Brutal (song)
"Brutal" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Olivia Rodrigo | ||||
from the album Sour | ||||
Released | September 3, 2021 | |||
Studio | Amusement (Los Angeles) | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 2:23 | |||
Label | Geffen | |||
Songwriter(s) |
| |||
Producer(s) | Dan Nigro | |||
Olivia Rodrigo singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Brutal" on YouTube |
"Brutal" (stylized in all lowercase) is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo. It was released to Italian radio through Geffen Records on September 3, 2021, as the fifth single from Rodrigo's debut album Sour. "Brutal" was written by Rodrigo and its producer Dan Nigro.[1]
An alternative rock, grunge, and pop-punk tune, "Brutal" is driven by heavy metal instrumentation consisting of brash electric guitars and drums. Its lyrics express Rodrigo's fear, worries and frustrations as a teenager entering adulthood. An accompanying music video to the song was released on August 23, 2021. It incorporates heavy visuals elements from the 1990s–2000s, especially the era's video games, while illustrating "teen angst". Commercially, the song reached the top 20 in various countries. In the United States, it landed at number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100, and topped the Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart.[2]
Composition
"Brutal" is one of eleven songs from Olivia Rodrigo's debut album Sour. The song resents the idea that one's teenage years are their best years and shares a sentiment of teenage frustration.[3] It was written on a whim by Rodrigo and song's producer Dan Nigro.[4] It has been described as a pop-punk,[5] pop rock,[6] alt-rock,[7] and grunge[8] song with elements of indie rock and punk.[9][10]
"Brutal" features a guitar riff similar to that of Elvis Costello's 1978 song "Pump It Up", leading to accusations of plagiarism.[11][12][13] Costello—who cited Bob Dylan's "Subterranean Homesick Blues" as inspiration for "Pump It Up"—replied to a tweet about the topic, "This is fine by me ... It's how rock and roll works. You take the broken pieces of another thrill and make a brand new toy. That's what I did."[14]
Critical reception
Brutal received positive reviews from critics. Billboard's Larisha Paul described "Brutal"'s opening as "shimmering" and "brilliant", and the rest of the song as "grungy rock".[15] Jules Lefevre, writing for Junkee, described the song as "infinitely enjoyable", and described Rodrigo's vocals as "kiss-off".[5] Rolling Stone's Angie Martoccio likened Rodrigo in the song to "an excited teenager relaying gossip on a rotary phone".[16] Olivia Horn of Pitchfork speculated on whether "Brutal" is "[b]ucking expectations about the kind of sounds [Rodrigo] might gravitate toward" and describes that as just "part of the fun".[17] Allmusic reviewer Heather Phares called "Brutal" "a surprisingly punky blast of angst", likening the guitars to "the musical equivalent of an eyeroll."[18]
Entertainment Weekly called "Brutal" the best song of 2021, describing it as "like stepping through a Lollapalooza looking glass, the alt-nation swagger and blown-out guitar fuzz of The Breeders and Elastica reborn in one dimpled Gen-Z teen."[19]
Commercial performance
Following the release of Sour, "Brutal" debuted at number 12 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and atop the Billboard Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart.[20]
Usage in media
"Brutal" appeared in the opening montage of Hockey Night in Canada's coverage of Game Two of the 2021 Stanley Cup Finals between the Montreal Canadiens and the Tampa Bay Lightning.[21][22] The song also served as the soundtrack for the first trailer of Amazon Prime Video's I Know What You Did Last Summer[23] and in the opening scene of the season one finale of HBO Max's Gossip Girl.[24] Brutal was also heavily featured during episode 4 of HBO's Hard Knocks season which chronicled the training camp for the 2021 Dallas Cowboys season.[25] The song also appeared in Netflix’s “Do Revenge” "The Imperfects" and “The School for Good and Evil”.
