‘Olivia Rodrigo: Guts World Tour’ Review: The Concert Of A Generation

Olivia Rodrigo has long dominated the mind of a generation of teenagers that are now growing up with her music and her Netflix film Guts World Tour captures a moment in time for the populous to experience. Read our Olivia Rodrigo: Guts World Tour review.

In a time when the internet can make anyone famous, especially anyone who can sing relatively well, it is a breath of fresh air that Olivia Rodrigo is so talented and yet maintains such a strong personality – she commands the stage and carries strong energy through the whole show. 

It’s a long shot away from Driving Home 2 U, Rodrigo’s first musical film that released on Disney+ after the release of her first album Sour. Driving Home felt much more personal and intimate, with the songs being sung outdoors in small areas and in little get-ups as opposed to on stage but the grand scale of Guts World Tour matches the level of her stardom today. The stage is huge and shaped like a star, one of Olivia’s signature shapes and she and the dancers take full advantage of that, moving around a lot during the concert and utilise different areas of the arena for different songs. Whether it’s singing on a floating moon, rolling around on the floor or sitting at the front of the stage for an intimate song playing the guitar, it is always intense and the show never stops. Using these different locations helps to keep each moment fresh and it never feels like it slows down or drags at any point, which is very easy for a concert to do – two hours of singing with very little communication is hard to keep up with, but Rodrigo has mastered the art.

Whilst Olivia does all the heavy lifting and she sings to perfection, the show is elevated by the people that she has around her. Playing in the background is an excellent band who all get their moments to shine, especially the guitar players. There are many moments where a guitarist is put centre stage to take a solo or sat alone next to Olivia to help with a slow song – even the drums get a moment to command and show off. During many moments, the members are up close and personal with eachother including some very sensual moments where Olivia gets up in the face and right in front of a guitarist, just to add some unexpected excitement to the show. It is this unity with the people on the stage, and likely behind it, that makes the Guts World Tour as incredible as it is. They realise what people are here for, to hear Olivia sing, and use all of the other elements to elevate that as opposed to trying to drown her out or focus on less important aspect. Even the dancers, who appear unnecessary in their first song appearance, grow on you and truly enhance the singing, bringing the songs to life through very interpretive dance as Rodrigo moves around on the stage.

The tour itself, which began on February 23rd this year in Palm Springs, has been a smash hit and fans were raving for a concert film to come out of it. It isn’t over yet and is still going very strong, but it will conclude on March 30th 2025 in Bogota, meaning Rodrigo would’ve headlined 99 shows for the tour. It is predicted to have earned $94 million over 50 shows.

“I’m so excited to announce that I’m putting out a concert film of this show!” Rodrigo wrote, in a letter to fans. “I hope that everyone who came can watch and relive some fun memories and that those who didn’t get tickets can watch the concert from the best seat in the house.”

All of this is of course perpetuated by the fact that Olivia has two incredibly strong albums that feature no-skips, all of her songs are powerful ballads that capitalise on and enhance emotion – whether that be sadness, anger or happiness. Rodrigo’s ability to connect with the feelings of her audience is exactly what makes her the star she is, all of these songs are inherently human and are related to experiences that everyone has either had or been close to. She is made for the industry and made to be an entertainer and this movie proves that she can shine in whatever area she wants to: whether that be purely in an audio-musical realm or on the silver and big screens as well.

Olivia’s excellent setlist and stage presence is enough to make this a must-watch, a concert for the generation of teenagers and now young adults that are passionate about Olivia and live through her music. If there was something to pick apart, there are editing choices made in the movie that sometimes make the singing and movements hard to follow. Instead of letting you sit in a moment, it cuts rapidly through all the angles. Whilst this is a problem, Rodrigo is so talented and so fun to watch that you are soaked into the moment and these issues simply fade away.

The special is directed by James Merryman and produced by Aleen Keshishian and Blink, Inc. in association with Lighthouse Management and Media and Interscope films. Produced by Merryman alongside Michelle An, Tom Colbourne and Zack Morgenroth, with John Janick and Steve Berman serving as executive producers and Sam Wrench as co-exective producer. The concert film is available to stream now on Netflix.

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