Story by Danny Osborn
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Olivia Rodrigo announced the deluxe version of “GUTS” at her Chicago concert on March 19. During her performance of “Get Him Back,” she held up a piece of paper reading, “GUTS Deluxe Out Friday.”
“GUTS (spilled)” features five brand-new songs with a twist: four previously released songs and a new one, “So American.”
With the release of the standard album on vinyl, each pressing would include a secret song at the end. “Obsessed,” “Girl I’ve Always Been,” “Scared of My Guitar” and “Stranger” were the secret tracks. This was like a scavenger hunt for Livies—Rodrigo’s fan base—where they would try to find the four vinyl pressings to collect all four secret songs.
“Obsessed” and “So American” have the classic pop-punk Olivia Rodrigo sound. Then, “Girl I’ve Always Been,” “Scared of My Guitar” and “Stranger” have the artist’s signature acoustic guitar sound.
The fan favorite, “Obsessed,” takes jealousy to a whole new level. Rodrigo sings, “I’m so obsessed with your ex (God, she makes me so upset).” This angsty tune is quite relatable, where many people find themselves overthinking about their partner’s ex.
The title of “Girl I’ve Always Been” perfectly sums up the song. Rodrigo sings about not being perfect but always being herself; she sings, “And I can’t say I’m a perfect ten / But I am the girl I’ve always been.” This track has such a spring feeling to it. The guitar instrumental, complemented with a little bit of percussion, creates a sound that makes you feel like you’re running through a field.
“Scared of My Guitar” is a typical Olivia Rodrigo ballad. It is a stripped-back song with gorgeous vocals and heartbreaking lyrics. The chorus goes, “But I’m so scared of my guitar / ‘Cause it cuts right through to the heart.” With this song, she presents her open and honest relationship with her guitar. Rodrigo writes most of her songs on this instrument, and with how deep she gets with her songwriting, listeners can see why she would be scared of her guitar.
“Stranger” is about reflecting on a relationship after a breakup. Sometimes, whenever a relationship ends, all contact with that person is cut off. After that happens, they are pretty much a stranger. Rodrigo’s lyric, “You’re just a stranger I know everything about,” sends shivers down the spine.
The closing track on the record, “So American,” is very interesting coming from Rodrigo. Almost every song on both her albums, “SOUR” and “GUTS,” are breakup songs, but his track is a love song. In the chorus, Rodrigo sings, “And he says I’m so American / Oh God, I’m gonna marry him / If he keeps this s— up.” Rodrigo typically sings about dark experiences, so ending the album on a happy, hopeful note is warming.
The standard version of “GUTS” was great on its own, but these five new tracks on the deluxe edition were brilliant. They added more to the story and kept to the concept of spilling your guts. Closing out this era, it will be fascinating to see what Rodrigo does in the next album cycle.
You can listen to “GUTS (spilled)” wherever you listen to music.
Danny Osborn is a contributing writer for MTSU Sidelines.
To contact Lifestyles Editor Destiny Mizell and Assistant Lifestyles Editor Shamani Salahuddin, email lifestyles@mtsusidelines.com.
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