Olivia Rodrigo hosted the inaugural Daisy Chain Fields festival on Saturday, bringing together female artists to raise money for women-focused non-profits that have had their funding cut by the Trump administration. The festival raised $10m (£7.4m), which Melinda French Gates matched, bringing the total to $20m.
A Weekend of Contrasts
While Donald Trump, the 80-year-old president of the United States, spent his weekend complaining about a lake and posting memes of Donald's Ducks, Rodrigo, a 23-year-old pop star, used her weekend to try to "Make America Somewhat Decent Again."
In a perfect world, a singer holding a benefit concert for feminist charities would not be radical. But the article notes that we do not live in a perfect world, describing it as "hell." Trump has successfully pressured US institutions into doing his bidding, universities have defunded Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programmes, many media outlets have bowed to the president, and tech CEOs have aligned with him. Women's rights are going backwards globally and civil liberties are under attack.
Rodrigo's History of Speaking Out
Rodrigo has always used her platform to speak out and has never been one of those celebrities who insist that remaining apolitical is a noble act. When Roe v Wade was overturned in 2022, the then 19-year-old musician condemned the decision on stage at Glastonbury. Rodrigo, who is Filipino American, also publicly told the Trump administration not to use her music in their "racist, hateful propaganda" when one of her songs was featured in a government video telling undocumented immigrants to self-deport.
Rodrigo has not been silent about Gaza, a subject many celebrities are terrified to mention. Last year she wrote on Instagram about how "mothers, fathers and children in Gaza are starving, dehydrated and being denied access to basic medical care ..." She also gave a nod to Palestine at a press conference for her Daisy Chain Fields festival, where she wore a dress made by Palestinian fashion brand Nöl Collective.
The Role of Celebrity Activism
Speaking on the New York Times's Popcast earlier this year, Rodrigo said acknowledging social issues is part of expressing herself. "I think it would just be disingenuous to be like, I don't feel heartbroken about what's going on in Gaza. As an artist, I feel like that's just what you do. And that's my job," she said.
The article argues that it is the job of everyone with any sort of platform or power. It suggests that if you have a huge platform and money, you should probably want to use your resources for good. It also criticises the idea of not "taking sides," stating that the world is not a football match and it is not divisive to stand with vulnerable people.
Taylor Swift, the richest female musician in history, seemed to agree at one point. She stayed quiet in the lead-up to the 2016 election, but later came out to endorse progressive causes. "I need to be on the right side of history," she said in the 2020 documentary Miss Americana. While Swift endorsed Kamala Harris in 2024, she has been careful about what she says during Trump 2.0. Unlike other musicians who have publicly condemned the Trump administration for using their music in offensive posts, she seemingly ignored the use of her songs by Trump for months. Her songs have been quietly removed from Trump's ragebait posts in recent weeks, but Swift has not issued any public statement about it, nor has she said anything about issues such as Gaza or ICE.
The article concludes that there are limits to celebrity activism, but in a world where free speech is under attack, it feels increasingly important for celebrities to speak out. It hopes Rodrigo's festival prompts more of her peers to have some guts.
