Olivia Rodrigo

Olivia Rodrigo tells Apple Music about her earliest musical inspirations

Zane Lowe: Can you really trace your music back to those moments, those key childhood moments when you listened to music and were able to absorb it for the first time, and it really struck you deep down?

Olivia Rodrigo: Yeah. Oh my God. I mean, luckily even today I still listen to albums for the first time and go: "What the hell? Oh my God, how have I never heard this before?". I feel like that love, that childlike wonder and that appetite for music haven't faded, thankfully, thank goodness. But yeah, I mean, when you're like 13 years old and you discover "Tapestry" by Carole King for the first time, you just go: "Oh my God", and if your life was in black and white before, now it's in color; it's such a beautiful, magical experience. And I think my parents definitely played a huge part in that for me. My parents aren't very artistic or creative, they're the most wonderful people in the world and they love music like crazy. And I still go to concerts with them today; like yesterday, actually no, not yesterday, maybe about three days ago, I saw the Cure with my dad and we were holding each other singing "Pictures Of You", and I was standing there thinking: "What a beautiful thing", and we just cried. It's really a family thing. We're very, very emotional when it comes to music, it's kind of our trademark, honestly.

Olivia Rodrigo tells Apple Music how her lonely childhood shaped her love of music

Now that I’m 23, I can look back at my childhood with a bit more perspective. And yes, I spent a lot of my childhood alone. I was homeschooled, I’m an only child, and I was a child actor, which is a very lonely way to grow up. And sometimes I think about it and go, “Oh, that’s kind of sad,” but on the other hand I think that’s exactly why I love music so much: because in those quiet, lonely moments growing up, music was simply my refuge. And I think that’s not a unique experience, not just mine. Obviously I think a ton of kids feel that way, feel misunderstood.

Olivia Rodrigo tells Apple Music about working with her longtime producer and collaborator Dan Nigro

Zane Lowe: You’ve been working with the same producer since the beginning, with Dan, right? So you like that environment of trust. You like having the space to open up and not, like you were saying… And I know a lot of artists who say, “I just want to experience everything and bring everyone in.” That’s not you, right? It’s not in your nature.

Olivia Rodrigo: Yeah, I know. I love working with Dan, and obviously we made this record together. And I think there’s something just invaluable about having someone whose taste you trust blindly, and also someone who’s watched you go through so many phases of your life and knows how to bring out the best in your work.

Zane Lowe: Which comes from trust.

Olivia Rodrigo: Yeah, it comes from trust and it comes from love. I think we love each other to death, at this point we’re basically family. And so I think there’s a specific chemistry that’s kind of hard to recreate with someone I might have met six months ago. He’s brilliant, I feel incredibly lucky to get to work with him.

Olivia Rodrigo tells Apple Music about her song “maggots for brains”

I think, sound-wise, a song like “maggots for brains” was really eye-opening and gave us a direction. I knew I didn’t want to go toward that kind of power-chord rock and roll, which I think is what a lot of people were expecting, but I wanted it to be softer and more subtle, and I was pulling a lot of reference points from new wave bands and stuff like that, which were rock in a way, but not punk in the way you might think. But yeah, I remember when we made that song and the feeling of having made a genuine discovery; I love that track for how it sounds and it makes me feel something really intense.

Olivia Rodrigo tells Apple Music about her song “honeybee”

Olivia Rodrigo: I think “honeybee” is the oldest song on the record. “honeybee” or maybe “my way”, but I remember when I wrote “honeybee” and I was so excited, because for me that was the real challenge lyrically and as a songwriter: how do I write a love song that feels important to me? You know what I mean? I feel like I’ve written love songs in the past, but they feel a bit childish, which is totally fine, I love childish love songs. They’re so cool. But I wanted to write a song that captured this more mature, multi-layered love I was experiencing in my life. And it was really tough to pull off. I think it’s incredibly hard to do. I think so many artists have been doing it for so many years and it’s hard to find a new angle on it, obviously.

