“Just Having a Really Good Time”

by John Downey '23 on April 22, 2022
A&E Co-Editor

Arts & Entertainment

“Just Having a Really Good Time”

Olivia Rodrigo: driving home 2 u Celebrates the Artist’s Rise to Fame

By Caitlin Ariel ’24

Olivia Rodrigo’s megahit “drivers license” shattered Spotify records worldwide after its Jan. 11, 2021 release, such as most global streams in a day and most streams in a week. The song, as well as Rodrigo’s full debut album, sour, left fans anticipating what would come next for the singer and wondering how she could possibly top the work she has already put out. While the artist’s new film, Olivia Rodrigo: driving home 2 u, does not provide definitive answers to these questions, it allows viewers to re-immerse themselves in sour and follow Rodrigo as she reminisces about her rise to fame.

The 77-minute film opens with a young Rodrigo in a home video. She says, “Hi, I’m Olivia Rodrigo,” loudly exhales into her microphone, and clarifies, “from California.” Viewers then see a montage of Rodrigo’s late-night show interviews, music video clips, and live performances, as well a video of the artist hearing “drivers license” on the radio for the first time. All of these moments encapsulate the young star’s seemingly overnight success.

driving home 2 u then follows Rodrigo as she ventures on a wistful yet sentimental trip from Salt Lake City to Los Angeles in her vintage sky-blue Ford Bronco. She explains that the trip from the Utah capital to sunny Los Angeles was one she had taken many times before as a child star, and she wrote most of the songs featured on sour during those trips.

While driving, Rodrigo stops to perform each of the album’s 11 songs in various locations. Many of these special performances feature rearranged versions of the tracks. For example, Rodrigo sings her head-banging break-up ballad “good 4 u” in a slowed-down, lo-fi style against the majesty of Monument Valley with an entire string section accompanying her.

Between these performances and breath-taking shots of Rodrigo driving through the desert, viewers see fly-on-the-wall footage of the artist in the recording studio with her producer and fellow songwriter, Dan Nigro. In one of the most surprising snippets of their writing and recording process, Rodrigo decides at the last minute that she wants another upbeat song on sour. The talented duo create “brutal” in what seems like less than two minutes: Nigro strums some cords on his guitar and Rodrigo starts singing over it. A song is born—and that song is now the opener on the set list for Rodrigo’s sour tour.

The movie is not necessarily a documentary about the teen star, but can perhaps best be understood as a concert film. In addition to reimagined performances of Rodrigo’s hit songs and behind-the-scenes footage of the album’s creation, the artist offers anecdotes about how the tracks came to be. She talks about the devastation and suffering that comes with heartbreak, coping methods she uses to move on from breakups and other difficult circumstances, and the overwhelming feeling that she was never enough for someone she struggled with for a long time. These moments humanize Rodrigo even more than sour does. Indeed, it is not every day that a celebrity blatantly admits to their insecurities.

Overall, driving home 2 u gives viewers a look at a mature, self-aware Rodrigo—one who, like them, is looking toward what the artist’s future holds. To this end, and to the excitement of many fans, the singer includes snippets of unreleased music in the film. Whether she fully shares these songs with the world in a month or in a year, it is safe to say that with her talents and tenacity, Rodrigo will only continue to meet with success as she grows as both a person and an artist.

Olivia Rodrigo: driving home 2 u is now streaming on Disney+.

One Year of “driver’s license”: Olivia Rodrigo’s Not-So-Sour Year of Success

by John Downey '23 on February 10, 2022
A&E Co-Editor

Arts & Entertainment

One Year of “driver’s license”: Olivia Rodrigo’s Not-So-Sour Year of Success

A Look at Her Record-Breaking Debut Album and Rise to Fame

Madison Palmieri ’22

Most 18-year-olds are concerned with navigating the often-challenging transition from teenagerdom to young adulthood. Many prepare to leave home for the first time as they begin college; some may start to forge their way down a particular career path.

Few, however, capture the growing pains and heartaches, the magic and the madness of this time in a smash hit, record-breaking debut album—unless their name is Olivia Rodrigo.

Rodrigo began her career as an actress, first appearing in guest spots on hit shows like New Girl before earning the opportunity to star on Disney Channel programs like Bizaardvark and High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.

At this time, she began releasing individual songs such as “All I Want,” performed on High School Musical: The Musical: The Series. While she received wide acclaim for her vocal talents, she did not begin to secure mainstream musical success until early 2021.

