Professional Fangirl- Katelyn Benschoter
The third album in a musician’s career is notably an unexpected time, and oftentimes when the initial built-up hype begins to fade. It is hard for artists to keep the momentum going after two successful albums. This is also due to the fact that frequently on the third album artists choose to switch up their style and try out a new sound or aesthetic. Often this can deter fans and result in a loss of momentum they had going. When pop superstar Olivia Rodrigo, whose music took the world by storm after her first song “drivers license,” was set to release her third album, the pressure was on. She notoriously had an incredibly successful debut album, Sour, and followed it up with Guts, which also featured many number one hits. Unsurprisingly, Rodrigo showed us that the third time really is the charm because I believe You seem pretty sad for a girl so in love is her best work yet.
A good album always starts with good lead singles. An album’s singles are the first songs released off the album and songs that the artist is trying to highlight. Normally, these are the more upbeat tracks from the album and the songs that get the most radio play. Olivia Rodrigo outdid herself with her picks for this album’s singles. She led with “drop dead” on April 17th, the first taste of new music from her in years. Fans were excited to see that Rodrigo was finally making happy music. The song is a true love song in nature, capturing the butterflies-in-your-stomach feeling when you are experiencing a full-throttle crush. The song is fun, upbeat, and was made to sing in the car with your best friends. Her next single showed off a completely different set of strengths.
She released “the cure” on May 22nd, an emotional ballad exploring the struggles of experiencing mental illness and a relationship at the same time. The song is an unlikely single in that it is not a hyperpop earworm, but it was a smart move for Rodrigo. The two singles show her wide range of ability. She can create a song that is simple and fun but also an incredibly complex and emotional song with gritty lyricism. She is not only showing off her wide range of ability, but appealing to a wide range of her fans, which inevitably has led to a massively successful album.
Fast forward to the release of the full album; it only keeps getting better. In my opinion, You seem pretty sad for a girl so in love is a concept album. And that concept is every stage you experience from entering a relationship to grieving the end of it. The album starts on a high with “drop dead” and “stupid song,” where Rodrigo sings of love and excitement. By the halfway point of the album, we reach “purple,” which I would argue is one of the most interesting songs on the album. Rodrigo has described this song as the point where the listener first notices the downfall of the relationship. She sings about becoming too attached in a relationship by using colors as a metaphor. In the relationship, she sees the world in purple; she is blue, and he is red, and they have now become one. Though the song questions whether they are too attached. She even sings “I had big dreams before I tied myself to you,” hinting she is losing herself in the relationship.
The latter half of the album unsurprisingly becomes the songs about the breakup itself, and the start of the recovery process. This is where Rodrigo thrives, in the genuine, honest, lyric-heavy songs. The songs “begged” and “cigarette smoke” are real standouts for me in this section of the album. She has found a way of singing about a very personal experience, such as a breakup, yet making every track feel universal. This is truly her gift. Loss of relationships, not just romantic partners, is hard and complicated to work through. Music is always an excellent outlet when looking for relief, and You seem pretty sad for a girl so in love should be added to the list of albums to reach for when needing some support. As discussed, the album has a wide range of songs, so I think there really is a song for everyone somewhere on the tracklist.
While often by an artist’s third album they begin to lose momentum, Olivia Rodrigo can certainly not relate. With every album she has released, she is only becoming a better artist. There is definitely such a thing as overplaying songs or albums, even when they are good, but I do not think I could ever grow tired of this one. From jealousy, to in love, to nervousness for the future, to loneliness, and any feeling in between, You seem pretty sad for a girl so in love has a song for you. If you have managed not to listen to the masterpiece that this album is, definitely give it a full listen the next time you have 50 minutes. I will say, maybe make sure you have tissues on hand.