It’s intentional. It’s poetic, really.
That’s why listening to her music is so much fun for me. It’s healing. I can still relate to the antisocial, insecure themes that are present in songs such as “ballad of a homeschool girl.” I can definitely relate to having conflicted feelings about an ex, which is a present theme in songs like “bad idea right?”
“Yes I know that he’s my ex, but can’t two people reconnect? I only see him as a friend – Biggest lie I ever said.”
I know a majority of you can relate to that, too. It’s like an era that we all have to go through at some point in our life, and Rodrigo knows that.
The only song I really couldn’t vibe with was “vampire,” which doesn’t surprise me because I didn’t care too much for “driver’s license” from her first record either. I don’t listen to Olivia Rodgrigo for her slower material. I think she truly excels as an angsty artist and I’m glad that she’s continuing to explore that realm.
Whether or not you end up liking the album yourself, I at least hope more people give Olivia Rodrigo a chance and stop seeing her as just another “mainstream pop star.” Even then, it’s okay to like popular music. Especially when it’s objectively good.