Just over a year ago, on Jan. 4, 2021, Rodrigo took to Instagram to announce the release of her debut single, “driver’s license.” The song became an instant hit, breaking Spotify’s records for most streams of a song in a single week, fastest song to reach 100 million streams, and most one-day streams for a non-holiday song, among others.

Just as quickly, it became a cultural phenomenon. The single was parodied by everyone from TikTokers to Saturday Night Live, the latter of which invited Rodrigo on the show to perform driver’s license and another single, “good 4 u.”

In May, she released her much-anticipated debut album, sour. Consisting of 11 songs including “driver’s license” and “good 4 u,” the thirty-five-minute record is short but sweet— contrary to what its title might suggest.

The first track, “brutal,” opens with an undeniably catchy hook and features lines that exude pure teen angst, such as, “I’m so sick of 17/Where’s my f*cking teenage dream?” and “I’m not cool and I’m not smart/And I can’t even parallel park.”

With track two, “traitor,” the album moves from anger to sadness. Rodrigo offers a new take on the cliched teenage love triangle by exploring the idea of emotional cheating, succinctly captured in the clever turn of phrase, “Guess you didn’t cheat/But you’re still a traitor.” This sense of betrayal carries into “driver’s license” as Rodrigo reflects on the bittersweetness of achieving such a milestone without her ex.

“1 step forward, 3 steps back” and “deja vu” are similar not only in theme, but also in inspiration. Lyrically, both continue to explore the frustrations of young love gone wrong. The former describes the struggle of trying to stay friends with a prior flame while the latter finds Rodrigo imagining how an ex might try and reuse the most personal details of their relationship with a new girlfriend.

This pair of tracks is also similar instrumentally, taking inspiration from the work of one of Rodrigo’s favorite artists: Taylor Swift. The main melody of “1 step forward, 3 steps back” is an interpolation of Swift’s “New Year’s Day” from her 2017 album Reputation and the rhythm of “deja vu”’s bridge is credited to “Cruel Summer” from Swift’s 2019 record Lover.

“good 4 u” returns to the alt-rock angst of “brutal” as Rodrigo bitterly laments how easily her ex has moved on “like a damn sociopath.” “enough for you” and “happier,” in contrast, explore the softer side of heartache.

On the former, Rodrigo moves from second-guessing herself in lines like, “Stupid, emotional, obsessive little me” and “Maybe I’m just not as interesting/As the girls you had before” to reclaiming power from her ex in lyrics such as, “I don’t want your sympathy/I just want myself back” and “You say I’m never satisfied/But that’s not me, it’s you.”

On the latter, the singer faces the inner struggle of wanting her former flame to find happiness but also wanting them to realize they were happier with her. Notably, however, she purposefully does not disparage her ex’s new girlfriend in the process. While she admits her desire to do so in lyrics like, “And now I’m pickin’ her apart/Like cuttin’ her down will make you miss my wretched heart,” the lines that follow reveal maturity and admiration: “She’s beautiful, she looks kind, she probably gives you butterflies.”

Track eight, “jealousy, jealousy,” moves away from the narrative of teen heartache and forays into another territory all too familiar with to young adults, especially in today’s world. Rodrigo admits to wishing she looked like the girls with “paper-white teeth and perfect bodies” who have “cool vintage clothes and vacation photos” while admitting how absurd it is that “I wanna be you so bad, and I don’t even know you.” For today’s social media-obsessed teens and young adults, the message is all too relatable.

“favorite crime” uses the familiar metaphor of criminal activity to describe a failed relationship, but makes the comparison her own through sharp, vivid phrases like, “One heart broke, four hands bloody” and “Every time a siren sounds/I wonder if you’re around.”

The album’s closing track, “hope ur ok,” moves beyond the album’s “sour” mood to a more bittersweet one. Rodrigo no longer tells her own stories, but rather those of friends from her past with whom she lost contact. With wise-beyond-her-years lines like, “I hope you know how proud I am you were created/With the courage to unlearn all of their hatred” and “Nothing’s forever, nothing’s as good as it seems,” she leaves listeners with the sense that in spite of its struggles, young adulthood is less “brutal” than it may appear.

sour, like its lead single, has broken record upon record. It had the largest opening week for an album by a female artist in Spotify history and is the first debut album with three songs in Billboard’s Hot 100 Top 10. sour also broke the record for most songs on Billboard’s Streaming Songs chart simultaneously with eight tracks.

