Olivia Rodrigo has officially released her new song “serena joy” to streaming services.
A song that was cut from the tracklist of Rodrigo’s recent album you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love, “serena joy” was originally released on Friday, August 22nd as a CD exclusive; Rodrigo quietly offered just 500 copies of the CD single exclusively at an independent record store in Tustin, California, and all 500 sold out within hours. Now, the track is out on all major DSPs.
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The song finds Rodrigo taking inspiration from Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale and features politically-charged lyrics about being complicit within oppressive systems. “Yeah, it’s all for the cause/ For the good of us all/ And if you close your eyes/ Then it can’t be your fault,” go the track’s opening lines. She may be playing coy with some of her lyrics (“Have a Coke and a smile”), but she quickly turns “serena joy” into a powerful warning to those who stand by in silence and those who uphold these damaging systems: “If they do it to them, they’ll do it to you.”
Rodrigo will debut the song live at her new festival, Daisy Chain Fields, which goes down in Irvine, California this Saturday (August 29th). She’ll be joined on the lineup by Chappell Roan, The Breeders, KATSEYE, Doechii, Bikini Kill, Mitski, and more, with the schedule featuring no overlapping sets. Rodrigo is also gearing up for her “Unraveled Tour,” a massive world tour kicking off on September 25th. The tour sold out, but you can still grab tickets here.
Rodrigo’s third album, you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love, arrived on June 12th. Revisit our review, which praises Rodrigo’s storytelling abilities and her growth as a songwriter.
