---
title: 'Olivia Rodrigo on ''deja vu'' & Her Top Songwriting Tips | MTV News'
source: 'https://youtube.com/watch?v=F272yLpKQU8'
video_id: 'F272yLpKQU8'
date: 2026-07-01
duration_sec: 0
---

# Olivia Rodrigo on 'deja vu' & Her Top Songwriting Tips | MTV News

> Source: [Olivia Rodrigo on 'deja vu' & Her Top Songwriting Tips | MTV News](https://youtube.com/watch?v=F272yLpKQU8)

## Summary

Olivia Rodrigo shares her top five songwriting tips, drawing from her experience writing hits like 'drivers license' and 'deja vu'. She emphasizes the importance of listening to music like a songwriter, finishing ideas even when they feel imperfect, and showing up daily for creativity. She also advises writing for yourself and reading poetry to enhance lyricism.

### Key Points

- **Listen Like a Songwriter** [1:03] — Olivia's first songwriting tip is to listen to music like a songwriter, drawing inspiration from idols like Taylor Swift, Lorde, and Phoebe Bridgers.
- **Finished Over Perfect** [2:26] — Her second tip: 'Finished is sometimes better than perfect.' She forces herself to complete songs even when she doubts them.
- **Show Up Daily** [3:36] — Third tip: Show up for your creativity daily, not just when inspired. She wrote a song every day during quarantine.
- **Write for Yourself** [4:04] — Fourth tip: Write for yourself, not for others. Writing with the intention of being liked loses the magic.
- **Read Poetry** [5:26] — Fifth tip: Read poetry to inform lyricism. She often starts songs with a poetic concept or play on words.
- **Deja Vu Concept** [5:47] — The hook of 'deja vu' came from the concept of recycled experiences in new relationships, inspired by a play on words.

