The Rise of Olivia Rodrigo

I remember logging onto Spotify in December, anxiously waiting for my top artists of the year to come in. The graphic went one by one, revealing Olivia Rodrigo to be my second most listened to artist of the past year. 

Surprisingly, she didn’t have many songs out at that point. But when I think back to the moment I first heard “All I Want,” her debut single that came out last January, it starts to make sense. 

From Pierpont to Bartlett Hall, on the treadmill or while pretending to study, that song was always playing. While it was kind of ironic that when I was in a relationship at the time, I was using the lyric “all I want is love that lasts,” to reach my mile time goal. It just further proves Olivia Rodrigo’s power. 

But I am not writing this piece to brag about how I was an early fan of Olivia. That isn’t the point. Instead, I am here to remind everyone of the success “drivers license” has already had, and why the drama needs to be kept out of it. 

The first public version of “drivers license” was released on Olivia’s instagram in July. An acoustic version with just a simple video of her at the piano was the first time her fans ever heard some of the lyrics. After speculation about the connection between her car references and recent photos of co-star Joshua Bassett and Sabrina Carpenter together, fans assumed this was a Bassett-caused break up ballad. 

When Olivia announced that her next single would be released in January, it was no surprise that “drivers license” was it. From the first lyric people heard, it was obvious this song was special and more than anything, authentic. 

When the clock hit midnight on Jan. 8, Olivia Rodrigo’s life was forever changed. And after her debut single went certified gold, it was hard to think something else could top that. But it did. 

In just two weeks, “drivers license” went platinum. Now, it’s already earned U.S. gold certification. 

On Jan. 11 Spotify announced that “drivers license” had set the Spotify record for most streams in a day for a non-holiday song. That number is only going up.  

It was just announced on Twitter that it is the first debut single by any female artist in history to spend its first five weeks as the number one song on the Billboard Hot 100. On Feb. 17, Time revealed their second annual Time100 Next List, with Olivia Rodrigo making the list this year. 

She’s not even 18 years old yet, and she has already performed on Jimmy Fallon and other talk shows. Taylor Swift and Gwen Stefani, two of her biggest songwriting idols, praised her work. Articles from W Magazine and The New York Times have highlighted her compelling songwriting abilities and bravery. 

I understand that the meaning behind songs holds so much significance, I really do. I understand that people love to relate to lyrics by learning their true history. But the way in which Olivia is able to encapsulate every feeling of heartbreak in such a specific but universal way is incredible. That should not be overlooked by one lyric referring to the hair color of a specific girl. 

The drama takes away from the joy that Olivia deserves to receive. She made a choice to write a raw, heartbreak ballad and while it’s our choice to react how we want, to take away from her talent by sending meaningless hateful comments towards others does no good. 

Let’s cry in our cars to this song, or scream it or dance, but let’s not spread hate to those we think are involved. 

Olivia Rodrigo is shattering records before our eyes and we are lucky enough to witness it. Let’s take the time to appreciate this incredible young female artist for who she is and what she gives to us. 

The best has yet to come.

• driver's license
• feminism
• music