Writing ‘The Rose Song’ Was a ‘Magical Experience’ for Olivia Rodrigo
Olivia Rodrigo is a Grammy-nominated songwriter. She even created originals for the Disney+ mockumentary High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, where she starred as Nini. This artist even described writing “The Rose Song” for season 2 as a “magical experience.”
Olivia Rodrigo starred in the Disney+ original series, ‘High School Musical: The Musical: The Series’
Released in 2019, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series featured new characters tackling a Disney Channel favorite production. This Disney+ mockumentary told the story of students at East High putting on a live performance of High School Musical.
One of the main characters, Nini, is portrayed by Rodrigo for several episodes. This character earned the lead role in High School Musical, even if there was plenty of drama backstage.
Rodrigo lent her songwriting skills to this series, creating “All I Want” for her character. She partnered with co-star Joshua Bassett to make the song “Just For a Moment.” Both originals were added to the official series soundtrack.
Olivia Rodrigo wrote ‘The Rose Song’ for season 2 of this Disney+ mockumentary
Nini returned for season 2 of this series. Her sights were first set on a performing arts high school. As a result, she couldn’t audition for her high school’s production of Beauty and the Beast. As a result, Miss Jenn created the “rose” character for her. Rodrigo even wrote a song for this character, naming it “The Rose Song.”
“It sort of felt like a magical experience when I wrote ‘The Rose Song,’” Rodrigo said during an interview with USA TODAY. “I wrote the first version chords in 20 minutes the morning after [High School Musical producer Tim Federle] called me and told me about the concept of the song. It felt like it was meant to be.”
This song was told from the perspective of the Beauty and the Beast “rose.” It also offered insight into Nini’s own relationship with Ricky.
Olivia Rodrigo released her debut album ‘Sour’ in 2021
The artist earned praise for “The Rose Song” and “All I Want.” Rodrigo also received millions of streams on songs released in conjunction with Sour. She even earned the Grammy nominations for Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best New Artist.
During the same interview, Rodrigo elaborated on the differences between writing for High School Musical: The Musical: The Series and writing her original music.
“It’s so different but still fun,” she said. “I think working within a prompt and having constraints to your creativity is so fun, and a great challenge for me as a songwriter. When I’m writing songs for myself the world is my oyster, and I can write about whatever I want.”
“[But] it’s really nice to [say] ‘ok, this is what I’m going to write about, I already have the topic chosen for me, and I’m just going to do the best I can with this information,’” she continued. Rodrigo is expected to return for the third season of the Disney+ original. Until then, music by Rodrigo is available on most major streaming platforms.
