If you thought Olivia Rodrigo was a big fan of The Cure, you should see her dad. The pop star appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Wednesday (June 10) and revealed that her father adorably shed some tears when she introduced him to Robert Smith for the first time.
“He’s a diehard super fan,” Rodrigo began, noting that her father, Chris, had gotten to converse with Smith backstage at Primavera Sound a few days prior. The Barcelona festival marked the 30th time her dad’s seen The Cure perform, according to the Grammy winner.
“He got to talk to Robert, ’cause we’re kind of friends now,” she told Kimmel. “And the first time he met him, I’ve never seen — my dad’s very tough, you know? He’s a dad, he’s like a protector. They saw each other, and the tears started welling up in his eyes.”
Recreating the two men’s selfie pose, she added, “His screen saver on his phone is a picture of him and Robert like that.”
Also at Primavera, Rodrigo played a surprise set, during which Smith joined her to debut their collaboration, “What’s Wrong With Me.” The unreleased track will appear on the High School Musical: The Musical: The Series alum’s third studio album, You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love, which arrives Friday (June 12).
“Robert has been soundtracking my life for as long as I can remember,” she wrote in a letter to fans shortly after the festival. “He has written some of my favorite songs of all time. His music moves me & inspires me to a degree that is hard to put into words.”
Now it’s clear where Rodrigo gets her The Cure fandom from, a badge of honor she demonstrates in the first two singles from her new album. On Billboard Hot 100-topping lead track “Drop Dead,” she references “Just Like Heaven,” and its followup is simply titled “The Cure.”
Speaking of her album’s singles, Rodrigo explained to Kimmel the wholesome way she chose which tracks to release ahead of time. “It’s really hard,” she said. “Last Thanksgiving, I was with my family, and they live in Wisconsin. It was all of us, aunts and uncles and cousins.”
“I turned the lights off really low, because I was really shy, and I was so nervous to see their faces while they heard the songs for the first time,” she continued. “I played them the whole thing, and then they did ballots, and everyone cast their vote on what they thought the single should be … Everyone liked ‘The Cure’ the most. That was the No. 1 that we got.”
“The Cure” was also the song performed for Kimmel’s audience after their interview. Before that, though, she revealed her plans for celebrating You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love‘s fast-approaching release.
“Sour, I was 17 when it came out,” she said. “Guts, I was 20. Now I’m 23, so I’m going to get really drunk. So I’m really excited about that. Now I’m of age, I can properly do it.”
Watch Rodrigo’s full interview on Jimmy Kimmel Live above.
