Olivia Rodrigo
you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love · 2026Olivia Rodrigo's third album. Thirteen tracks about her first adult relationship, written with Dan Nigro, reaching toward New Wave.
Rodrigo is upside down on a swing in a pink babydoll dress, a composition critics have tied to Jean-Honore Fragonard's Rococo painting “The Swing.” For the limited picture-disc edition she commissioned artist Chloe Wise to paint “Carve Our Names” from a photograph by Chad Moore.
Tracklist
1. drop dead 2. stupid song 3. honeybee 4. maggots for brains 5. u + me = <3 6. my way 7. purple 8. the cure 9. begged 10. what's wrong with me 11. less 12. expectations 13. cigarette smoke
On the cover painting
“I’ve been such a fan of Chloe’s work for a long time and was beyond excited when she wanted to collaborate on this with me. She blew me away with what she created and I can’t wait for fans to get this into their hands.”
“I wanted to capture that feeling of meeting someone you really like for the first time, and all of the excitement and nerves and anxiety that comes along with that.”— Olivia Rodrigo, Dazed
Rodrigo opened the era in April with lead single "drop dead," out April 17, teased by a run of cryptic videos of her fastening padlocks to fences in Los Angeles, London, Paris, and New York. The single debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100. "the cure" and the Robert Smith duet "what's wrong with me" followed.
The padlock teasers
Ahead of "drop dead," Rodrigo posted a series of cryptic videos fastening padlocks to fences in Los Angeles, London, Paris, and New York. A follow-up clip soundtracked the single from a pub, captioned "Cheers."
Versailles, headphones on
The "drop dead" video, directed by Petra Collins, was shot at the Palace of Versailles. Rodrigo lounges in bed and bops through the halls in a Gen-Z-meets-Marie-Antoinette look, calling back to Sofia Coppola's film and to Jane Birkin's dress from the 1975 movie Catherine et Cie.
FC Barcelona, El Clásico
As part of Spotify's sponsorship of FC Barcelona, Rodrigo's logo appeared on the club's jerseys for El Clásico on May 10. Limited-edition jerseys and tees went on sale to the public from May 1. The Barça promo bloomers echoed the "drop dead" video styling.
“This album is about my first time being in an adult relationship; it's me discovering what romantic love looks like in real time.”— Olivia Rodrigo, Dazed
Rodrigo gave cover interviews to Dazed, Cosmopolitan, and Vogue across the rollout, and sat for video interviews with Apple Music and the BBC. Across them she described the album as her first record about an adult relationship and a deliberate turn toward joy in her songwriting.
On writing love songs
"All of the best love songs or poems have an element of sadness or longing or fear in them. There's even an element of anxiety in 'drop dead.'"
On the babydoll styling
"I just remember being younger and having pictures of Courtney Love and Kat Bjelland from all these riot grrrl punk bands in their babydoll dresses, just owning it. I always thought that that was really cool."
On the album's sound
"I was listening to a lot of post-punk: The Cure, New Order, Depeche Mode, Siouxsie and the Banshees. I wanted it to sound like how it feels to fall in love; string arrangements that are like your heart swelling."
On writing about joy
"I was really excited to write about joy, love, and passion in a way that I had never really done. Most of my big songs are about being sad, angry, heartbroken."
On the slower process
"We really edited the hell out of this album." Rodrigo described writing songs the way she did at 16, purely for fun: "There was so much more joy in the songwriting."
On falling in love
“I felt a similar way about falling in love, that the second I’m in a really great relationship, I’m gonna start feeling good about myself and this stuff is going to fall into place, but it just doesn’t work like that.”
The album is days old and the Unraveled Tour, announced for September, has not yet begun. The one live moment of the rollout so far: a surprise drop-in at a Brooklyn open mic.
On a Sunday night in late April, Rodrigo signed up like everyone else at the long-running open mic at Pete's Candy Store in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and played an acoustic version of "drop dead." The room fell into a respectful silence before realizing who was on stage.
“Robert has been soundtracking my life for as long as I can remember.”— Olivia Rodrigo, Rolling Stone
Rodrigo built the album with Dan Nigro, her producer and co-writer since SOUR. Robert Smith of The Cure guests on "what's wrong with me," a duet they first performed live at Primavera. The visual team across the campaign and cover shoots ran deep.
Dan and Olivia
Back in 2020, producer Dan Nigro had been scrolling through Instagram when he came across a video of Rodrigo singing her then-unreleased “Happier.” He was so blown away that he sent her a DM.
“I've had a dream of doing this festival for years and i am so ecstatic it's finally coming true!! Daisy Chain Fields features an all-women lineup and 100 percent of the net proceeds will go to charities dedicated to advancing and advocating for women and girls.”— Olivia Rodrigo, via Rolling Stone
Ten days after the album, Rodrigo announced Daisy Chain Fields, a one-day, all-women festival at Great Park in Irvine, California, on August 29. She curates and performs alongside Chappell Roan, Doechii, Mitski, the Breeders, Bikini Kill, and Garbage, with special guests Stevie Nicks, Karen O, and Sarah McLachlan. All net proceeds go to charities for women and girls.
"My calling in some weird way"
I actually feel like it’s my calling in some weird way. I’ve had this dream to do this festival for a really long time.
In May 2026, Spotify and FC Barcelona marked Olivia reaching the Billions Club with a celebration in Barcelona, drawing out her fans alongside a co-branded collection.
“This could well be the giddiest we've ever heard Rodrigo.”— Rolling Stone
Early reviews read it as her clearest turn toward New Wave, anchored by the Robert Smith duet.
Third straight No. 1 album
You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love debuted atop the Billboard 200, Rodrigo's third consecutive album to reach number one.
No era merch or documented worn-in-the-era pieces have surfaced in the harvest yet. This section will fill as the rollout and the Unraveled Tour continue.
