July 12 has been a huge day to be an Olivia Rodrigo fan. Not only because she released her third studio album β you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love β but also because she released the music video for “stupid song,” which is Track 2 on the album. In true ORod fashion, the visuals are gorgeous β but what’s the meaning of the “stupid song” music video? I did an analysis β and there’s a nod to a previous song of hers involved.
Rodrigo initially teased the video on June 11, a day before you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love even dropped, with a short clip of pointe shoes and (*checks notes*) cat paws, accompanied by the song’s instrumentals. She released the music video at midnight EST in tandem with the album’s release β and “stupid song” both as a track and a music video did not disappoint.
The lyrics to “stupid song” are all about falling in love with another person β you know, that maddening, all-consuming force you feel when you have a crush. In a way, it’s like the intense, eyeliner-wearing little sister to “Crush” by David Archuletta. IYKYK.
The music video takes that feeling and perfectly visualises it, with ballerinas and cats and a New York City bodega. It’s wonderfully chaotic, but also super abstract. So if you’re looking for the deep dive on what all these visuals mean β I got you.
The “stupid song” music video opens with Rodrigo leaving a New York City apartment with her hood up, walking through the glum-looking streets singing, “New York City’s never looked so blue / My friends are smoking blunts in the bathroom / They say that honest love is a cage that makes you feel free.”
However, as Rodrigo continues to walk (and the music starts to build), ballerinas start appearing behind her. Many eagle-eyed fans took this as a nod to the music video for “brutal”, circa 2021. But beyond that, the visuals seem to represent Rodrigo’s reality β the grey city streets β coming alive in tandem with her romantic feelings.
As the song progresses, the sun comes out, and Rodrigo takes off her hood and runs around with the ballerinas through New York β which could represent her falling more chaotically in love with the subject of the song. This feeling is vocalized in the chorus of “stupid song” when she sings “I’m a heart made of wax and I’m melting in the sun / I’m a thread on your shirt that is coming undone / I feel right, I feel wrong, I feel totally insane / And I want you more than any stupid song could ever say.”
There are also cuts to Rodrigo in a New York City bodega, singing with a drummer and, eventually, playing a grand piano surrounded by cats. It’s a bit unhinged, but IMO, the visuals illustrate how her feelings toward the subject of the song are becoming increasingly maddening the harder she falls. The juxtaposition of a dreamy, cat-covered piano in a bodega could show how love β and Rodrigo’s admitted obsessive thoughts β anchor her mind, even in the middle of a mundane setting.
By the end of the song, Rodrigo is dancing with the ballerinas in a sprinkler in Central Park. However, when the track ends, Rodrigo is standing alone, and soaked, under a sprinkler with her eyes closed dreamily β no ballerinas or cats in sight. The quick cut takes us back to Rodrigo’s reality: She’s just a girl who is totally, madly, head-over-heels for her crush, so much so that she’s daydreaming about romantic ballerinas and cute, fuzzy cats. And, honestly, who hasn’t been there before?