It’s not poetic, but the song’s vivid lines about the insecurity caused by an older blond girl resonate more than, say, a folkie’s abstract warbling. Swift, replying to a Rodrigo Instagram post, oddly took some credit for the young singer’s accomplishment, saying “that’s my baby and I’m really proud.”Ĭonfessional specificity: As a certified Swiftie, Rodrigo clearly has cribbed from Swift’s laser-focused grievance-airing and weaponized lyricism. WAP singer Cardi B lamented on Twitter that she had no drivers licence herself, complicating her late-night McDonald’s drive-through needs. Such is the mercurial world of high-school dating and gas-guzzling teenage angst.Ĭelebrity endorsement: Big names Halsey, Cardi B, Taylor Swift and Hailey Bieber publicly appreciated the song. “Today I drove through the suburbs, crying ‘cause you weren’t around,” Rodrigo sings, lips quivering.

Narrative relatability: The song concerns a freshly licensed young driver whose success with the California Department of Motor Vehicles is offset by profound romantic disappointment. That ballad bypassed major-label gatekeepers by appearing on television (sung by Rodrigo’s High School Musical character) and by finding an audience on the social-media app TikTok. The 17-year-old Californian released All I Want in 2019 through Walt Disney Records before signing with Interscope and Geffen Records in 2020. Prebuilt fanbase: She’s no megastar, but Rodrigo is familiar to young music fans for her roles on the Disney Channel comedy series Bizaardvark and on the Disney+ mockumentary High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.

Drivers license spotify charts