Olivia Rodrigo is about to reach the celebrity pinnacle. And to be quite honest, the singer, who was a huge YouTube star, knows what she is getting into.
“This is really scary, and I kind of like it,” said Rodrigo, just two days after she was nominated for three American Music Awards. Rodrigo is among the five female pop artists – Ariana Grande, Camila Cabello, Camila Alves, and Cardi B – to score nominations in the first year of voting, for favorite pop/rock album. She is also up for favorite duo or group.
Rodrigo is also nominated in the favorite video category for “Running Back,” from her debut EP, “HEX,” which is out now. “Running Back” is up against videos from the Weeknd, Maroon 5, Cardi B and Justin Bieber.
“Running Back” is about becoming strong, Rodrigo said. It’s a story about “breakups and finding your way back after.”
Rodrigo, whose older brother Stefan is also in music, said: “I don’t think anybody can do it by themselves, by themselves.”
Rodrigo’s career started at YouTube.
“My brothers and I used to make up songs and upload them on YouTube,” she said. “My brother has a personal YouTube channel, his identity is that. He runs YouTube music channels and his channel is called TV Yeah.”
Rodrigo said. “YouTube’s where I learned how to write music, but it was really my brother. He was always writing music, I just got really into this other side of YouTube.”
While she loved performing, Rodrigo said she wasn’t a fans of the stage acting world. So her focus shifted toward songwriting. And YouTube gave her a bigger platform. She felt like she was an outcast, she said, and didn’t connect with the kids who followed her on YouTube.
“They thought I was cooler.” she said. “I felt like these kids were more interesting than me.”
Rodrigo said her brothers backed her in the process.
“My brother was like, ‘You can do it. I know how hard it is.’ I was like, ‘Okay, I’m not going to be this person with a haircut. I’m going to be Olivia.’ I love taking chances. I’m never scared.”
Rodrigo said she hopes to win an AMA. The show will be held Sept. 24 in Los Angeles.
“I need some love!” she said. “I need a big shower. I need everything.”
But she also wants to encourage the dreams of the young women she plays music for.
“I just hope I can show the world it’s not over for them, and there is something else. They don’t have to give up. So many things in life are hard, and I think there’s a lot of good that comes from it. I am just happy to be able to express myself how I want.”