## Transcript

- I first realized songwriting was, like,
sort of, a viable option for my life
when I got to write a
song called "All I Want"
for 'High School Musical:
The Musical: The Series.'
Before that, I, sort of,
just kept my songs to myself
and, like, played them
for my mom and my friends.
But, that was, sort of,
the first experience where
I wrote something that people,
like, really believed in,
that I believed in, and it, kind
of, got heard by a lot of people,
so it gave me a lot of confidence.
“drivers license” coming out has, sort of,
immensely affected my songwriting process
and my music, you know, making
brain, I guess.
But I thought, actually, when it came out,
and when it, you know, started
getting to be really successful,
I thought that I was gonna get
in my head about my writing and be like,
"Oh, I'm never gonna write anything
as good as 'driver's license,' ah,"
and, like, fret about everything.
But, I actually really think
it gave me a lot of confidence
in my voice and in what
makes my songwriting special,
which I feel like is my
vulnerability and honesty.
And so, kind of, learning that
that's what people resonated
with, kind of, helps me
with writing all of my other music.
Hey, I'm Olivia Rodrigo
and these are my top
five songwriting tips.
My first tip, which I think
is the most important one,
is listen to music like a songwriter.
I have grown exponentially
from doing this.
I think it is the best way to
grow as an artist, in any way,
is to draw on inspiration from
people that you look up to.
I literally will, like, listen
to music that my idol made,
watch all of their interviews,
and then go back and be like,
"OK, I'm gonna, like, try
to write a song, like,
as if they were writing this song,"
and it just, like, completely,
like, broadens your horizons
and helps make your music
just, like, that much better.
I'm obsessed with the way
that Taylor [Swift] paints pictures
and her imagery is fantastic
and her storytelling
is just, like, insane.
So, I don't think I'm as good
of a storyteller as she is yet,
but I always try to, like, put
aspects of that, sort of, narrative,
singer-songwriter-y type
lyricism in my songs.
I think Lorde really teaches me
a lot about, like, production,
and actual music music.
I think she always makes
such interesting choices
and so I try to do that.
And also, she's a brilliant
lyricist, as well,
and she's super poetic
and you can tell that,
like, lots of her songs
started out as poetry,
and so some of my songs
start out that way, too,
when I try to emulate her.
Also, a big lyrical inspiration
for me is Phoebe Bridgers.
She's just, like, so brutally honest
and says stuff that you wouldn't
think of being in a song,
and I think that's impactful and beautiful
and so, I, sort of,
try to do that as well.
Another songwriting tip that I have is
finished is sometimes better than perfect.
I can't tell you how many times
I've, like, sat at a piano
and, like, been writing
a song and been like,
"This is terrible. I should just quit.
"Like, this is so bad."
But, I, like, force myself to finish it
or at least, like, finish
the idea or whatever
or, like, finish the verse and chorus.
And, lots of the time, I
come back and I'm like,
"Oh, wait. That was actually great.
"I was getting really
in my head about it."
And so, you're never
gonna learn from something
if you just, like, throw it away
the second you think it's not good,
and you're never gonna learn how
to, like, craft something good
if you just, like, are
waiting for just, like, luck
and a bolt of inspiration to strike you.
Number three, I think
this sort of goes along
with number two a little bit.
Really, like, showing
up for your creativity,
and not just waiting for,
like, a lightning bolt idea
or something to inspire you.
I think, sometimes, you
just have to work and write
and create, even when you don't
feel particularly inspired,
because I think when you
continuously show up,
you, like, show the Universe
that you are capable
of bringing this idea to life
and, you know, manifesting it
in the way that it's
supposed to be manifested.
And like, I'm spiritual in that way,
where I think that, like, the
Universe pays attention to that
and then will give you better ideas.
So, that was sort of the exercise
that I did over quarantine is
I, like, forced myself to write a song.
Not forced myself. That sounds like -
[Laughs]
That sounds sad and scary,
but I sat down at the piano and was like,
"OK,
"I'm gonna write a song
every day of quarantine,"
and I feel like that made
me a much better songwriter.
And, you know, I think some of the ideas
I wouldn't have, you
know, gotten to jot down
if I didn't, you know, make
myself do that every day.
So, I think showing up
is really important.
It's more important than being
talented or good at anything.
You can be super talented,
but if you don't show up,
what's the point?
Alright, fourth tip is to
write songs for yourself
and because you love it
and you like to do it.
The second that you, sort
of, start writing a song
with the intention of it
being liked by other people,
it loses its magic.
At least for me, if I ever,
like, go on, like, Twitter or whatever,
and look at people,
like, consuming my song
or, you know, criticizing it or whatever,
and then I take that with me in my writing
and I'm like,
"Oh, wait,
"but, people won't like
this if I do this,"
or, like, "Oh, I have to do
this, so people like it."
It just absolutely, like, ruins it
and I think you just
have to be true to you
when you're, like,
writing all of that stuff
and try to stay out of your head,
and do it 'cause you love it.
Don't do it for, you know, other people.
Those are the best types of songs.
It's actually super, super cool to see
people relate to my songs.
For a while, I felt like I
was, like, kinda weirded out
'cause I was like, "Oh, I kinda
have this, like, really weird life."
Like, I've been homeschooled
since I was in seventh grade.
I, like, am on a set all day with, like,
a bunch of, like, 45-year-old dudes.
Like, is what I say going to
resonate with other people my age?
And so, putting out “drivers license”
and seeing people of, actually, all ages,
male, female, everyone,
sort of being like,
"Whoa, that took me back to a time
"where I was feeling like that,"
or, "Oh, I'm feeling like that right now.
"This helps me so much."
Like, that was so cool to me to realize
that, you know, honesty
is always relatable
and you don't have to, like, try
to relate to large audiences.
You just have to tell your story
because, you know, humans are                                                                    all so much more alike
than we are different,
and we're all feeling
so much of the same things
that we just don't talk about.
The last songwriting tip
I have is to read poetry,
as much poetry as you can.
I feel like that really
informs my lyricism.
I think I have to start a song
with a lyrical concept or idea.
I'm a very lyric, narrative,
story-based songwriter
and everything else, kind
of, is secondary to that.
So, in order to write a song that I like,
it has to be either a poem that I like,
or, like, a concept, or, like, a play
on words that I can, sort of, go from.
The hook of “deja vu” is,
"When she's with you, do you get deja vu?"
And it's this, sort of, concept
that I am really obsessed with
and, I think, something
that my friends and I
were going through, where it's like,
sometimes, when you break up with someone
and they get with somebody else,
it sort of feels like
everything that they're doing is recycled,
which happens in every
relationship, I think.
And for the music video,
we kinda didn't want it to
be super on the nose, like,
relationship-y,
so I thought it would be
really fun to do, like,
a, like, female-stalker type music video
'cause I'm obsessed with 'Killing Eve.'
That's my favorite show of all time
and I was like, "I wanna do a
music video like 'Killing Eve.'"
And also, I think it really
ties into that, like,
"Do you get deja vu?" thing
because it's, like, these two girls,
like, living really similar lives
because they, like, want
to be like each other.
So, yeah. I had a lot of
fun making that music video.
I think it’s like a really,                                                            kind of, convoluted, weird,
awesome music video.
I think it's, like, perfectly
creepy in the best way.
[Laughs]