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Olivia Rodrigo: Babydoll dress criticism normalizes pedophilia

Olivia Rodrigo addressed the controversy over her babydoll dress, stating that the criticism highlights how "we really normalize pedophilia in our culture." She noted her fashion was inspired by music icons like Kathleen Hanna.

Variety Music·May 27, 2026·via Variety Music

Olivia Rodrigo: Babydoll dress criticism normalizes pedophilia

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May 27, 2026 4:30pm PT

Olivia Rodrigo Addresses Babydoll Dress Criticism: ‘It Shows How We Really Normalize Pedophilia in Our Culture’

By Steven J. Horowitz

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Steven J. Horowitz

Senior Music Writer

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Olivia Rodrigo has spoken about the online controversy surrounding her recent choice to wear a babydoll dress, stating that the logic behind the criticism showed how “we really normalize pedophilia in our culture” and that she was actually inspired by music icons like Kathleen Hanna and Courtney Love to wear them.

Rodrigo recently donned the dresses in her “Drop Dead” music video and at her recent Spotify’s Billions Club Live concert, eliciting online criticism that the look infantilized and sexualized her. “That’s been making me so upset,” she said in a clip from the New York Times Popcast, which will release the full episode tomorrow. “Not even for me. People can say whatever they want. What’s really disturbing is I have worn outfits that are maybe revealing on stage. I’ve been on stage in a sparkly bra and little shorts, which is my right, that’s fun, I felt cool and comfortable in that. And that wasn’t inappropriate, but me fully covered up in a dress that people deemed to be childlike was inappropriate.”