Music video
A music video for "Brutal" was released on August 23, 2021, directed by Canadian director Petra Collins.[26] The video features cameo appearances from actors Lukas Gage and Nico Hiraga, as well as model Salem Mitchell.[27] Rodrigo's hairstyles in the video were styled by Clayton Hawkins.[28] The video depicts Rodrigo's "teenage angst",[29] using various visual elements of 1990s-2000s pop culture.[27]
![Olivia Rodrigo is different costumes and wigs](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4d/Brutal_music_video_%28screenshot%29.png/220px-Brutal_music_video_%28screenshot%29.png)
It opens in a "glitchy, throwback dimension", where an array of Rodrigo avatars appear, each adorning a stylized wig and exaggerated personality; an 8-bit version of "Brutal" plays in the background. One of the costumes is a reference to Leeloo from the 1997 movie and 1998 video game The Fifth Element.[28] It is a "choose-your-player" selection, channeling Adobe Flash web games of the early 2000s.[30] The various attires Rodrigo adopts in the video include a slicked ballet bun, plaited pigtails with a newsboy cap, low-slung space twists reminiscent of Mandy Moore's "Candy" music video, and two partial pigtails with wavy brunette and burgundy hair.[28] A cursor clicks on Rodrigo dressed in a pastel blue ballet outfit and a matching wig, before changing to a scene where she squirms on a ballet studio floor after breaking her ankle while trying to perform en pointe. It is followed by scenes such as anchoring an oddly vivacious morning news program with gossips (whose logo is the same as the 1990s logo for UK news program News at Ten), a dull high school classroom, crying on an Instagram livestream, a stressed-out pop star shooting a commercial, and being physically dragged through an abandoned Westfield Santa Anita by "two real friends", among others.[31][30] Right after the line "I can't even parallel park", the music stops briefly and Rodrigo is stuck in the crowded mall parking lot with cars beeping and she mouthes the words "What the fuck". Near the end of the video, Rodrigo climbs to the top of a Cadillac while the lyric "and God, I don't even know where to start" plays. The video concludes with her standing on the car, with a set of ballet dancers perform en pointe, while surrounded by other cars loudly beeping.[30]
As of March 2022, the song has 35 million views on YouTube.
Vogue described the video as a "visual treat" and a compendium of "Y2K beauty", incorporating various looks that marked the 1990s-2000s era, alongside "playfully brash rebellion".[28] Vulture and Insider noted similarities to Rina Sawayama's music video for "XS" (2020).[32][33]
Credits and personnel
Credits adapted from the liner notes of Sour.[34]
Recording
- Recorded at Amusement Studios (Los Angeles)
- Mixed at SOTA Studios (Los Angeles)
- Mastered at Sterling Sound (New York City)
Personnel
- Olivia Rodrigo – vocals, backing vocals, songwriting
- Dan Nigro – backing vocals, songwriting, production, recording, acoustic guitar, drum programming, electric guitar, synthesizer
- Erick Serna – bass, electric guitar
- Ryan Linvill – additional drum programming, Wurlitzer
- Paul Cartwright – viola, violin
- Randy Merrill – mastering
- Mitch McCarthy – mixing
Charts
Weekly charts
|
Year-end charts
|
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA)[51] | Gold | 35,000‡ |
Canada (Music Canada)[52] | Platinum | 80,000‡ |
Portugal (AFP)[53] | Gold | 5,000‡ |
United Kingdom (BPI)[54] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
United States (RIAA)[55] | Platinum | 1,000,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Release history
Region | Date | Format | Label(s) | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
Italy | September 3, 2021 | Radio airplay | Universal | [56] |
United States | January 4, 2022 | Contemporary hit radio | [57] |
References
- ^ Stewart, Allison. "Olivia Rodrigo's 'Sour' is a world-beating breakup album on a jagged little path to greatness". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on July 18, 2021. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
- ^ Bowenbank, Starr (August 24, 2021). "Olivia Rodrigo Shows Off Her Orange Bob, Ballerina Look in 'Brutal' Behind-the-Scenes Photos". Billboard. Retrieved August 26, 2021.
