<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Whether you’ve broken a glass or had your heart broken at a party, Olivia Rodrigo covers it all in her new album, ‘Guts.’ Her pop-rock style perfectly captures the inner workings of the teenage mind and all its mischief. Earlier this month, ‘Guts’ topped the</span><a href="https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/olivia-rodrigo-guts-number-1-reaction-1235414829/"> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Billboard</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> 200, and Rodrigo’s lyrics continue amplifying the anthems of American youth, love, and heartbreak. </span><span style="font-weight: 400;"><br />
</span><span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Each track is generally relatable, but let’s imagine, just for fun, that Olivia is a Tulanian. She also worries about midterms and how she only has 100 Wavebucks left. On late, lonely nights she sits in her dorm room and transcribes her Tulane experiences into songs. After all, what place applies better to her lyrics, “if rain don’t pour and sun don’t shine,” than our very own New Orleans? </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Seeing you tonight, it’s a bad idea, right?” </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Olivia caves and gets back with her sylly-week hookup. And yes, it is a bad idea, although she may only realize it the next morning. His room is atrocious and, weirdly, all they talk about is the Roman Empire. “Yes, I know that he’s my ex. Why can’t two people reconnect?” She asks her friends the next morning over breakfast. They exchange frustrated looks. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Love’s fuckin’ embarrassing” </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Later that month, Olivia and her friends are at the Boot. Her friend’s been dancing with this guy- just some “second-string loser who’s not worth mentioning.” Olivia doesn’t say anything and returns to the conversation she’s having with her </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">own</span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;"> loser. He’s making those lazy-boy-flirty-eyes at her and tells her he’s six-foot-two. She goes “Dude, nice try.” </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">Then she turns to check on her friend who is now making out with someone as if there’s no tomorrow. “My god,” she says to herself. “Love’s embarrassing as hell.” </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Vampire” </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This song is included in Olivia’s story because it is spooky season now but mainly for the lyric: </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I should’ve known it was strange, you only come out at night.” Olivia would have written this about one of those characters that only hits up her phone past one a.m. The lyric speaks for itself. Tulane’s notorious hookup culture sometimes makes it feel more social at night than during the day. Maybe most of us are vampires, or maybe it&#8217;s just a few. </span><span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Pretty isn’t pretty enough” </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Obviously, Tulane isn’t just hookups and disappointments. Olivia also gets crippling anxiety from fake social media representations. The girl in her chem lab parties every night and still has flawless skin and no dark circles. Olivia’s feelings of self-loathing cause her to think it&#8217;s her who has the problem. On Instagram “everybody’s keepin’ it up” with their Sunday brunches and pre-games. The cherry on top is when Olivia catches herself stalking the Tulanefashion Instagram, wondering if they will ever post her. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Smart, sexy Lacy, I’m losin’ it lately” </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Her insecurities linger and she compares herself to others. As an imaginary Tulanian, Olivia could have written “Lacy” about another girl, or simply to capture the pace of college life. Who knows what some of us experience here in this marvelous city, with its “angel dust” and “puff pastries,” as Olivia puts it. </span><span style="font-weight: 400;"><br />
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<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Surely, Olivia would have some happier experiences if she were a student here, however her album, ‘Guts,’ is not the most jolly. It would have been fun to include some of these scenarios when writing this alternate reality, but for now, we’ll stick to imagining her with some silly guy at the Boot. </span></p>
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<div class="wp-biographia-container-top" style="background-color: #FFEAA8; border-top: 4px solid #000000;"><div class="wp-biographia-pic" style="height:100px; width:100px;"><img alt='' src='https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/3569a2302570bab0e4d7af31f21d812857a63e63aa7298455690899716909b4e?s=100&#038;d=wp_user_avatar&#038;r=g' srcset='https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/3569a2302570bab0e4d7af31f21d812857a63e63aa7298455690899716909b4e?s=200&#038;d=wp_user_avatar&#038;r=g 2x' class='wp-biographia-avatar avatar-100 photo' height='100' width='100' /></div><div class="wp-biographia-text"><h3>About <a href="https://tulanemagazine.com/author/revatibuchwald/" title="Revati Buchwald">Revati Buchwald</a></h3><p></p><div class="wp-biographia-links"><small><ul class="wp-biographia-list wp-biographia-list-text"><li><a href="mailto:r&#98;uc&#104;&#119;&#97;&#108;d&#64;&#116;ulan&#101;.&#101;d&#117;" target="_self" title="Send Revati Buchwald Mail" class="wp-biographia-link-text">Mail</a></li> | <li><a href="https://tulanemagazine.com/author/revatibuchwald/" target="_self" title="More Posts By Revati Buchwald" class="wp-biographia-link-text">More Posts(3)</a></li></ul></small></div></div></div><!-- WP Biographia v4.0.0 -->

Okay, But What if Olivia Rodrigo was a Tulanian? A Guide to ‘Guts’
Feature Image via Billboard