Zane Lowe: Your angle is you, right? The way that relationship and that feeling you have are unique to you.

Olivia Rodrigo: Totally.

Zane Lowe: So what is it that you love so much about this song, that makes you feel like it’s your love story and no one else’s?

Olivia Rodrigo: Oh, wow. It’s beautiful. I think there’s a fragility in that song that I really love. I think about the line: “I hope I never see what your face looks like going. A face, I swear I could spend my whole life knowing“. I remember writing that and thinking, “Oh yeah, that’s exactly what it feels like.” You know what I mean? Because being with someone you’re that attached to and adore in that way is the most terrifying thing in the world. And I think I was at a point in my life where I was like, “Oh, I have all these things and now I have something to lose,” which is scary. It’s a lot scarier than saying, “Oh my God, I lost something and I wish I had it back.” It’s more like, “No, I actually have it right now. I hope it doesn’t disappear.” And there’s something that automatically… it tugs at your heartstrings, thinking about love in terms of that gut, fearful reaction.

Olivia Rodrigo tells Apple Music which line, in her view, sums up the whole album

If there's one line I feel could sum up the whole album, I think it would be "here's to hoping". That's what I feel listening back to it now. When you're in the middle of it, you really can't see the forest for the trees, but today, listening to it start to finish, I feel like I can see it a bit more for what it is. I feel like so much of the record is about hope. Do you know what I mean? Hope at the start is like: "Yeah, I've always wanted this. This is how I want it to be." Or: "Oh, I hope this love makes me feel better about myself." And blah blah blah. And then at the end there's the decline of hope, or the disappointment. But I think there's so much hope in falling in love. I think that's the primary feeling.

Olivia Rodrigo tells Apple Music what she sees as the heart of the whole album, and of her track "the cure"

I think I'd been trying to write that song for such a long time. And I was talking about it with a friend of mine. I think the heart of the whole album is really that conversation I had with one of my friends. I told them: "I want to write this record about love. It should be about love. I have all these love songs I adore, and I'm in this relationship that's 'happy'. Why do I feel so depressed? Why can't I feel what in my head I think I should be feeling?" And we had this conversation, and after that chat I went home and wrote "the cure". And I think for me songwriting works best when you're a little scared to write it. And I think having written that piece, I learned so much about myself, which doesn't always happen with every song. And I don't think I could ever have written that song on "GUTS" or on "SOUR". I think I had to build up a good deal of life experience and really look deep inside in a way that seventeen-year-old me couldn't have done. I think on "SOUR", or maybe a bit on "GUTS" too, and just from being a teenager, you see love in black and white. You say: "This person hurt me and I hate them." Or: "I love this person. They're the best person who's ever existed." And I think this record for me, and also this period of my life, represents me moving a little more into the gray area.

Olivia Rodrigo tells Apple Music about her feelings on Yacht Rock

Olivia Rodrigo: It's a funny story. The bit about the "yacht rock" musical taste was Dan's contribution. He said to me: "It has to be something you don't actually really like. It has to be embarrassing and funny."

Zane Lowe: What a letdown.

Olivia Rodrigo: He went with yacht rock.

Zane Lowe: That's the first letdown of this conversation, the fact that yacht rock is the first not-true, not-authentic line on this record.

Olivia Rodrigo: Yeah. Yacht rock was a bit fake. I wanted it to be...

Zane Lowe: I'm going to have to cut a big chunk of this interview. I knew this was going to turn into a massive deep dive on yacht rock.

Olivia Rodrigo: I know. Sorry to all the yacht rock lovers out there.

Zane Lowe: There's quite a difference between Christopher Cross and Don Henley, which I can't get into right now. I can't believe you don't like yacht rock. Girl, what's not to like?

Olivia Rodrigo: I know. Maybe if I spent more time on a boat, I'd like it.

Zane Lowe: That's terrible!

Olivia Rodrigo: Am I digging my own grave here?

Zane Lowe: Yeah. Man, there are so many interesting chord changes. What did you like about that brainy chord change?

