Olivia Rodrigo makes her mark in Melbourne, kicking off the first of her four shows at Rod Laver Arena as part of her ‘GUTS world tour.’
The arena begins to fill up with fans in sparkly outfits, light–up star wands and purple cowboy hats as New Zealand singer-songwriter Benee ignites the stage with her infectious energy and diverse sound loaded with catchy lyrics and funky rhythms.
She commands the stage in her sparkly tasseled boots as she powers through her alternative-pop hits including ‘Soaked,’ ‘Beach Boy,’ ‘Glitter’ and ‘Find An Island.’ She showcases her versatility and her smooth, effortless vocals to warm up the crowd.
Benee rounds-out her set with a new unreleased song called ‘Animal’ and lets loose with hyperactivity on her supercharged anthems ‘Green Honda’ and ‘Supalonely.’
We watch a dramatic video of Olivia Rodrigo walking down a hallway and knocking on a purple door as her band’s heavy guitars and staccato drumming anticipate her arrival on stage. She raises up from the floor to make a grand entrance in a sparkly crop top and mini skirt with ‘bad idea right?’ The stage is alight in a wash of purple as the pop-rock hit fires up the audience who jump along with Rodrigo in excitement.
She stops to work the crowd pointing to each side of the arena to command screaming fans in her direction as she skips down the runway strip across the stage and into the general admission floor area. “Welcome to the GUTS World Tour!” she exclaims. “I want everyone to jump and scream at the top of your lungs,” Rodrigo demands.
She takes centerstage beneath a backdrop visuals of moon and a mirrored black and white projection of her for the haunting fan-favourite ‘vampire.’ The arena fills with fans singing so loudly along with her that we can barely hear Rodrigo’s delicate vocals.
A group of dancers join in for the heartfelt track ‘traitor,’ casting their silhouettes across the stage with a choreographed routine to draw us in to the emotional track.
A grand piano emerges on stage for Rodrigo to take a seat and begin to play the open chords we instantly recognize as her breakthrough hit ‘drivers license.’ A smoky haze covers the stage floor for the captivating ballad showcasing her vulnerability and beautiful vocal range.
A video montage of childhood memories plays on the screens as Rodrigo remains at the piano for ‘teenage dream,’ which she describes was written a few days before her nineteenth birthday. “Back then I was scared of a lot of things – mostly I was terrified of growing up and looking back I think it’s funny because now that I’m twenty-one I’m not scared of growing up at all. In fact, I feel like I get happier with every birthday that passes by. If I could give any advice to the eighteen-year-old girl who wrote this song, I’d tell her not to worry so much and she has no idea how many magical, wonderful things waiting for her just around the corner,” she shares.
The piano descends into the floor and the dancers join her back on the stage for ‘pretty isn’t pretty’ as they form a choreographed routine with handheld mirrors to explore the song’s theme of beauty and body standards as she struggles with self-worth and acceptance. The emotional and heartfelt reflection builds momentum up to the danceable track ‘love is embarrassing’ to quickly lighten the mood.
The show is full of surprises at every corner to keep it engaging and exciting. A constellation of stars and a crescent moon come down from the ceiling for Rodrigo to take a seat on for the next part of her act. The moon prop becomes her new stage for ‘logical’ and her personal favourite off her latest record ‘enough for you,’ as she’s raised up into the air above us slowly moving across the arena lit up like a night sky. The production is incredible, and she interacts with her fans as she moves into the arena waving at her adoring fans. As she makes a pit-stop halfway around the room, she calls for a screaming competition and the deafening sound makes everyone wish they’d packed a pair of earplugs.
Rodrigo returns to the main stage and picks up her purple guitar. “I tried a Tim Tam for the first time in my life today and it gets my approval – ten-out of-ten!” she reveals. “But no matter how many Tim Tams I eat and even though I’m in Australia, I just can’t help but feel so American,’ she says for the perfect segue into ‘so american’ followed by ‘jealousy jealousy.’
She takes a seat at the edge of the right side of the stage runway with her guitarist Daisy. “Something about me is I come up with ideas for songs in the most random places. I get a lot of ideas when I’m driving in traffic or taking a shower sometimes. I even go to sleep and dream entire songs of lyrics and chords and wake up and try and work out what it was,” she reveals.
She explains that next song’s idea came when she was in the middle of filming a scene along with the line “I hope that you’re happy but don’t be happier.” She recalls running to the bathroom, locking herself in a stall and recording the very first chorus into her phone. “I’m so glad I did because now I get to sing it with you guys tonight,” she exclaims before sing ‘happier.’
Rodrigo heads back to the main stage for the final part of her set with an explosive finish with some of her biggest upbeat hits including ‘déjà vu’, ‘brutal’ and ‘all-american bitch,’ packed with sassy attitude, engaging visuals and crashing guitars to ramp the energy in the room.
She wastes no time to get stuck into her encore with ‘good 4 u’ and ‘get him back’ to bring the show to a close with every ounce of her fearless energy she has left to deliver a spectacular finish.
Words by Michael Prebeg
Behind the Lens Matthew Ling
