Olivia Rodrigo Says She Ignores Stories About Herself And I Don't Blame Her

Olivia Rodrigo captured the hearts of fans everywhere in January 2021 with the release of her song “drivers license.” Yet being in the public eye comes with its own set of hardships, and unfortunately, the pop princess has grown all too familiar with negative comments circling the internet. In a recent Rolling Stone interview, Olivia Rodrigo said she ignores stories about herself for one smart reason.

On Oct. 13, Rodrigo and music legend Alanis Morissette shared a conversation for Rolling Stone’s “Musicians on Musicians” issue, in which they discussed rising to fame at an early age and how to best exercise the power that comes with it to create meaningful art. Morissette, known for her hit songs like “You Oughta Know” and “Ironic,” rose to fame for her deeply personal heartbreak albums back in 1995. During her chat with Rodrigo, the singers discussed life in the spotlight, and bonded over the idea that not everyone is who they initially seem to be.

"There was a lot of bullying and a lot of jealousy and a lot of people whom I'd adored my whole life being mean girls," Morissette said. The “Hand In My Pocket” singer explained that in order to keep the bad vibes at bay, she decided to completely stop reading articles written about her.

"Somewhere around 22, I stopped reading everything because it wasn't really relevant to my personal growth and evolution," Morissette said. "I had enough people around me who would point out blind spots whether I wanted them to or not. And I love therapy, so I've always had a huge team of therapists. But at the end of the day it became 'Who do I feel seen by?'"

Rodrigo agreed, saying that she, too, no longer reads about herself. To her, she explained, the internet isn’t really real and humans aren’t conditioned to that kind of attention. "I've taken the same route as you have and just don't look at it," Rodrigo said. "I don't think anyone is meant to look at that stuff. I don't think we as human beings are supposed to know what thousands of people think about what we wore or what we said or how we talk. I think having separation is really important — realizing that that's not real life, you know what I mean? That world that is created online, it's just one facet of this very big human existence."

Rodrigo told Morissette that since opening up an Instagram account at the ripe age of 12 years old, she has had trouble differentiating her real self from the other girl she presents on social media. "For a long time, I had a hard time separating those two things," Rodrigo said. "I could be kind and smart and have all of these awesome things, but if I didn't showcase them on Instagram and nobody saw it, did it truly happen?"

Both Rodrigo and Morissette’s music speak volumes, and it’s refreshing to see two women not only inspire one another, but also empower the millions of fans that look up to them.