Though she represents the latest generation of groundbreaking female musicians, Olivia Rodrigo recently admitted her complete unfamiliarity with Lilith Fair, the pioneering all-female music festival that helped pave the way for artists like herself. The revelation came during her involvement with the documentary “Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery – The Untold Story,” where Rodrigo expressed genuine surprise at having never encountered such a culturally significant movement in music history.
Rodrigo’s unawareness of Lilith Fair highlights both progress made and history overlooked in women’s music evolution.
The documentary, which debuts on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+ beginning September 21, 2025, chronicles the remarkable journey of Lilith Fair, a groundbreaking festival founded by Sarah McLachlan that ran from 1997 to 1999. McLachlan created the festival specifically to challenge industry executives who claimed two female artists couldn’t successfully share a concert bill—a notion that seems particularly absurd in today’s musical landscape.
Featuring over 600 hours of previously unreleased archival footage, the documentary showcases the impressive lineup of performers who graced Lilith Fair’s stages, including Bonnie Raitt, Sheryl Crow, Erykah Badu, Jewel, and the Indigo Girls. These artists collectively formed a movement that directly confronted gender bias in the music industry during the late 1990s.
McLachlan narrates much of the documentary, providing firsthand context about the resistance and skepticism the festival encountered, while simultaneously highlighting its tremendous cultural impact. The film deliberately connects Lilith Fair’s original participants with contemporary female artists like Rodrigo and Brandi Carlile, illustrating how the festival’s legacy continues to influence today’s music scene.
Inspired by a 2019 Vanity Fair oral history and directed by Ally Pankiw, the documentary serves as an essential bridge between generations of female musicians. For aspiring artists today, developing a strong personal brand remains crucial for standing out in the competitive music landscape, just as these pioneering women did decades ago. Understanding this history is especially valuable for today’s artists seeking to establish diverse income streams beyond traditional recording and touring. The film was produced by Dan Levy’s company in partnership with Elevation Pictures and distributed by ABC News Studios. Rodrigo’s candid admission of her unfamiliarity with Lilith Fair underscores both how far women in music have come and how vital it remains to preserve the history of those who fought to create these opportunities.
Through this documentary, McLachlan effectively sets the record straight about Lilith Fair’s enduring significance.
