Olivia Rodrigo: Who is the New Music Revelation Artist?

Christina Aguilera, Adele, Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish… are just some of the singers who won a Grammy in the category of Best New Artist, a recognition that Olivia Rodrigo has also achieved in 2022 and that projects her as the next sensation in the music industry. With a promising future ahead of her, this songwriter and actress is here to stay and is already taking the right steps to become the voice that represents a new generation.

Olivia Isabel Rodrigo was born in California on February 20, 2003 and is the only daughter of Sophia and Ronald Rodrigo. From an early age she began to feel attraction for everything related to music, so her parents enrolled her in singing and piano classes, thus developing in a short time an innate talent for these activities. Already at the age of 12, Olivia was noted with the guitar and all thanks to the influence of her parents who listened to alternative rock. Little by little she would become interested in other genres, such as country, to start her stage as a composer.

However, the beginning of her young career was not exactly with music. It was small plays and commercials that drew Disney's eyes for Olivia's fluency and acting ability. It is then that her stage as an actress begins, but without ever neglecting her passion for music. Between 2016 and 2019, she participated in a comedy series called "Bizaardvark", which became the perfect showcase to bring out all her talents. In fact, Disney was so in love with her that they quickly made her one of the main characters in "High School Musical: The Musical: The Series" in 2019.

And it is thanks to that last job that Olivia decided to further develop her musical career. Certainly, she already had previous experience after composing other songs, but it was "All I Want" that made her the center of attention of both young people and music producers. Said song, a pop ballad with deep lyrics, was just the tip of the iceberg. After co-writing a couple more and interpreting many others, the young artist signed her first contract with the Interscope and Geffen Records labels in 2020. It was already a matter of time to make the leap to the big leagues of music.

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"Sour", an album of records and sentimental charge

What things can a 17-year-old girl sing to? From failed romances and broken hearts to various themes that address adolescence, Olivia Rodrigo began to establish herself as that voice that represents a new generation of young people who seek to make their way in an increasingly difficult world. For this, she designed an album where all her influences and musical genres could enter and thus be able to reach more corners of the world, resulting in "Sour".

If her first album had to be described in a single word, it would be «versatility», which has characterized her entire journey in the world of the arts. In the 11 songs that make up "Sour" we see a mixture of styles between pop, folk and alternative rock, as well as elements of pop punk, country and grunge. But beyond the musical content, Olivia focused on the conceptuality of issues such as self-awareness about anger and revenge, as well as other vulnerabilities of today's youth. The honesty in her lyrics was an attraction for the so-called Generation Z and that spread to universal acclaim from critics.

Much of this success is due to a specific topic: "Drivers License". And it is that if we recount the songs that caused the greatest impact in 2021, this should be there, without a doubt. It is even worth noting that this first single reached 100 million views on Spotify in just 8 days, thus surpassing a record that was held by Ariana Grande. But as if that were not enough, the same platform stated at the time that it had also become the most played song in a single week with more than 65 million.

As expected, Olivia Rodrigo would not cause such a stir on a single streaming platform, since on Amazon Music she would break the record for the most requested theme in one day to be played through Alexa. This domino effect positioned the then debutant in first place on the Billboard, Apple Music and Spotify popularity charts. In the end, so much expectation made "Sour" debut at number one on the Billboard 200, later managing to enter up to 8 songs in the top-10 simultaneously to snatch the record from Taylor Swift.

This is how 2022 begins to be a year of consolidation for the new music revelation artist. Beyond having won three Grammys, Olivia Rodrigo stands out for her connectivity with the public through emotionally charged songs, which are perfectly interpreted by her incredible voice. If you want to know more about this artist, you can enjoy her documentary "Olivia Rodrigo: driving home 2 U" on Disney+.