Hot on the heels of her surprising hit “Drivers License,” Olivia Rodrigo has released a new song, titled “deja vu.” The song is classic pop, with a strong but gentle piano element. It also features echoes of Rodrigo’s own voice, in a style reminiscent of Billie Eilish, but with a much lighter and softer tone. Rodrigo’s voice is refreshingly exploratory of range, and not afraid to tackle the high notes. 

The lyrics of “deja vu” logically follow “Drivers License.” While “Drivers License” mourned the end of Rodrigo’s relationship and hinted at her former boyfriend moving on with a new girl, “deja vu” dives deeper into her jealousy. Rodrigo sings, “So when you gonna tell her/That we did that too? She thinks it’s special/But it’s all reused/That was the show we talked about/Played you the song she’s singing now when she’s with you/Do you get déjà vu when she’s with you?” While Rodrigo’s lyrics indicate that she may have intended to “burn” her former beau and his new girlfriend with this song, all I hear is envy and fixation. There is no argument in this article that this song is friendly to the ears, but the benefit of its message to young and impressionable listeners is very doubtful. I would prefer to hear a song celebrating independence or self-love from this rising pop star, rather than another track about her ex. 

Following up a major hit is always an intimidating task. WIth over six hundred and twenty-five million listens on Spotify, “Drivers License’ has been topping the viral charts for some time. It is a common fear of relatively new artists that their first huge hit will give them the dreaded title of “one-hit wonder.” While it is certainly better to have one hit that none at all, “one-hit wonders” tend to be dismissed in pop culture, as if their one hit was “beginners’ luck.” However, Olivia Rodrigo is no beginner. After starring on Disney Channel, she gained attention for her soul-wrenching “All I Want” from High School Musical. The song later went viral on TikTok.

While “deja vu” is not gleaning the same kind of attention that Rodrigo’s last track did, the vocals in her new song showcase her growth and range. The question is not if Rodrigo will become a well-known pop star, but rather how the rest of her career will go. Will she always be hopelessly chasing the success, fame, and attention of her debut single, or will she become an iconic figure in pop culture, our generation’s version of Britney Spears or Christina Aguilera? We must watch and see. In the meantime, I encourage Rodrigo to branch out from the yearning love-and-loss genre. It is more important now than ever for the singer to remember how many teenagers will model their hearts and actions off of hers. While it is surely important to mourn a relationship that has come to an end, it is not healthy to fixate on the progression of your ex’s relationship with their new partner. I am all for truth in music, but something feels disingenuous about a song that mixes a “girl power” mentality with an obvious lack of “moving on” in a healthy way. Regardless, go give Rodrigo a listen while we wait to see what comes next.