“Bad Idea Right?” is a song by American singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo from her second studio album, Guts (2023).
After the commercial success of her debut studio album, Sour (2021), Olivia Rodrigo continued collaborating with Dan Nigro, who had produced all of the tracks on it. The follow-up album, Guts (2023), was conceived when she was aged 19, a year that she described as “lots of confusion, mistakes, awkwardness & good old fashioned teen angst”.The album and its title were announced on June 26, 2023, and its lead single, “Vampire”, was released four days later. The song reached number one in various countries, including the United States, where it became her third number one single on the Billboard Hot 100.
On May 21, 2023, to celebrate the two year anniversary of Sour, Rodrigo uploaded a 1-second snippet of a new song, later revealed to be “Bad Idea Right?”. On July 6, 2023, Rodrigo played a few tracks from the album for Vogue; Jia Tolentino remarked that “on one, which brought to mind Le Tigre, Charli XCX, and the Josie and the Pussycats soundtrack, Rodrigo careened toward an ill-advised and irresistible night with an ex.”
On July 31, 2023, Rodrigo revealed a video clip which included clues about Guts’ tracklist, intended for fans to decode. It featured her relaxing in a bedroom, unpacking boxes, and experimenting with various devices, including an electric keyboard and a retro typewriter. On August 1, 2023, Rodrigo revealed the tracklist, which features the song “Bad Idea Right?” as the second track. Released on August 11, 2023, “Bad Idea Right?” was the second single from Guts.
In an email announcing the song to her fans four days prior, Rodrigo stated “the song is pretty different from ‘Vampire’ & shows another side of Guts that’s a little more fun & playful”, expressing excitement for its release. Its artwork, shared the same day, is a hazy image of Rodrigo posing behind a glass wall with the song title scrawled in red lipstick in front of her face. George Griffiths of the Official Charts Company suggested that Tolentino’s description might be about “Bad Idea Right?” because of its title.
Petra Collins directed the music video for “Bad Idea Right?”, which was released alongside the song. It features appearances by Iris Apatow, Rodrigo’s Bizaardvark co-star Madison Hu, and fellow music star Tate McRae, whom Rodrigo described as “my favorite girlz”.In it, Rodrigo attends a house party with Hu, Apatow, and McRae, but later leaves to visit an ex-boyfriend. She sneaks into a pickup truck in the rain, which breaks down, and she eventually makes her way to a shuttle bus, where a large red soda is thrown at her dress.
Before the guitar solo, she arrives at his apartment, knocks on his door, and gets in before lying on his bed. A glowing white silhouette hides his true identity as fireworks are shown in the room.
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