Olivia Rodrigo sometimes gets labelled as a heartbreak songwriter, and that is just fine with her.
Rodrigo, 18, loves a good breakup song. The “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series” actress talked to People about the stereotypes surrounding her songwriting on the heels of her record-breaking debut album, Sour.
“It means the absolute world to me,” she said of her heartbreak soundtrack. “I feel like if a girl writes a song about heartbreak, very often people start criticizing her for feeling those emotions, and only writing about that. I do just love a heartbreak song. I literally wrote breakup songs before I ever held a boy’s hand. So, who knows? Maybe I’ll continue to do that, or maybe I’ll branch out? I just love writing music, and I hope that people continue to listen.”
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“I’d be lying if I said that putting my deepest, darkest insecurities and sadnesses out there is just slightly scary. But I’ve always been an oversharer,” she added. “When I watch interviews of my favourite songwriters, they say songwriting is about helping people feel less alone. And that’s probably true for me.”
Ultimately, songwriting is a deeply personal experiences for the “Drivers License” singer.
“I always write my songs for me. I don’t write them for anyone else. What I put out into the world, I try to remember that I did everything I wanted to do,” she explained. “And how people perceive it, or speculate about who it’s about or whatever, that really just has nothing to do with me. My only job is to write songs that I really love, and that’s what I try to work from.”
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Rodrigo is of German, Irish and Filipino descent. The multi-faceted entertainer touched on how great it feels to represent Filipinos in mainstream media.
“It actually makes me want to cry. It’s so touching,” she shared. “Representation in TV and media is so important. And I’m so glad that I can hopefully be an example for a little Asian girl out there, that they can do anything that they set their mind to.”
Rodrigo released Sour on May 21. The critically acclaimed debut album topped charts in 16 countries, including Australia, Canada, the U.K. and U.S. Sour was Apple Music’s most pre-added album of all-time, and achieved Spotify’s record for biggest opening week for an album with 385 million streams.
