By Madeline Molloy
Olivia Rodrigo's debut album, “Sour,” was one of the biggest hits of 2021. Now, she's back with a new album “Guts.” The album consists of two different moods that live up to the expectations she set for herself. The biggest single on the album is “Vampire,” and once released, it reached as high as number one on the charts. The most substantial theme of Rodrigo’s new album is the concept of age.
In the song “Logical,” the lyrics describe how she’s too young and can’t take a joke. However, with context, it is revealed that she was old enough for the older guy she was dating to have her in the first place. In “Making the Bed,” Rodrigo talks about pretending she’s older than she is. Rodrigo knows that she’s the one who has been making the bed in which she now lies The album ends with her song “Teenage Dream.” It starts with a piano and has Rodrigo laughing over the ending. It’s a song about growing up as a young girl in the spotlight, and exploring the good and bad parts of it. Olivia Rodrigo has long been unsure of her teenage dream, and she’s scared of being trapped in her past nostalgia. In “Teenage Dream” she sings, “Will I spend all the rest of my years wishing I could go back?” She knows her first album SOUR was a way to relive those emotions of a heartbroken teenager. Her song “Driver's Licence” had many angry emotions and she let them all out. In “Teenage Dream” however, she sings, “I’m sorry that I couldn’t always be your teenage dream.” She does not deliver the line with anger but rather with sadness. Its meaning could be her growing older and learning to understand the world around her more.