Olivia Rodrigo is one of my favorite artists. I am on the waiting list for concert tickets, so I am excited about her new album. Sour, her debut album, is fantastic, but I over-listened to the songs when it first came out, so I am cautious about how often I listen to the album. I think Olivia Rodrigo is the only singer out at the moment who perfectly embodies the feeling of being a teenager. GUTS captures the feeling of being a teen better than Sour, in my opinion. I love the album as a whole and she leaned into the feeling of the songs off of Sour that I love the most. In total, I give this album an 8/10.

“all-american *****”

• 8/10
• This is the opening track on Rodrigo’s new album. The song’s core is about being the perfect American or the perfect woman. The track starts slowly with a soft guitar like a ballad. But a third of the way into the song, heavy guitar and drums break in during the chorus then almost immediately break back to the soft melody again for the verse as if the two parts of the song are fighting for control, which adds to the song’s message about being perfect. In the bridge, Rodrigo sings, “I don’t get angry when I’m pissed/ I’m the eternal optimist/ I scream inside to deal with it,” which is expected for most people, especially women. She literally screams in frustration during the song, which I don’t love, but it gets her point across. This song is full of anger toward the ideals Rodrigo and most women have to play into so they won’t be judged. I loved this song; it is one of my favorites on the album. It’s outraged yet upbeat and it’s been stuck in my head since the album was released.

“bad idea right?”

• 10/10
• This was the second single from the album. “bad idea right?” and “vampire” are the only two in the album with their own cover. The single’s cover has Rodrigo staring at herself in a mirror with the title written on it in lipstick, most likely contemplating the bad idea she already did. 
• This is a fun and lighthearted song about returning to her ex. She knows from the song’s start that she can’t stop herself from returning to her ex yet it seems like a problem for tomorrow. The chorus tells us that the logical part of her brain shut off in favor of the possibility she could give back to her ex. This is my favorite song on the album. 

“vampire”

• 8/10
• This was the first single she released from Guts. “vampire” by Rodrigo launched at No. 1 on the Billboard Global 100, drawing in over 100 million global streams. The chart numbers are significantly less than her first single, “drivers license,” on her debut album, but nonetheless impressive. It is about an unknown ex who drained her of all her energy, love, and hope, which earned him the name Vampire. The chorus focuses on her regret in the relationship and herself in not seeing his dishonesty earlier. The second verse focuses on the fact that she was warned about his wickedness but was in too deep to see the truth. She also throws in the fact that he was older than her, probably uncomfortably so. The bridge continues talking about his lack of sympathy and how he hurt her. I’ve heard this song A LOT, so at the moment, I skip it so I don’t completely wear it out. Still, I think it’s a delightful song full of heartbreak. I think many people can relate to being sucked too far into a relationship or feeling that they can “fix” someone. 

“lacy”

• 6/10
• “lacy” is another ballad to a person named Lacy, but Rodrigo’s relationship with them is unknown. I think it is about an acquaintance or someone she might run in the same circles with that she resents for being so perfect. She spends half the song giving them odd compliments, and it paints a picture of friendship or even love. Soon after, the descriptions turn to how much Rodrigo hates them. But in one of the last lines in the song, Rodrigo attests that she both hates and worships them for their carefree perfection. It’s very eerie, but I think it’s pretty relatable. Most people have someone in their lives who seems like they don’t even try but are still succeeding while they might find it hard. And in cases like that, jealousy is common, so I relate. 

“ballad of a homeschooled girl”

• 10/10
• This song picks back up the pace of the album. Rodrigo plays into the stereotype of homeschooled students being socially awkward and unaware. The first verse is Rodrigo arriving at a party and feeling out of place. She is self-conscious about her clothes, body, and what she says. The chorus sums this up and talks about how “every time [she] steps outside/ it’s social suicide.” The second verse is about her trying and failing to flirt or even talk to a guy. The whole song sounds stressed, which is hilarious because of the subject matter. I love this song; it embodies me in any social situation, and I feel like most people could relate to it in some way, shape, or form. Insecurities are fairly common, and they are amplified in a social setting like the party she was talking about so unless you are completely immune to insecurities (which go you!) you can probably relate. 

“making the bed”

• 6/10
• Rodrigo talks about how bad decisions have been making her life sucky and there’s no one else to blame but her. She discusses imposter syndrome, pushing away the people who care about you most in favor of people who don’t and unfulfilling relationships. Though the song isn’t the slowest on the album or involves dealing with heartbreak, I think it’s the saddest of the album and personally too sad for me. The fact that we are our biggest enemies is a heartbreaking reality for most people. Rodrigo did an interview stating that this was the hardest for her to write because of the subject matter. 

“logical”

• 9/10
• This song is about an ex who made Rodrigo believe an illogical truth, which is where the song gets its title. The illogical truths that she sings about are something that most people would deem commonplace in a relationship like thinking they love you and are not cheating on you. So it doesn’t seem foolish that she would believe the words he told her (which turned out to be lies) but just sad that she couldn’t believe them. I like this song; it’s the perfect amount of sad for me. It’s the perfect median of “I can just sing this whenever” and “if I were going through a breakup, this would really hit.” 

“get him back!”

• 10/10 
• This song is hilarious to me. This is about a toxic relationship that was fun while it lasted. He treated her really badly, but the good was really good like flying her to France. She wants him for the good but hates him for the bad so she wants to “get him back” to “make him jealous and make him mad.” She wants to take revenge on him for all the bad and she is very straightforward with her plans. I love this song; I find the imagery and situations she sets up really funny and easy to sing along to.

“love is embarrassing”

• 8/10 
• This song is so true. Love is embarrassing. Her lyrics about losing all sense when you have a crush or fall in love with someone are relatable. This song encapsulated the feeling of a teenage crush and the embarrassment after the crush faded. 

“the grudge”

• 6/10
• This song is similar to “vampire” mixed with “get him back!” It’s another toxic relationship that Rodrigo is trying to heal from their relationship and let go of her grudge against him. I think it sounds a little repetitive because “vampire” and “get him back!” are before this on the album but it’s still good. I would probably skip it if I were just listening to the album through but depending on my mood it would be a fun song to sing along with. 

“pretty isn’t pretty”

• 6/10
• Insecurity and the pressure of perfection are the focus of this song, especially when it comes to wearing makeup and being a specific size. I think this could ring true with many teenagers because of the outside pressure from peers, parents and social media but I would probably skip on a listen of the album because the subject matter is too deep for a casual listen. 

“teenage dream”

• 5/10
• Rodrigo just turned 20 this year, and this song takes place on her birthday and the end of her teen years. It adds to the feeling of confusion after leaving childhood. Personally, this song does nothing when it comes to emotions and I wouldn’t necessarily jam out to it in my free time, so it’s a skip for me.