David Byrne hosts the Olivia Rodrigo and Chappell Roan quiz in the "Expectations" video – Watch the clip

David Byrne playing a game show host, complete with contestants and set design straight out of an '80s quiz show: it's one of the ingredients in the video for "Expectations," the Olivia Rodrigo track now revived in a remix with Chappell Roan. The first duet between the two pop stars arrives with a clip that casts the former Talking Heads frontman as Johnny Johnson, host of the "Big Expectations Show."
Directed by Bardia Zeinali, the video recreates the aesthetic of American television from that era, mixing references to "Family Feud" and "Hollywood Squares," formats also known in Italy through local adaptations like "Tuttinfamiglia" and "Il gioco dei 9." Alongside the two leads, the clip features Dan Nigro, Rodrigo's co-writer and producer, as well as the Venus Twins, Eli Wirija, Aquaria, Leo Reilly, Gina Seriel, Jack Miller, Daniel Stanfield and Noah Stanfield. Watch the video below.

The song actually started with a suggestion from Nigro: push Rodrigo to try her hand at a self-affirmation anthem, built around a declaration of her own worth. A different approach from the intimate, narrative-driven songwriting she's known for. "Dan challenged me to write a mantra song, like the ones in pop and rap that say things like 'I'm that bitch,'" Rodrigo told Hits1. "That was an interesting challenge as a writer, because I'm used to sitting down at the piano and writing: 'this is what I feel deep in my heart, and da, da, da, da, da, this is what happened.' It was kind of like working out a creative muscle. I didn't like the song at first, I wanted to write a different one, then I came back to it. It's kind of a manifestation tool."
The lyrics describe getting over an infatuation, the moment you stop idealizing someone and start seeing their limits instead. In the remix, Roan brings in a queer perspective, addressing her own thoughts on relationships, and on refusing to settle, to a girl.

For Byrne, the appearance in the video marks a new chapter in his relationship with Rodrigo. The two had already shared the stage at Governors Ball to perform Talking Heads' "Burning Down The House." The musician had also recorded his own version of "Drivers License," the single that launched Rodrigo's career, releasing it to mark the song's fifth anniversary. In that case too, Byrne had tweaked the lyrics to suit his own take: the blonde girl of the original became a blonde boy, "much younger than me." The vinyl edition of the cover also included a live recording of "Burning Down The House" performed together with Rodrigo.
The tribute was meant to kick off a series of reinterpretations tied to the fifth anniversary of "Sour," the pop star's debut album. Rodrigo had announced "versions reimagined by some of my favorite artists of all time," but so far no further releases have followed that first one.

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