On Jan. 8, 2021, Olivia Rodrigo released her debut single “drivers license.” Immediately taking the spotlight not only in the music industry, but also among the social atmosphere of Generation Z, Rodrigo’s single blew up at record speed. 

Within the first week of its release, “drivers license” had 76.1 million streams across the nation, 38,000 downloads and millions of listens on radio stations. Now, it has hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart, just a week and a half after its release.

It also surpassed 100 million streams on Spotify, and is the fastest song to meet this stream number in the history of Spotify. It also climbed to number one on the U.S. iTunes Chart.

However, while this is Rodrigo’s debut, a song featured in “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series,” “All I Want,” was also on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart.

Fans are calling Rodrigo the next Taylor Swift because of her poetic and meaningful lyrics. Rodrigo herself is a huge fan of Swift, so when Swift commented “I say that’s my baby and I’m really proud” on Rodrigo’s Instagram post, Rodrigo was ecstatic.

“I checked my phone and she commented on my photo and I just about died,” Rodrigo said. “Literally, I’ve looked up to her for as long as I can remember, so it was so sweet of her to do that.”

Now, for many listeners and fans of Rodrigo, this is way more than just a song. Fans are speculating it is about Joshua Bassett, Rodrigo’s co-star on Disney Plus’ “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.”

These conspiracies circle around Rodrigo and Bassett’s potential breakup and Bassett being seen with Sabrina Carpenter, another Disney star. With lyrics such as “And you’re probably with that blonde girl who always made me doubt,” many theorists are saying the song is obviously about this potential love triangle.

“All the evidence correlated,” said senior Jordan Martin. “Olivia and Josh had dating rumours surrounding them and the chemistry was undeniable both on and off screen.”

The first time I heard this song, I am not going to lie, I shed a few tears. Many are calling it a lyrical masterpiece and I wholeheartedly agree. Not only are the lyrics genius, but they also put you in Rodrigo’s shoes to feel the pain she is enduring.

“The song is literally one of the best out right now,” Martin said. “Between the heart wrenching lyrics and catchy sound, it’s definitely the perfect heartbreak song. 10/10; Olivia Rodrigo is a musical genius.”

I get it, sad songs are not a lot of people’s cup of tea. However, I strongly recommend giving it a listen just to try it out. Even if you hate the tempo and the music, you have to admit, the lyrics are gorgeous.