Olivia Rodrigo and Alanis Morissette Talk "Universal Heartbreak" In Rolling Stone's Musicians On Musicians Interview

Olivia Rodrigo reached a massive audience with the release of her breakup anthem, "Drivers License" and went on to break numerous streaming records when she dropped her debut album, SOUR. Her vulnerable songwriting has been compared to the likes of Taylor Swift and No Doubt's Gwen Stefani, but one of her particular influences is Alanis Morissette and her 1995 album, Jagged Little Pill.

Olivia and Alanis both went from being child stars to pursuing uber-successful music careers, and the two stars talked all about heartbreak, songwriting, and yes, even touring, in Rolling Stone's latest Musicians On Musicians issue. We all know that Olivia's album is full of angsty yet vulnerable breakup songs, and Alanis Morissette took the same approach in the '90s with songs like "You Oughta Know" and "Ironic." If anyone understands Olivia's level of superstardom (and the lengths her songwriting took to get her there), it's Alanis.

In conversation with her predecessor, Olivia gushed about how Alanis' music has inspired her own songwriting. She heard Jagged Little Pill when she was 13 and specifically cited Alanis' song, "Perfect" as one of her main influences.

"I told my music teacher a couple days after: 'You can write songs like that?' I just looked at music and songwriting in a completely different way," Olivia said. The two then went on to discuss the success that their heartbreak has brought upon them and how their songs resonated with so many people across different age groups.

"I think heartbreak is so universal — the feeling that lots of humans feel the most deeply. I've never felt as deep a sadness as I did when I was truly, truly heartbroken and devastated," Olivia said. When she released "Drivers License," she wondered if she would even relate to people as she grew up on a TV set rather than having a normal teenage experience.

"I watched ['Drivers License'] just affect so many people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender or age. There would be 40-year-old guys that would come up to me and be like, 'Wow, that really struck me,'" she continued. "That was so magical for me, to not only see how universal that feeling was, but also how magical music can be and it can take you back to a specific point in time. You can hear everything and taste everything and smell everything, and that's so unique to music."

Alanis agreed with Liv, saying that she thinks love, anger, and pain are "energies that move worlds." "There's this whole current of what it is to be human that is overlooked by culture," Alanis said. "Enter music. Music is this giant allowance for whatever messy, gorgeous, luminous, terrifying thing that's going on. It's like a permission button."

To read the full Musicians On Musicians interview, visit Rolling Stone. The publication also posted an exclusive clip of the conversation on Instagram.

You Might Also Like

• How to Master a Pretty Waterfall Braid

• 11 Waterproof Makeup Products You Have to Try

• How To Contour and Highlight Your Face Like A Total Pro