Since the release of the album, Rodrigo has released music videos for “brutal,” “traitor,” “good 4 u,” and “deja vu,” as well as a performance special, SOUR Prom, in addition to the “driver’s license” music video that premiered before the album’s release. Each video immediately shot to the top of YouTube’s “trending charts” and remained there for quite some time.

If the records Rodrigo has broken and the popularity of her music videos is not enough evidence that the newcomer is something special, one only need look to the nominations and awards she has received.

Last September, she took home the MTV Video Music Awards for Song of the Year, Best New Artist, and Push Performance. She received the iHeartRadio Music Social Star Award and the American Music Award for New Artist of the Year, as well. Perhaps most notable, however, is the fact that the 18-year-old has been nominated for seven Grammy Awards: Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Pop Solo Performance for “driver’s license,” Best New Artist, Best Music Video for “good 4 u,” Album of the Year, and Best Pop Vocal Album.

In the year since “driver’s license” first hit the airwaves, Rodrigo and sour have clearly become a cultural phenomenon. The relatability and wisdom of her music, especially given her youth, suggests that she will enjoy a long and successful career in the years to come.

Long Live the Legacy of Taylor Swift

by The Cowl Editor on December 11, 2021

Arts & Entertainment

Long Live the Legacy of Taylor Swift

How the Artist’s Career has Already Blazed Trails for New Stars

Julia McCoy ’22

How does society judge an artist’s influence? Success is often judged not only by their accolades, but also by their ability to influence future generations of artists. That is exactly what Taylor Swift has been able to do throughout her career. Even more impressive: she’s only 31 years old (32 later this month).

Since her debut album, Taylor Swift, hit the radio in Oct. 2006, Swift has accumulated eleven Grammy awards and become the most decorated artist in American Music Awards history. Swift has released nine studio albums and is beginning to re-record those albums that she does not yet have ownership of, with two of them already released this year.

Something that the well-decorated artist has been aware of, however, is the possible ephemerality of her career and fame. On her re-recorded album, Red (Taylor’s Version), Swift released a song “from the Vault” featuring Phoebe Bridgers titled “Nothing New.” Originally written in 2012, it speaks to Swift’s fears of losing her “radiance” as she gets older. Listeners were quick to notice the way that these lines resonate with Swift’s career today. Swift sings that new artists will use her as inspiration: “She’ll know the way and then she’ll say she got the map from me./I’ll say I’m happy for her/ Then I’ll cry myself to sleep.” At 22, Swift clearly feared what the future might hold for her. A decade later, those stars that “got the map” from Swift are luckily also blessed with her devoted support.

Swift’s success on the stage is only complemented by the impact that she has had on younger artists and a newer generation of music. In 2021, artists like Olivia Rodrigo, Conan Gray, and Maisie Peters are among the most prominent “Swifties” gaining their own success in the music industry.

Rodrigo’s Sour is steeped in Swift’s influence. Her song, “1 step forward, 3 steps back,” features an interpolation of Swift’s “New Year’s Day” from reputation. After Rodrigo’s hit “driver’s license” broke records, Swift reached out as a friend and mentor to for the young artist. When sharing the iTunes charts together earlier this year, Swift commented on Rodrigo’s post, saying, “I say that’s my baby and I’m really proud,” a quote inspired by Swift’s own mother at the beginning of her career. Rodrigo now sports a ring gifted by Swift that is similar to the style that the elder singer wore while recording Red.

When Swift lauded Gray’s song “Wish You Were Sober” on her Instagram Story, Gray responded, “I honestly feel like you raised me both as a writer and a human and I cannot express in words how much this means to me.” Rodrigo and Gray were each given an exclusive first listen to Fearless (Taylor’s Version) and were tasked with advertising the first re-recorded album on TikTok. They often identify themselves as Swift’s children, calling her “mom” because of her influence on their careers.

Lastly, Peters is also a fan and took inspiration from Swift’s writing style this year. On July 24, 2020—the day that Swift’s folklore album was released—Peters found inspiration in Swift’s storytelling in “betty” to write her own story-like song, “Outdoor Pool.” She was able to understand through Swift that she could craft experiences based on different perspectives.

Swift’s “Nothing New” opened her audience’s eyes to how she feels about her career and legacy. As she seamlessly moves through different creative periods, Swift’s words and work blaze a trail for generations to follow. And they’ve already started.