Olivia Rodrigo Says There’s One Album She Plays When She Needs to Feel Like Herself Again
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PEOPLE has the exclusive debut of a clip from the upcoming episode of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame podcast Music Makes Us, set to air Tuesday, Dec. 16.
Olivia Rodrigo is opening up about the album that reignites her passion for making music.
In an exclusive clip from the next episode of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s podcast Music Makes Us, PEOPLE previews the “Vampire” singer speaking with host Kathleen Hanna about the one record she consistently turns to for inspiration.
During the conversation, Bikini Kill frontwoman Hanna, 57, asks Rodrigo, 22, if there’s a song or album she revisits when she needs to reconnect with herself. Rodrigo responds without hesitation.
“Honestly, I listen to [Alanis Morissette’s] Jagged Little Pill when I’m feeling, like, unsure of what to say or who I am,” Rodrigo shares. “For some reason, that album captures everything that makes a human being human.”
She continues, noting the album’s range of emotions: “There’s so much anger, spite, and jealousy, but also joy and hope—all intertwined beautifully.”
Rodrigo adds, “I f—ing love that album, as everyone does, but it reminds me what I’m striving for.”
What she finds most compelling about Morissette’s 1995 record is the singer’s authenticity and vulnerability. “As a writer, that’s always inspiring—when someone just needed to express something,” Rodrigo explains. “They’re not just writing for hits or popularity.” She describes the album as feeling like Morissette’s “diary in the best way.”
Rodrigo has been a longtime admirer of Morissette, 51. In 2021, they appeared together in a Rolling Stone Musicians on Musicians feature, and in 2022, Rodrigo inducted Morissette into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Reflecting on her first encounter with the album, Rodrigo recalls, “I was about 13, in the car with my parents when Jagged Little Pill played. I heard ‘Perfect’ and thought, ‘Oh my God… you can write songs like that?’ It completely changed how I viewed music and songwriting.”
Rodrigo also delighted fans in May 2022 by bringing Morissette on stage to perform the classic “You Oughta Know.”
Music Makes Us, produced in partnership with Radiotopia from PRX and Talkhouse, premiered on Nov. 18. The podcast features Hanna in deep conversations with artists across generations and genres, including Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees Chaka Khan and Nancy Wilson of Heart, as well as Laufey, Amy Taylor of Amyl and the Sniffers, Towa Bird, and Paramore’s Hayley Williams.