Olivia Rodrigo’s “GUTS” album review

By Averie Grace-Hayes

Teenage confusion, love stories, and harsh regret: These are the things that best describe the sophomore album “GUTS” by Olivia Rodrigo. These three out of ten songs are laid out in beautiful lyricism and fun, interesting production.

Picture of Olivia Rodrigo taken from Creative Commons license on Google

“All-American B—:”

“All-American B—” is a fabulous start to an amazing album. It’s introduced by a soft melody that is light and airy but is soon juxtaposed with a loud and punky chorus that is bombarded by percussive drums and electric guitar. This is then partnered with Rodrigo saying, “I know my age, and I act like it,” which could be interpreted as Rodrigo breaking out of her shell of ‘heartbroken teenage girl’ to ‘young woman who is starting to know herself.’ However, after this short yet heavy chorus, the song shifts back to the soft verses. 

“Pretty isn’t Pretty”:

“Pretty isn’t Pretty” is a heartfelt song that implicates feelings of body dysmorphia and not being good enough for the world because society has set such high standards for young women. In the first verse, Rodrigo portrays that she bought a bunch of makeup to hide her physical appearance, along with skipping meals and even cake on birthdays. In the chorus, Rodrigo says that she doesn't feel good enough, but even then, she could “try every lipstick in every shade,” but she will always feel the same: not good enough. This is a concept many young women and teenage girls resonate with, which Rodrigo executes perfectly in the song.

“Teenage Dream”:

Once again, Rodrigo’s piano accompaniment results in a fantastic final song. The intimate piano is a perfect bridge to the soft, supple lyrics that illustrate questions that Rodrigo asks herself, such as, “When will I stop being great for my age and just start being good?” The whole song is a continuation of Rodrigo’s discourse on life and personal regret. That is, until the bridge. The bridge is Rodrigo in falsetto, reciting, “They all say that it gets better, it gets better the more you grow,” trying to convince herself that that's the truth. With the song and the album coming to an end, the song takes an odd note and flows into a spoken word section, sounding like a baby playing and talking. This seems to be used to end her sophomore album with a sense of innocence.

I rate this album: 9/10