’90s-Sounding Alternative Rock Hit Named Best Song of 2026 So Far by ‘Billboard’

There is no way the ’90s will stay dead and buried. Not when there are artists like OliviaRodrigo to revive them with a single song. 

Her latest single, “The Cure,” a pop-rock track steeped in ‘90s grunge and alternative rock, was just named the best song of 2026 so far by Billboard.

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The second single from her third studio album, You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love, serves as the record’s emotional climax, a reality check shattering the illusion that love can magically fix everything.

“Becoming increasingly aware that a ‘happy’ relationship won’t fix all your problems, as a simple muffled acoustic guitar riff simultaneously builds into a more complex, entrancing production, Rodrigo lays her heart on the line — angrily talk-singing throughout the verses before completely unravelling at the climax,” Billboard writes. 

It adds, “‘Why can’t you stitch me up? Why can’t it ever be enough?’ she begs in the song’s unforgettable bridge, coming to terms with the heart-wrenching realization — before an abrupt stop of its orchestral outro concludes her most visceral song to date.”

The song is a fun and cathartic epic from start to finish, but it’s the opener that has critics and fans salivating with nostalgia. Before Rodrigo even breaks into her raw lyrical vulnerability, the sound of a striking shift toward indie alternative rock rings out. The influence can actually be heard in the very first chords. 

“When one first hears Olivia Rodrigo’s ‘The Cure,’ … the listener might at first mistake the track for the Foo Fighters’ ‘Everlong,’” AudioPhix writes. “The tempo and sonics are quite similar. But instead of the bombast that Dave Grohl and company quickly kick in, Rodrigo stays in the more melancholy moment. At least, for a minute.”

Close your eyes while listening to the acoustic intro and you’d swear you were right back in the mid-to-late ’90s when Foo Fighters and Smashing Pumpkins lived on heavy rotation in your tape deck. This musical breakdown on Instagram does a really good job of pinpointing all the ’80s and ’90s songs Rodrigo seems to reference throughout “The Cure.” 

Released on May 22, “The Cure” debuted at No. 5 on the outlet’s all-genre Hot 100, making it the singer-songwriter’s sixth Top 5 and eighth Top 10 hit—totals that include four No. 1’s by the way: “Good 4 You,” “Vampire,” “Drivers License,” and “Drop Dead.” 

Over on the publication’s Hot Rock & Alternative Songs and Hot Alternative Songs surveys, the track did even better, debuting at No. 1 on both tallies and giving the artist her third leader on each chart. 

Related: 2000s Alternative Rock Supergroup Announces First Album in 23 Years