It's always amazing how well-oiled the "Disney star becomes pop star" machine has been for decades. Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, Sabrina Carpenter - they were all transformed by the comic mouse corporation into the biggest pop stars in the world. You can count on Disney princesses (and princes).
Olivia Rodrigo (23) also comes from this tradition. Five years after she went overnight from High School Musical star to pop star with Drivers License, the American has rightfully earned her place in this pop star lineup. With her first two albums Sour (2021) and Guts (2023), she reached number one on the US charts, contributed hits like Good 4 u or Vampire to worldwide hit parades, and has already been honored with three Grammy Awards. She's also now one of the biggest names in the pop business when it comes to live performances. This Friday, her third studio album drops: You Seem Pretty Sad For A Girl So In Love.
A Babydoll Dress Becomes a Scandal
By now, the singer has reached a league where she can turn half the internet against her with one outfit. After a performance in Barcelona, Rodrigo's babydoll outfit was controversially discussed for weeks in May. Critics accused the singer of deliberately infantilizing herself. In the New York Times podcast, the 23-year-old rejected the accusations, explained that the outfit wasn't the problem, and countered with feminism: She didn't want young women to be taught that they are responsible for the inappropriate attention to their bodies.
Moreover, the babydoll look has also been worn by her role models, who might surprise some: musicians like Courtney Love and Bikini Kill singer Kathleen Hanna are among them. But Rodrigo takes more than just clothing from rock, punk, and new wave musicians. Her favorite bands also include Rage Against The Machine, No Doubt, Green Day, or The White Stripes. Some songs in her discography clearly reflect her preference for alternative music: In All-American Bitch, inspired by Hole, she screams her soul out in the bridge section. Brutal plays with grunge elements and sounds as if it were recorded during a garage band rehearsal, Ballad Of A Homeschooled Girl breathes 90s alternative rock. And yet, the rock moments have so far been more like exceptions that briefly shake up the flawless pop garment.
One of Her Biggest Fans: Gothic Pioneer Robert Smith
Apparently, this garment is so well-made that even The Cure frontman Robert Smith is among Rodrigo's admirers. According to Vogue, the gothic pioneer raved about her first albums: "Even though most of the songs on these two albums aren't really 'tailored to my target audience,' they're all so good that you can hardly resist embracing them." At the 2025 Glastonbury Festival, Smith even did her the honor of covering two Cure songs with her. For those who don't know Smith: The musician has done something like this only very, very rarely in his now 50-year career.
It can be assumed that most Rodrigo fans had no idea who the made-up man with the bird's nest hairdo was who suddenly stood on stage next to their Disney princess. But Rodrigo apparently gladly takes on the musical education: At the Primavera Sound Festival in June 2026, Smith was on stage with her again. This time, the two performed the new song What's Wrong With Me - the first duet the singer has ever recorded. Whatever else emerges from this creative friendship and from Rodrigo's career, Disney couldn't have imagined it better.
