Analysis | “Drivers license” and the rarity of cultural consensus

Olivia Rodrigo’s megahit song “drivers license” has become the latest viral, universally adored piece of content in an increasingly saturated music landscape.

I got my driver’s license five years ago. Yet when I hear 18-year-old Olivia Rodrigo’s viral hit “drivers license” — which opens with a lyric about Rodrigo, well, getting her driver’s license —  I can’t help but sing along.

There hasn’t been a song of the magnitude of  “drivers license” in quite some time. Released Jan. 8, it’s remained steady atop the Billboard Hot 100 and has been streamed over 445 million times on Spotify. In the first week after its release, it shattered records, becoming the fastest song ever to reach 100 million streams and having the most one-day streams for a non-holiday song in Spotify’s history. With today’s digital age driving an increased amount of artistic content, it can be difficult to achieve such a widespread hit. Yet “drivers license” did just that. 

Today’s streaming-service-dominated culture has its fair share of benefits for the user. There’s so much to watch and so much to listen to. However, that ease of access often categorizes content into specific niches. Applications like TikTok have taken this concept to new heights, personalizing every video the user sees on the app. Social media algorithms often serve niche individualism; we each live in echo chambers of the things we care about and like. Despite the user-friendly approach, that concept can eliminate the megahit: the sweeping piece of media that transcends specific tastes and is universally recognized. 

Certain pieces of media can break through to dominate cultural discussion for short periods of a time. Netflix’s “Tiger King” was all people talked about in April 2020. Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s “WAP” claimed August 2020. The Hulu documentary “Framing Britney Spears” has control right now, but already feels to be fading. Often, I won’t watch or listen to something if I feel I’ve already missed the boat on it being relevant; one of the great joys of pop culture is being able to discuss the latest hot topic with your friends. Culture races so fast across the track these days that sometimes it feels worth it to sit out a couple laps. Yet “drivers license” seems to have a determination to stay relevant. 

The song in itself is raw and strikingly vulnerable for an 18-year-old, and features a bridge that rivals Taylor Swift’s in quality. It’s an exciting first major work from an up-and-coming pop star, but what’s even more exciting is how ubiquitous the song has become. 

Saturday Night Live (SNL) did a sketch about a group of grown men listening to “drivers license” for a Feb. 20  episode. At first the men don’t want to admit that they’ve heard it, then they slowly dive into a passionate debate about Rodrigo’s influences and finally come together to sing along to the bridge. The sketch is an excellent piece of comedy, and like all great comedy, has a subtextual truth. 

The raw emotionality of the song connects with people of all ages and personalities. There’s something deeply cathartic about it, and this level of vulnerability cuts through the specific circumstances of people’s lives. 

It’s often by going small and specific that art becomes universal. Rodrigo lays out her feelings in a direct, pointed way. Honest, vulnerable writing like Rodrigo’s should be celebrated, and “driver’s license” certainly is.   

“I got my driver’s license 55 years ago,” says cast member Kate McKinnon’s character, an old Italian man, in the SNL sketch. “Why is this hitting me so hard?”