Olivia Rodrigo’s sophomore album, GUTS, was released on September 8, 2023. This specific album has to be my favorite of the two she has released, as it speaks to some instances that I can relate to as a person in my 20s.
Dating in your 20s is hard. We knew that, but when we see so many people from high school getting married and having children, we think to ourselves, “What are we doing wrong?” You are not doing anything wrong if you don’t have a partner in your 20s, as it allows us to have time for ourselves. If we were in a relationship, we wouldn’t be able to do so.
Most relationships in your 20s consist of wondering if you are good enough for your partner. Or if the person you have been talking to for several weeks decides not to respond, and you do not even know why. Additionally, situationships are a big thing in today’s generation. A situationship is where you are “seeing” a person in an exclusive way but not in a relationship officially. Many people in their 20s go through this at least once in their life.
Olivia Rodrigo herself is also a person in her 20s and completely understands what it means to be in a relationship and to not be in one. Her first album, SOUR, gave a perspective of what it is like to be in a relationship and the aftermath of break ups. GUTS gave a more developed version of breakups, but also gave a deep dive into what it means to reinvent yourself after a breakup.
Several GUTS songs speak about relooking at the relationship, such as “Vampire,” “Love is Embarrassing,” and “The Grudge.” These songs bring a deeper meaning of looking back on a recently cut-off relationship. “Get Him Back” is an anthem of what it feels like to get revenge on a person who broke your heart. As a girl who has felt this particular feeling, this song made me feel that I am not alone in feeling this way.
Even Olivia Rodrigo knows what it means to be in a situationship as she goes through the process of going to see an ex even though the relationship is over. Throughout the songs, she continuously repeats the same line, “Oh, yes, I know he’s my ex, but can’t two people reconnect? / I only see him as a friend / I just tripped and fell into his bed.” This specific lyric is an example of what it means to be in situationship. Olivia speaks about meeting up with an ex, but as an audience, we can interpret it as meeting with someone who will never see us as an exclusive partner with labels.
In our generation, many people don’t like the labels that come with relationships, which is really hard to comprehend, especially as a young person. You never know if there’s something wrong with your personality or if you’re not pretty enough for them, which isn’t the case. We should always think that someone else’s perception of us shouldn’t identify how we view ourselves. In the song “Pretty isn’t Pretty,” Rodrigo goes on about what she puts her body through to be pretty, because the public eye enforces the idea that we need makeup and the need to be skinny to gain attention from partners. She says, “Fix the things you hated / And you’d still feel insecure.” This brings a perspective of what it means to be a woman in a male-dominated world where men think that looks are everything they want in a woman. As women, we feel the need to resort to that standard that we see on posters, magazines, and social media. In reality, we don’t need to fit into that standard because everyone is beautiful in every aspect. We don’t need others’ judgment to fulfill our securities. How we view ourselves is the most important aspect of our self-esteem. You should never let a partner bring you down because of their harsh words.
If you have to ever wonder if you’re good enough for them, just know you deserve better than what they gave you!