GUTS: Olivia Rodrigo
“I’m so obsessed” Rodrigo belts in a deluxe track, putting into words what we’re all thinking. ‘GUTS’ by international popstar Olivia Rodrigo-released September Eighth of 2023-Cuts deep into the trials and tribulations of being a teenager in the modern era. This album follows up the smash hit that her freshman album ‘SOUR’ was, taking a more rock influence twist on the tracklist.
Olivia began teasing her next album in early 2023, including track names such as ‘Bad Idea Right’ and ‘The Grudge’ in various pieces of social media before any official announcements came to light. Once the track ‘Vampire’ dropped as a single, the entire world stopped to listen. Everyone and their parents couldn’t escape the absolute dominance Vampire had over car radios and angsty teenager’s playlists, immediately worming its way into the heads of millions. As of today, the track stands at a total of 1.2 Billion streams on Spotify. It was a success so great that I don’t think even Olivia Rodrigo herself could’ve predicted the publicity it generated for her.
By now, Olivia’s monthly listener count had skyrocketed just in time for a new era, but the teasing hadn’t stopped. In yet another post, the singer dropped a purple-hued flyer detailing a house party in her iconic ‘Somewhere in the Suburbs’ address line used in the SOUR era. And thus, single number two ‘Bad Idea Right’ released on the eleventh of August, 2023. Although not as popular as Vampire, the track still caught the attention of millions yet again and landed on radio stations.
The publicity for the newly announced GUTS had already been built, and it was time for the main act to debut. Olivia Rodrigo would leave fans in the dark for one month as the timer ran thin for the official release of her sophomore album, all the way until it hit the Eighth of September. On this day, the album dropped on all platforms as the clock struck midnight, and millions of fans made an effort to stay up for the streams. From twelve to one, it was time to immerse yourself in the music. Continue on as I share my thoughts on what I believe to be the best track from the album.
GUTS (spilled)…
is the official name for the deluxe version of GUTS, debuting five additional tracks onto the already powerhouse of an album. In the time leading up to the announcement, fans speculated heavily of Its existence. This was due to the fact that additional tracks were discovered at the end of different colored vinyls when played all the way through.
Most of these tracks had already been leaked in the past as fans crave her unreleased music, but that most certainly did not change the impact this had on her popularity. Livies–the fandom name for Olivia Rodrigo–marveled at hearing these songs as they would sound in the studio in juxtaposition to the low quality audio files ripped from Soundcloud.
On March 19th, 2024, Olivia Rodrigo held a concert in Chicago, IL, containing the same marketing and promotion as any other. As the night neared conclusion, she performed her last song on the tracklist ‘Get Him Back!’ containing a segment where her and her dancers throw hand-written notes into the audience for fans to collect and cherish for eternity.
“So I write him all these letters and I throw them in the trash” she sings, stopping momentarily. This time however, Rodrigo and her dancers unfolded letters containing what nobody could have ever expected. “GUTS (spilled) out Friday” Olivia’s paper displayed, accompanied by the five additional tracks “Obsessed,” “Girl I’ve Always Been,” “Scared of my Guitar,” “Stranger,” and “So American.”
Track Sixteen: Stranger
Stranger had me instantaneously hooked the moment I listened to it on release night, entrancing with its folksy acoustics kicking off the track. The lyrics “I had the strangest feeling of this weight off of my chest, I hadn’t felt that hopeful since the day that you left” told me everything I already needed to know.
Rodrigo sings from the heart about recovering from an ex-relationship, eventually seeing her past lover as a “stranger I know everything about.” Its lyrics are so raw and gut wrenching, detailing the aftermath of the rise and fall of relationships that weren’t going to work out in the first place.
Even if you can’t relate to the lyrics personally in that way, Olivia illustrates it in such a manner that you know exactly what she’s feeling and can’t help but applaud the emotional complexity of the track. She takes her inspiration from her own past relationships, channeling her thoughts and feelings into her pen that has yet to run dry.
Olivia’s constant repetition of the previously mentioned ‘stranger’ line reinforces its meaning deeper, starting off as an inherently more negative concept, and morphing into blissful vocals that mark the start of a new era in her life. A one of recovery and redemption.