Olivia Rodrigo: You have to make me a playlist and give it to me. Maybe I'm not up to date on all the coolest yacht rock.

Zane Lowe: I'll send it to you right now.

Olivia Rodrigo: Send it to me.

Zane Lowe: I'll send it to you. I'll send you my yacht rock playlist…

Olivia Rodrigo: What actually, technically, are yacht rock songs? What's the most famous yacht rock track?

Zane Lowe: Oh, “Sailing” by Christopher Cross is literally a yacht rock song. “What A Fool Believes” by the Doobie Brothers. Listen, the playlist is… it's epic. It's incredible. It's called “Soft”.

Olivia Rodrigo: Okay, perfect.

Zane Lowe: It is.

Olivia Rodrigo: It's going to be my playlist for the 4th of July.

Olivia Rodrigo tells Apple Music about writing “begged” and “stupid song”

Olivia Rodrigo: I love that song so much [“begged”]. It was one of those songs… There are certain tracks you struggle over, going back to them again and again, second-guessing and tweaking the lyrics. But that song came to me as a single, complete thought, and I wrote it start to finish in one go. Actually, I was in a hotel room in London with my best friend. She was asleep, but I had such bad jet lag that I woke up at 4 in the morning and wrote the song. So I love picturing… every time I sing it, I imagine what it felt like in that hotel, trying to sing in a whisper because I didn't want to wake her up.

Zane Lowe: There's something truly magical about writing songs when the rest of the world is asleep too.

Olivia Rodrigo: Totally. Same thing with “stupid song”. Sorry, I'm jumping all over the place, but I had so much fun writing that track. I was super jet-lagged again. This jet lag thing is really good for the songwriting process.

Zane Lowe: Yeah, because your subconscious kicks in and basically… the cognitive effort you put into second-guessing yourself just disappears.

Olivia Rodrigo: Yes, yes. No filters, no judgment towards yourself. I was flying back from London to New York and I woke up at 4 in the morning and couldn't fall back asleep. So I walked around New York and there was nobody around. And I, at that time, was having a bit of a hard time living in New York. I was getting bothered a lot, I was super anxious. Every time I left the house I felt like: "Oh my God, what's happening?". And that was kind of the first time I was able to walk around New York completely without anxiety, and I felt so happy and free of weight. So then I went home and wrote this song. But yeah, something about feeling alone in the world while everyone else is asleep is just such a beautiful ground to plant the seeds of songwriting in, I think. But what was I talking about? Oh, "begged". Right. So I wrote that song, played it for Dan and we knocked out a demo. And Dan is very particular about vocal production, it's one of his strengths. And obviously you can hear it on Chappell's record too. It's like he's able to pull such incredible, emotional vocal performances out of singers. And he'll have you do it over and over again. He'll tell you what I just said, he'll go: "Do it like this, do it like this". And he's always right.

Olivia Rodrigo tells Apple Music about her inspiration for the album title

I love this title so much, but even in the past, before life ran its course and everything started to crumble, I always thought my favorite love songs were the ones that were a bit sad, a bit broken, a bit heartbreaking. Like, "Lovesong" by the Cure is the saddest song ever and it's just so... Or one of my favorite love songs, which maybe isn't actually a love song, is "First Day of My Life" by Bright Eyes. I adore it. And it's almost a breakup song, maybe similar to the Waxahatchee song. Maybe that's why you like it so much. I love that title because it also reflected all my favorite love songs. Songs that were about romance and positivity, but that were also a bit broken. So I think that, of course, when life took its own turn and things started falling apart a bit in my personal life, that title became the emblem of what I wanted the album to be. You know what I mean? And then suddenly it became: "Oh yeah, that's why I called it that. It's because life has two sides. There are two sides to the coin of love".

