All-American Bitch
[3] She conceived the follow-up album, Guts (2023), at the age of 19, while experiencing "lots of confusion, mistakes, awkwardness & good old fashioned teen angst".
[8] She wrote over 100 songs with Nigro, including the more rock-oriented tracks on the album because they drew a bigger reaction from Rodrigo's audiences during live shows.
[13] Rodrigo had always experienced emotional turmoil over her rage and dissatisfaction, which she could not express as she felt pressured to portray gratitude, and she struggled wanting to be the "perfect American girl" but not always feeling that way.
[25] Spin's Ilana Kaplan believed the song combines Hole's grunge sound with the pop-punk essence of Avril Lavigne and the fictional band Pink Slip from the 2003 movie Freaky Friday.
[21][30] Hannah Dailey of Billboard believed it shifts from "ethereal choral moments to screamed grungey punk sections", and Heather Phares of AllMusic compared the transition to the work of Phoebe Bridgers and Courtney Love.
[8][32][33] Writing for The Forty-Five, Rhian Daly thought Rodrigo's delivery went from "pretty to blood-curdling", and Pitchfork's Cat Zhang likened her jeering tone to Lavigne and the All-American Rejects.
[25][39][40] "All-American Bitch" is a satirical song, in which Rodrigo expresses concerns about society's difficult expectations for women by sarcastically describing herself as someone who satisfies them.
"[31][34][41] Among other inconsistencies, Rodrigo perceives that they are expected to allow crude jokes to pass unchallenged, be empathetic but never to the point of making others uncomfortable, never show their anger, and internalize their emotions.
[22] Writing for The Guardian, Laura Snapes described the song as "a satirical diatribe against the expectations and double standards she still feels bound by", and PopMatters' Jeffrey Davies called it a 2023 version of Meredith Brooks's 1997 single "Bitch".
[a] Elle's Erica Gonzales thought it was a "killer opener", and The Australian's Jules LeFevre opined the song was an ideal way to begin the album.
[13][48] Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone thought it started Guts off with "a fantastic pop-punk angst rant", and Sowing of Sputnikmusic believed that the album was irrefutably successful and this began with the song.
[23][45] Writing for Billboard, Jason Lipshutz ranked "All-American Bitch" as Guts' second best track and thought it proved that Rodrigo had a talent for "genre refraction".
[24][19] Punch Liwanag of the Manila Bulletin believed the production and Rodrigo's vocals on "All-American Bitch" came across as effortless, and Gabriel Saulog of Billboard Philippines thought the guitar riff flawlessly captured her turmoil and inner struggles.
[25][50] Gonzales opined the drums in the chorus of "All-American Bitch" hit "like a tantrum" and the melody oscillated from "sweet to sour" and "angelic to chaotic".
[13] Several critics described Rodrigo's vocals in the verses as angelic,[21][27][34] and MusicOMH's John Murphy believed her screams in the latter half were attention-grabbing and could compete with Black Francis.
Beats Per Minute's Lucas Martins thought the song combined youthful drama and introspection to create an earnest expression of frustration, which embodied Rodrigo's generation and resonated perfectly with the zeitgeist.
[51] Chris Willman of Variety opined that it tapped into a significant aspect of Rodrigo's appeal, embracing the essence of adolescence without attempting to sound "too seasoned" prematurely.
[52] The Line of Best Fit's Matthew Kim viewed "All-American Bitch" as a compelling work of social commentary, and Lipshutz stated his respect for the lyrics about Rodrigo's award acceptance speeches.
[56][57] The latter magazine's Bria McNeal believed that Rodrigo traipsed through an age-old story, but she transformed it into something completely modern and displayed "perfect, unfiltered rage against the machine".
[61] "All-American Bitch" received a silver certification in the United Kingdom from the British Phonographic Industry, and the Official Charts Company declared it her 17th-biggest song in the country in February 2024.
[76] Rodrigo performed "All-American Bitch" at the Ace Hotel Los Angeles on October 9, 2023, in an exclusive concert for American Express cardholders.
[77] On December 1, 2023, she reprised the song at the KIIS-FM Jingle Ball in a red leather mini-dress with a bejeweled top and ebony knee-high boots.
