Robert Smith and Olivia Rodrigo ask “What’s Wrong With Me”
A surprise Primavera performance introduces Olivia Rodrigo’s first credited feature: a full duet with Robert Smith that bridges two generations of emotionally direct pop.
One night after The Cure headlined Primavera Sound, Robert Smith returned to the Barcelona stage for a less predictable appearance. Olivia Rodrigo used her surprise set on 6 June to unveil “What’s Wrong With Me”, bringing Smith out with an acoustic guitar to perform the new song beside her.
The studio version followed on 12 June as part of Rodrigo’s third album, you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love. It is her first song to carry a featured-artist credit, and Smith is not confined to a decorative cameo: the track is structured as a true duet, with the contrast between the two voices doing much of the emotional work.
An influence becomes a collaborator
Rodrigo has spoken often about The Cure’s importance to her, and she previously shared a stage with Smith at Glastonbury in 2025. “What’s Wrong With Me” moves that relationship into original material. Its scale is intimate, its melancholy conversational rather than monumental, and Smith’s voice sounds recognisable without forcing the song to imitate a Cure record.
The collaboration also makes sense from Smith’s side. The Cure’s catalogue has always moved between darkness and immaculate pop construction, while Rodrigo’s writing is at its sharpest when private uncertainty is turned into a melody a huge crowd can carry. The generations are different; the instinct is not.
The song entered the UK chart dated 25 June. More telling than the number was the speed with which the live debut became one of Primavera’s defining moments: a new song, revealed without advance billing, between an artist at pop’s centre and one whose influence is still expanding.
Sources and further reading: Universal Music: album announcement · Setlist.fm: live debut report · Official Charts: song record