Olivia Rodrigo tells Apple Music about being thrust into success at a young age

It was like a baptism by fire. It was crazy, truly absurd. Yeah. Looking back, I feel so much compassion for myself, and I think it was a really crazy thing to rain down on an 18-year-old girl. You know what I mean? And I'm really lucky to have been surrounded by so many wonderful people who I think sheltered and protected me a bit in a lot of ways. And I also love that record so much, I think listening back to it today makes you feel how special it is to have a time capsule of your first heartbreak. How great is that? I'll be able to let my kids hear how I felt at 17, going through my first real breakup with my first real boyfriend. It was pretty special and obviously it gave me so many opportunities and experiences. And I think it's also a bit... I think sometimes people say: "Oh gosh, are you worried that SOUR was so big, and about having to try to make a follow-up?" and blah blah blah. And I say: "I think that's every artist's dream, to make a record that's as big as your first record and then these things...". Now I don't have to do anything I don't want to do, which is really cool. I can just make music because I love making music. I remember when it came out, older people would come up to me and say: "Oh my God, it took me back to my first heartbreak", and blah blah blah. And now I can have that experience myself, which is funny. Now I can listen to that song and say: "I remember when...". You know what I mean?

Olivia Rodrigo tells Apple Music about her song "cigarette smoke"

I think it was one of the last songs we wrote for the record. There was like a week left before the absolute deadline we had to turn everything in for the vinyl. We were in the studio working on something else and Dan started playing those chords, and I went: "Oh God". I immediately had a visceral, full-body reaction while he was playing those chords, which isn't a very common feeling. And so I had a poem on my phone that went something like: "I thought we played the perfect couple, but you didn't like the part", or something like that. So I gave it to him and we worked off that little lyric idea. But I remember being in the studio writing it and feeling a really special sensation, feeling like it was capturing something. And there's really no way to describe it in words. You know what it is. It's like there's this strange electricity in the room between you and the other person you're writing with, or between you and the divine or whatever you want to call it... And I felt it and it was really exciting. But yeah, it's a pretty dark way to end the album, but in a way I like how the first song is like the happiest track ever and the last song is like the darkest track ever.

Olivia Rodrigo tells Apple Music about her experience headlining Glastonbury

Zane Lowe: Did you look out past the curtain before going on stage at Glastonbury?

Olivia Rodrigo: Yes.

Zane Lowe: F***.

Olivia Rodrigo: Honestly. Oh God, Glastonbury was the best.

Zane Lowe: It's either one thing or the other. Everyone I've talked to told me it's either one thing or the other.

Olivia Rodrigo: But my friends were up there and they were really nervous because five minutes before I went on stage, the field wasn't even a quarter full, because everyone was coming from another event. And they were all like: "Oh my God, nobody's come to see Olivia's set at Glastonbury". They were all losing their minds.

Zane Lowe: I didn't know that.

Olivia Rodrigo: Because people arrive, they trickle in little by little from other places.

Zane Lowe: Yeah, I know, I get it, but it's still terrifying.

Olivia Rodrigo: I know, I know. Honestly, oh God, it was such a beautiful experience. It was one of the best experiences of my life, career-wise.

Zane Lowe: The one thing you don't want is the director going: "Guys, guys, guys, just close-ups and medium shots."

Olivia Rodrigo: I know, I know.

Zane Lowe: "Medium shots and close-ups. No wide shots."

Olivia Rodrigo: Cancel the drone shot. Cancel the drone shot.

Zane Lowe: "We won't be needing the drone."

Olivia Rodrigo: Of course people showed up anyway, which was amazing.

Zane Lowe: It was huge.

Olivia Rodrigo: On a personal level too, it was a huge dream of mine to have done it, and to have done it surrounded by so many people I love, and with Robert [Smith], who I love, it was just… Yeah, I adore him.

Zane Lowe: F***, having that ace up your sleeve as you walk out on stage, knowing that only you know about it.

Olivia Rodrigo: Yeah, exactly.

Zane Lowe: It's cool no matter what…

Olivia Rodrigo: I was like: "I could get every single verse wrong, but if I bring Robert out on stage it'll be amazing."

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28/06/2026