It’s safe to say that Olivia Rodrigo’s emergence into stardom was a swift one. The world was introduced to Rodrigo as an actress, with featured roles on Disney’s smash-hit comedy Bizaardvark and High School Musical: The Musical: The Series. Each acting role Rodrigo took on hinted that she was greatly musically inclined.
Early in 2021, Rodrigo released her groundbreaking debut single ‟drivers license,” a pop break-up ballad about unrequited love. The overwhelmingly positive response to ‟drivers license” earned Rodrigo a nine-week reign on Billboard’s global chart. Following the release of ‟drivers license ,” Rodrigo unveiled two more singles, ‟deja vu” and “good 4 u,” which preceded the release of her premiere album ‟Sour”.
‟good 4 u” is a pop-punk anthem with grunge emo influences. Succeeding its release, ‟good 4 u” instantly drew a comparison to Paramore’s 2007 crowd-puller ‟Misery Business.” Assertions that “good 4 u” resembled Paramore’s renowned hit were known since its initial release in May 2021. According to Insider, ‟Misery Business” and ‟good 4 u” are similar in that their choruses ‟share similar melodies and chord progressions.” Rodrigo never hesitated to acknowledge that artists like Paramore have had a significant influence on her music.
In Aug. 2021, headlines confirmed that Rodrigo’s team retroactively included Paramore in the credits for ‟good 4 u.” Paramore members Hayley Williams and Joshua Farro are acknowledged as co-writers, following fans’ continual discussion of the issue. Variety reports that the credits were for an ‟interpolation,” indicating that elements of a ‟previously recorded song” were ‟re-recorded and incorporated into a new song.”
Just a month earlier, news broke that Rodrigo’s team had formally recognized Taylor Swift, Jack Antonoff and St. Vincent as songwriters on her sophomore single ‟deja vu” amidst the comparisons to Swift’s 2019 superhit ‟Cruel Summer.”
There are mixed opinions regarding whether or not Rodrigo should have credited Paramore. Northwest High School junior Ashley Gray said that the correct course of action is “tricky to decipher.”
“To the normal music listener, one would not assume the two songs sound alike, yet when the audios are compared next to one another there are noticeable similarities. Though, I wouldn’t say enough to make a real impact,” Gray said. All things considered, she does not agree that it is vital for Olivia Rodrigo to credit Paramore.
Article by Amaya Johnson-McNeil of Northwest High School
Photo courtesy of Walt Disney Television via Creative Commons