Olivia Rodrigo can’t fix herself in time to save her relationship on “the cure,” her new song that starts as an alt-pop ballad and builds to an anxiety attack.
Although called “the cure,” she confirmed it doesn’t have anything to do with, you know, The Cure, and it probably owes more to The Smashing Pumpkins. Rodrigo and producer Dan Nigro use strings for racing heartbeat arpeggios on the track’s back third, as well as during the comedown, where the instrumentation adds a bit of majesty that evokes “Tonight, Tonight.”
Get Olivia Rodrigo Tickets Here
The verses explore deranged jealousy. But unlike another possible reference, Taylor Swift’s “Blank Space,” Rodrigo’s narrator isn’t campy, but vulnerable. On the verses she explains that she thought her current lover would be “the antidote this time.” But he’s not “the cure” (get it?) because he has nothing to do with what’s wrong with her.
Related Video
On the chorus, Rodrigo sings,
And my head is full of poison, and my heart is full of doubt
I got toxins in my bloodstream, you tried hard to suck ’em out
And it feels like medication, and it’s good for me, I’m sure
But it don’t matter how your love feels anymore
It will never be the cure
It’ll never be the cure, oh
Watch the music video below.
“the cure” is the second single from her June 12th album you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love, following “drop dead.” The Cure is also the name of a band fronted by Robert Smith, and he is not just Rodrigo’s inspiration, but her pal, too.
The 23-year-old pop artist has an expansive 2026-2027 tour coming in support of the release (look for tickets here).
Editor’s note: This article was published as a simple stream at the time of the song’s release and later expanded.