Olivia Rodrigo’s “Serena Joy” has been crowned fans’ favorite new release of the week, leading InMusic’s latest Instagram Story poll with 50% of the vote. The charity single finished ahead of JENNIE’s Fallen Angel EP, which earned 39%, while Alex Warren’s Wildchild and Post Malone’s August 26th trailed with 8% and 3%, respectively.
Olivia Rodrigo’s “Serena Joy” separated itself from the pack despite being a standalone release rather than part of her new album, You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love.
The song was originally recorded with longtime collaborator Dan Nigro for the album but was ultimately left off because it did not fit the project’s tightly structured relationship narrative. Rodrigo instead turned the track into a charity single connected to Daisy Chain Fields, her inaugural women-led festival in Irvine, California.
“Serena Joy” takes its name from the character in Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, using her role within a patriarchal system to explore complicity, power and the consequences of helping uphold structures that can eventually turn against you. The song’s central warning — “If they do it to them, they’ll do it to you” — gives the track a sharper political edge than much of Rodrigo’s relationship-focused material.
Olivia Rodrigo first sold 500 physical copies of the song at Analog Record Shop in Tustin before releasing it on streaming platforms on August 24. She then performed it live just two days later while headlining Daisy Chain Fields, where the track became part of an 80-minute set featuring special guests including Sarah McLachlan, Alanis Morissette and Stevie Nicks.
The festival attracted approximately 45,000 people and raised $10 million through ticket proceeds before Melinda French Gates matched the amount, bringing the total to $20 million. The charitable purpose behind “Serena Joy” therefore became inseparable from its first major live performance.
JENNIE came closest to challenging Rodrigo in the poll. Her Fallen Angel EP collected 39% of the votes after arriving August 28, following her 2025 solo album Ruby and BLACKPINK’s Deadline. The three-track digital release includes the sparse title track, “Heaven” and “Less Than a Lover,” while its physical edition expands the project with three additional songs.
Alex Warren’s Wildchild placed third with 8%. Released August 28, the 13-track sophomore album draws from Warren’s family history, including recordings from old home videos, while exploring grief, marriage and impending fatherhood. Nile Rodgers and John Mayer are among its featured collaborators.
Post Malone’s August 26th rounded out the poll with 3%. The project is a remastered version of his 2016 mixtape, finally arriving on official streaming services and vinyl on August 26 — nearly a decade after the raw, genre-blurring collection first circulated in the early stages of his career.
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