Olivia Rodrigo Leaves One of Her Idol’s ‘Mind Blown’ With A Cappella ‘I’ll Be Home for Christmas’ Cover
Olivia Rodrigo and Jacob Collier just surprised fans with an early Christmas present, sharing an a cappella cover of a Christmas classic with harmonies so rich, even one of the Gen Z pop star’s biggest heroes couldn’t believe their ears.
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In a video posted by Collier on Monday (Dec. 8), Rodrigo kicks things off by saying with a hand heart, “Hi, Jacob! How’s this?”
She then launches into a soft, pitch-perfect rendition of Bing Crosby’s holiday classic “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” which dates back to the 1940s but only recently reached a peak of No. 50 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2021. Rodrigo’s video is quickly surrounded by numerous clips of the English musical genius singing backup vocals, layered together to create perfect, breathtaking harmonies.
“I’ll be home for Christmas/ You can plan on me,” the pair sing. “Please have snow and mistletoe/ And presents under the tree.”
“I’ll Be Home For Christmas with my dear friend @oliviarodrigo,” Collier wrote in his caption, adding a festive Christmas tree emoji.
Fans in the comments were deeply impressed with the performance, including Rodrigo’s idol Sheryl Crow. “Ok MIND BLOWN,” the rock star wrote in the replies.
The High School Musical: The Musical: The Series alum has long been open about how much she loves Crow. The two women crossed paths at Billboard‘s Women in Music Awards in 2022, where Crow presented Rodrigo with Woman of the Year.
“Sheryl, I am such a massive fan of you and your songwriting and I’m so grateful that you’re here,” Rodrigo said in her acceptance speech. “It really means the world.”
The “Drivers License” singer returned the favor by helping to induct Crow into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2023. “It was an honor to join Sheryl on stage,” Rodrigo told Billboard in a statement at the time. “She’s equally as kind as she is talented and I feel so lucky that I was able to be part of celebrating such a legend.”
“She’s the real deal. She’s precious,” Crow said of Rodrigo in 2023 on The Tonight Show. “She’s a great songwriter. She seems kinda unaffected by all of it, you know? When I was 19 — her age — I was like, ‘How do you fill out this application for college?!’”
Watch Rodrigo and Collier’s rendition of “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” below.
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