{{cite magazine}}
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- ^ Sutherland, Mark (June 16, 2021). "Will the success of Olivia Rodrigo's Good 4 U be good for rock music?". Kerrang!. Archived from the original on June 27, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
- ^ Paul, Larisha (May 21, 2021). "Every Song Ranked on Olivia Rodrigo's 'Sour': Critic's Picks". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 22, 2021. Retrieved May 21, 2021.
- ^ Chelosky, Danielle (May 24, 2021). "7 Bands Olivia Rodrigo Fans Should Check Out Next". Stereogum. Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
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- ^ Savage, Mark (June 29, 2021). "Elvis Costello defends Olivia Rodrigo over Brutal plagiarism claim". BBC News. Archived from the original on July 15, 2021. Retrieved August 7, 2021.
- ^ Garro, Adrian. "Elvis Costello Doesn't Care if Olivia Rodrigo's "Brutal" Sounds Like "Pump It Up": 'It's How Rock and Roll Works'". Rock Cellar. Archived from the original on August 7, 2021. Retrieved August 7, 2021.
- ^ Kaufman, Gil (June 29, 2021). "Elvis Costello's OK With Olivia Rodrigo's 'Brutal' Sounding Like His Song: 'It's How Rock and Roll Works'". Billboard. Archived from the original on August 23, 2021. Retrieved August 7, 2021.
- ^ Paul, Larisha. "Every Song Ranked on Olivia Rodrigo's 'Sour': Critic's Picks". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 22, 2021. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
- ^ Martoccio, Angie. "Olivia Rodrigo Is a Revelatory New Pop Voice on 'Sour.' Deal With It". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on May 21, 2021. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
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{{cite web}}
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/|archive-url=
timestamp mismatch; June 1, 2021 suggested (help) - ^ "The 10 Best Songs of 2021". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
- ^ a b c Rutherford, Kevin. "Olivia Rodrigo's 'Brutal' Bows at No. 1 on Hot Rock & Alternative Songs Chart". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 4, 2021. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
- ^ HNIC Opening, feat. Olivia Rodrigo | Canadiens & Lightning Go Head-To-Head In Game 2, archived from the original on July 2, 2021, retrieved July 1, 2021
- ^ Sportsnet [@sportsnet] (June 30, 2021). "God, it's brutal out here. 💥 @Olivia_Rodrigo gets us set for Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final! #ItsOn" (Tweet). Retrieved July 18, 2021 – via Twitter.
- ^ Alyssa Ray (September 15, 2021), Olivia Rodrigo's "Brutal" Is the Perfect Anthem for I Know What You Did Last Summer's First Teaser, retrieved September 15, 2021
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- ^ Polacek, Scott (September 1, 2021). "HBO 'Hard Knocks' 2021: Best Cowboys Storylines, Moments, Reaction for Episode 4". Bleacher Report. Retrieved March 20, 2022.
There's a reason HBO chose Olivia Rodrigo's hit song Brutal as something of a soundtrack for Tuesday's episode of Hard Knocks chronicling training camp for the Dallas Cowboys. After all, America's Team was dealing with a number of challenges, which were all on full display in the fourth episode of the season.
- ^ Rodrigo, Olivia (August 23, 2021). "brutal (Official Video)". YouTube. Archived from the original on August 23, 2021. Retrieved August 23, 2021.
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- ^ a b c d Van Paris, Calin (August 23, 2021). "Olivia Rodrigo's "Brutal" Music Video Is an Ode to Y2K Beauty". Vogue. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
- ^ Martoccio, Angie (August 23, 2021). "Teenage Angst Reigns in Olivia Rodrigo's 'Brutal' Video". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
- ^ a b c Serrano, Athena. "Olivia Rodrigo Shows How 'Brutal' It Is To Be A Teen In New Video". MTV News. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
- ^ "Olivia Rodrigo is relentlessly upset in messy new music video for 'Brutal'". Los Angeles Times. August 23, 2021. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
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- ^ Ahlgrim, Callie. "Olivia Rodrigo's 'Brutal' music video is full of Easter eggs and cameos — here's every detail you may have missed". Insider. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Sour (liner notes). Olivia Rodrigo. Geffen Records. 2021. 00602438077441.
{{cite AV media notes}}
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