Watch Olivia Rodrigo join Billy Joel live at Madison Square Garden
During his concert at Madison Square Garden in New York, Billy Joel brought singer Olivia Rodrigo to the stage to perform two tracks: Rodrigo’s ‘Deja Vu’ and Joel’s ‘Uptown Girl’.
“I’m going to bring up another young musician. This is a very talented singer-songwriter,” Joel said, before listing a few of Rodrigo’s accomplishments, including her three Grammy Award wins and Billboard Music Award. “She’s very talented. I like her music and so do my kids. Please say hello to Olivia Rodrigo,” Joel added to roars of applause.
“Thank you so much for having me, Billy,” Rodrigo replied after stepping out. “I’m such a huge fan, and I kind of wrote this next song about you,” she added, before performing her 2021 Sour hit ‘Deja Vu’, with Joel accompanying on piano.
The song references a former lover of Rodrigo’s and how she introduced him to Joel’s music: “And I bet that she knows Billy Joel / ’Cause you played her ‘Uptown Girl,’” Rodrigo sings in the second verse. Later she adds: “Play her piano, but she doesn’t know / That I was the one who taught you Billy Joel.”
After ‘Deja Vu’, the pair joined each other at the front of the stage to perform ‘Uptown Girl’ – or, as Joel put it, “a song that was referred to in the last song, as per Olivia’s request.”
This latest inter-generational collaboration follows similar live guest visits earlier in the year, including a performance of ‘You Oughta Know’ with Alanis Morissette, ‘Complicated’ alongside Avril Lavigne, ‘Fuck You’ with Lily Allen and ‘Torn’ with Natalie Imbruglia.
Earlier this month, it was also announced that Rodrigo would induct her friend Morissette into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame in September.
Watch fan-shot footage of both performances as Olivia Rodrigo joined Billy Joel in New York below.
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