Olivia Rodrigo: Driving to the Top of the Charts
The success story of “drivers license”
Seventeen-year-old actress and singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo recently released her first single, “drivers license.” Released on January 8th, 2021, the song was written and produced by Rodrigo and Daniel Nigro, released under Geffen Records.
The disconsolate bedroom-pop-ballad grabbed attention from nonentities and celebrities alike. After quickly climbing to the top of the iTunes charts, Rodrigo posted “drivers license” sitting next to Taylor Swift on Instagram saying, “next to Taylor on the U.S. iTunes chart i’m in a puddle of tears.” Swift took to the comment section to add “I say that’s my baby and I’m really proud.”
Rodrigo broke records left and right. Not only has the “drivers license” music video amassed over 100 million views on youtube, but the song spent four weeks at #1 on the Billboard Global 200 singles chart. This made “drivers license” the first song by a female artist to reach over 100 million streams three weeks in a row. It was also the first song to spend its first four weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart since Ariana Grande’s “7 rings”, back in 2019.
In addition to major chart success, “drivers license” became a force to be reckoned with on Spotify. It became the fastest song to surpass 300 million streams in the platform’s history. And, “drivers license” set the Spotify record for most streams in a day for a non-holiday song after debuting at #1 on the Spotify Global & U.S. Song Debuts charts. Rodrigo broke the record for the most requested song ever in one day on Amazon’s Alexa and the biggest first-week streaming debut ever globally on Amazon Music.
“I like the song because it has a really good bridge and it brings back some bitter-sweet memories,” junior Jaiden Gomez said. “I first heard the song on TikTok, then I decided to watch the video on YouTube.”
“drivers license” easily resonated with teenagers all over the world. Storytelling through music and relatability can be key ingredients in making a victorious single, something Rodrigo continues to prove.
“I think the lyrics are gratifying for the masses of girls to hear that you won’t always be ‘picked’ and that’s ok because you are most likely better off,” junior Kerrigan Azme said. “And even more than that, I think that the audio mixing is so well done and beautiful.”
After three years in the journalism program, eighteen year old Kate Schieffelin is spending her senior year as editor-in-chief of the Greyhound Growl....
Kelsey Goodpaster | Mar 9, 2021 at 1:00 pm
This story is so interesting and reply depicts the power and impact this song has on people. It’s such a vulnerable song. I didn’t realize it broke records!
Sashelyn Reyes | Mar 3, 2021 at 10:48 pm
I enjoy how detailed this paragraph is and the song driver license is a very good song the female artist Olivia is very talented and her song is very relatable. I also didn’t know that she broke a lot of record that is very cool!
Emma Bua | Mar 3, 2021 at 9:34 pm
I really enjoyed this article! But this song was on repeat for days on my playlist and also of course on tik tok. Everybody knew who Olivia was and her amazing song. The meaning behind the song is what handed Olivia her publicity and teenagers all over were obsessed with it (including me).
Jasmine Martinez | Mar 3, 2021 at 2:20 pm
I love this song and listen to it on a daily basis. I did not know that it reached to the top of iTunes chart.
suhailee | Mar 2, 2021 at 9:19 am
I personally enjoy this song because she talks about her feelings and what she has done while still liking you.
Sofia Hittinger | Mar 2, 2021 at 9:16 am
I love that you covered this particular artist, because not only is she so young, but already getting recognition for her music. Her lyrics are relatable. I think it’s amazing that you included all the records she broke to really emphasis the recognition she got.
Savannah | Mar 2, 2021 at 8:10 am
I actually listen to this song myself and it’s pretty good and it’s actually pretty cool that she broke a lot of records. She disserves it cause I had found out about it on tiktok and ever since then it was a hit and I liked the meaning behind the song.
Evelyn O. | Mar 2, 2021 at 8:08 am
I haven’t really listened to the whole song yet, but parts of it used to be all over my TikTok and I thought it sounded great. I didn’t know who the singer was, but I definitely didn’t expect her to be so young. I’m really happy for her accomplishments, and I hope she continues to rise and represent young women.
Andrea Otero | Mar 2, 2021 at 7:47 am
This song I heard my self and played it over and over for a good week. It got so popular so fast and is next to Taylor Swift on the itunes cart.
Giana Cavallaro | Mar 2, 2021 at 7:42 am
The story was really interesting and written well. I really enjoyed the song and seeing the people she interviewed they did too. I also didn’t know she had broken so many records or even that it had been so popular.