Rodrigo delivers tour performance fans will feel deep in their ‘guts’

Olivia Rodrigo has returned to take the world by storm. The 21-year-old former Disney Channel star gained popularity following her 2021 hit single “Driver’s License.” Her relatable portrayal of teenage emotions was the key to her newfound fame. Following the release of her debut album SOUR, in April 2022, Rodrigo embarked on the SOUR Tour, which spanned North America and Europe. Then, in 2023, Rodrigo released her sophomore album GUTS, a stunning and more mature release. Now, Rodrigo embarks on her GUTS World Tour, which began in February in Palm Springs, California. She is making stops all around the world, including Milwaukee on March 16, 2024. The tour is set to span 75 dates and go until August of 2024.

Rodrigo has an exciting list of openers, as The Breeders, PinkPantheress, Chappell Roan, and Remi Wolf all slated to join her. 

Rodrigo’s SOUR Tour setlist was a mix of her own songs from her album and covers of other songs, sensible considering SOUR as an album was only 45 minutes in total. Now, Rodrigo has a vast catalog of songs, so on the GUTS Tour she plays 9 of the 11 songs off SOUR (omitting “1 Step Forward and 3 Steps Back” and “Hope UR OK”) and of course, all the songs off GUTS. In addition, she performs “Obsessed,” a GUTS bonus track which is relatively unknown even among fans. This is because it was only found on the black and red vinyl. Rodrigo is not the only artist who has started to put exclusive tracks on vinyls, as global superstar Taylor Swift has done the same thing, first with 1989 (Taylor’s Version) and with her upcoming album, The Tortured Poets Department. Luckily, fans are able to listen to “Obsessed” live, and even without going to the concert, they can still find it on sites like YouTube. Rodrigo will be able to bring old, new, well-known, and relatively unknown songs to the GUTS Tour setlist.

No great concert would be complete without great costumes, and Rodrigo certainly does not disappoint. She opens the concert in a sparkling silver top and matching miniskirt, completing the look with fishnet tights and Doc Martens, a shoe that fits the punk style of GUTS quite well. She goes on to wear a shiny red bodysuit over black tights adorned with stars. Then, she wears a black, two piece with a clear dress over it and, once again, the fishnets. After this, she wears a quite similar outfit, taking off the clear dress and revealing a shiny, sleek look. Finally, Rodrigo ends the concert in the star tights, bejeweled shorts, and a white crop top reading “I’m Just A Girl”, a nod to No Doubt’s iconic song, which makes fun of the expectations put on girls, like Rodrigo’s own “All American B-tch.” The aesthetic of these costumes is quite different from the SOUR Tour, which while still iconic, were mostly purple and other pastels. This is similar to Rodrigo’s transition musically, with GUTS taking on a darker tone than its predecessor.

There are many small moments that help to make this concert one-of-a-kind, most notably when she flies on a giant plastic crescent moon while she sings “Logical” from GUTS and “Enough for you” from SOUR. Other iconic moments include when she sits down at the piano and performs a heartfelt rendition of “driver’s license,” the song that catapulted her to fame. Before playing “Teenage Dream,” a sweet song about growing older, Rodrigo plays a series of videos from her very own childhood.

Overall, the GUTS World Tour is a great experience that builds on the success of the 2022 SOUR Tour. The openers, the setlist, the costumes, as well as the little moments all help to make this concert great. 

TL;DR: Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts Tour gets all the details right, entertaining and stunning fans.

Overall Grade: A

by Chloe Lusvardi

Published April 1st 2024
Oshkosh West Index Volume 120 Issue VI