After a two year hiatus, Olivia Rodrigo is back in the studio and ready for the release of her highly anticipated sophomore album, “GUTS.” With the release of her most recent single, “Vampire”, Rodrigo breaks records again by debuting at No 1. on the Billboard Hot 100.
According to Billboard, Rodrigo is “the first artist ever to debut the lead singles from two career-opening albums at No. 1 on the Hot 100.”
After the great success Rodrigo gained with “Sour,” everyone is wondering if she can live up to the title of Best Pop Vocal Album of the Year that “Sour” was awarded in 2021. “Vampire” debuted at No 1. On Billboard Charts just as the lead singles “Sour” and “Driver’s License” did.
The overall vibe of “Vampire” is based on the iconic “Twilight” franchise. In the cover art for the single, Rodrigo is shown with her side profile in gray hues, like in the “Twilight” movies, with a bright purple bandage right where a vampire bite would be.
The comment section of her Instagram post of the cover art is filled with excited fans and stars. Taylor Lautner, who played the werewolf Jacob in the “Twilight” movies, commented on her post asking who bit her. This resulted in even more excitement and anticipation from fans.
Following its release, “Vampire” needed a clean version for radio. So, Rodrigo decided to ask her fans on TikTok what the alternative should be for the line “Fame [f**cker.” Some of the hilarious variations Rodrigo created include, “Mark Zucker”, “tree hugger”, “garlic butter” and “whale blubber.” Ultimately her fans decided on “dream crusher.”
Rodrigo attributes the growth and maturity in her upcoming album to her transition from adolescence to adulthood. She described her recent single as “very cathartic to finish” and said that it helped her “sort through lots of feelings of regret, anger, and heartache.”
Emotional break-up ballads seem to be her thing. As this new single may, like many of her songs, be classified as a breakup song. However, there is a key difference between “Vampire” and her first single from which she amassed great popularity, “Driver’s License.”
“Driver’s License” is more about reliving the memories you had with someone in a relationship, and still really miss them even after the pain they caused. “Vampire” on the other hand, tells a very different story. Rodrigo speaks of a relationship in which she felt used and is angry not just at the other person in the relationship, but mostly with herself for staying with them.
Rodrigo’s debut album, “Sour,” mainly focused on the sadness and anger one feels toward the other person after a breakup. In “Vampire,” Rodrigo is looking more inward and focusing on feelings such as regret and anger towards oneself after a breakup, setting the tone for her upcoming album, “GUTS.”
After listening to “Vampire,” fans can assume more personal reflecting and deeper emotions in Rodrigo’s future music.
Rodrigo explained that releasing the song almost felt like putting out pages of her diary, because of how intimate it is. As some of the lyrics such as, “I used to think I was smart/But you made me look so naive” are very personal and exactly what someone feels after they’ve been betrayed by someone they thought they could trust.
It is safe to say that “Vampire” has been very well received by fans and casual listeners alike, all of who are very excited for what Rodrigo will do next.
