Sour Crowns Olivia Rodrigo As The Queen Of Teenage Heartache

Early this year, Olivia Rodrigo was in the celebrity minor leagues as the star of the Disney+ show High School Musical: The Musical: The Series. 

On Jan. 12, she smashed streaming records and was all over TikTok with her debut single, Drivers License. 

The song immediately rose to no. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and broke Spotify’s record twice for the most daily streams ever for a non-holiday song.

Four months later, Rodrigo has given us a collection of breakup tunes filled with melancholy and mischief in her debut album Sour. It was released on May 21. 

The eleven-track pop album explores punk rock influences and draws inspiration from artists like Taylor Swift, Lorde and Paramore.

Although you can hear the inspiration through her samples and co-writes, Rodrigo’s clever lyrics, angsty melodies and killer vocals make a unique sound that is completely her own.

Some speculate the title Sour is actually an acronym for “Stages Of Unofficial Relationships,” alluding to her recent break up with High School Musical: The Musical: The Series co-star Joshua Bassett.

The album opens with Brutal. In the track, Rodrigo sings about the misleading promise of youth, including all the betrayals, disappointments and challenges in our “golden years.” The title hook, “it’s brutal out here,” references both the crude music industry and the difficult world that adolescence can be. 

Traitor reflects on what went wrong in a past relationship, the feeling of being betrayed and missing what she had. 

1 step forward, 3 steps back is about the ups and downs of life and the challenge of navigating relationships with an inconsistent partner. The song contains a slight interpolation of Taylor Swift’s 2017 track New Year’s Day and bears some similarities from another song by Swift, Dear John (2010).

Good 4 u is the epitome of rage. The song’s hook is laced with sarcasm, as she sharply addresses her former partner for moving on so quickly from their relationship. 

In the music video, Rodrigo plays a high school cheerleader who is distraught over her former partner. She purchases a container of gasoline from a convenience store and appears to destroy her ex’s bedroom, setting it ablaze and causing it to flood. In the final shot, Olivia submerges herself into a lake with glowing red eyes—a subtle homage to the 2009 cult classic Jennifer’s Body in which Jennifer stares into the camera with bloodshot eyes while swimming in a lake.

Jealousy, Jealousy is about the unrealistic standards society has set for young people. Rodrigo sings about her personal experience and how she constantly tries to fight the feeling of comparing herself to other girls and the jealousy that comes with it.

The album closes off with Hope ur ok. The track takes a step back from relationship drama to recount memories of an old friend living in an abusive household as they are not accepted by their parents for being part of the LGBTQ+ community. 

Sour’s main theme is teenage heartbreak and trying to navigate the world as you grow up. It is filled with lyrical gems. 

With the success Sour has gained, Rodrigo has carved a clear path toward long-term success.