Olivia Rodrigo won’t need her driver’s license to travel across the pond, where she’ll be headed to perform at the 2021 BRIT Awards.
The 18-year-old hitmaker announced on Tuesday (April 27) that she’s the latest addition to the performer lineup with a clever mock-up of her “U.K. drivers license,” writing on Instagram, “My first time in the uk and I’m gonna be performing at the @brits omg. so excited I can hardly wait!”
Rodrigo’s Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 blockbuster debut single “Drivers License” is the U.K.’s biggest song of 2021 (so far) after spending nine weeks at No. 1 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart, making it the U.K.’s longest-reigning No. 1 debut single in 15 years. Her highly anticipated debut album Sour will be released on May 21, 10 days after her BRIT Awards performance.
The BRIT Awards teased her performance on Monday with a One Direction-inspired clue. The official awards show account wrote out the lyrics to the U.K. boy band’s “Olivia” lyrics (“The summertime and butterflies, all belong to your creation…”), before sending a cryptic series of emojis hinting at “Drivers License” and its follow-up single “Deja Vu.” It then alluded to the latter by writing, “What’s it called when you feel like you’ve been here and done this before? Asking for a friend….”
At the 2021 BRIT Awards, Rodrigo will join already-announced performers Arlo Parks, Dua Lipa, Griff, Headie One, and Rag’n’Bone Man and P!nk alongside the Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust Choir.
“I’m so excited that my first time in the U.K. will be spent at The BRITs! My U.K. fans have been beyond supportive of me, and I’m so excited to perform for them on this iconic stage,” Rodrigo said in a press release.
The 2021 BRIT Awards will be held on Tuesday, May 11, at London’s O2 Arena. The 4,000 expected audience members will not be socially distanced or required to wear face coverings in the arena, making it the “first major indoor music event to welcome back a live audience — a pivotal moment in the return of live music at scale,” according to a statement from the show.
About 2,500 tickets will be gifted by the record music industry to “key workers” — the British term for “essential workers” — in the greater London area. The remaining 1,500 tickets will be available for purchase by the nominated and performing artists and their teams, supporting record labels, management and show partners and sponsors.
Olivia Rodrigo’s Sour is out on May 21 and can be pre-ordered here.