Role Model Covered Olivia Rodrigo's 'Maggots for Brains' for BBC Radio 1 — and Pre-Warned Fans He 'Botched It'
Role Model walked into the BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge on August 11, 2025, covered Olivia Rodrigo's "Maggots for Brains," and told his Instagram followers he had mangled it before anyone else could say so first.
"I covered olivia for BBC and im just gonna get ahead of the comments and let you know i botched it," he wrote on his Instagram Story ahead of the cover going live on YouTube, adding two heart-eyes emojis. The post landed before the performance was available to watch, giving listeners a self-deprecating disclaimer before they pressed play. The cover was also uploaded to the official Vevo YouTube channel. (Billboard)
Fans did not agree with his assessment. In the YouTube video's comments section, one viewer wrote: "Came from his Instagram Story. Not botched actually." Others echoed the pushback, suggesting the singer — born Tucker Pillsbury — had undersold his own performance.
The Live Lounge, the long-running BBC Radio 1 segment where artists perform their own songs stripped back and cover another artist's track, has a tradition of turning covers into viral moments. Role Model's contribution added Rodrigo's "Maggots for Brains" to that roster. The song comes from Rodrigo's most recent album, which arrived in June 2025 and topped the Billboard 200 — the chart that ranks the most popular albums in the US each week — with 485,000 total album-equivalent units, the measure that converts streaming plays and physical sales into a single album sales figure. "Maggots for Brains" has peaked at No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100, the weekly US singles chart. (Billboard)
Role Model did not stop at the cover. During his Live Lounge set he also performed "High Hopes 3000" and "Harmony," both from his album Chuck Timely & The Hourglass, which arrived on August 7, 2025 — four days before his BBC appearance. The timing placed him in the Live Lounge at the very start of his album cycle.
Rodrigo's songs have been a recurring choice for Live Lounge visitors this summer. In July 2025, Sienna Spiro covered Rodrigo's "Less" during her own stop on the segment. (Billboard)
For fans, the appeal is straightforward: a well-known artist picks a current hit, rearranges it, and lets the cameras roll. Whether Role Model botched it or not, the comments section has already made its ruling.
