Olivia Rodrigo reached a major career milestone over the weekend after she played for the largest audience yet, while also giving back to a community that means a lot to her.
The young pop star traveled to the Philippines as part of her Guts World Tour to play at the massive Philippine Arena in Manila on October 5. The venue is the largest indoor arena in the world and holds 55,000 people — making it Rodrigo's largest crowd of her career.
Rodrigo, who is part Filipina and has proudly spoken of her heritage, shared a sweet message on Instagram after the show, expressing her gratitude for the fans in Manila, and announcing that all profits from ticket sales will be donated.
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“Been dreaming of this show for a whileeeee," Rodrigo wrote on Instagram. "My first time in the Philippines and also my biggest venue ever!!!!! thank you to everyone Manila for welcoming me so generously and making me feel so loved.”
As part of her non-profit organisation Fund 4 Good, Rodrigo said that all sales would go to Jhpiego — a nonprofit organisation affiliated with Johns Hopkins University that helps women and families worldwide. Jhpiego provides reproductive health care access, HIV/ AIDS and infectious disease prevention, education, and more. The organisation focuses its efforts on countries including the Philippines, Tunisia, Brazil, Kenya, Nigeria, and Thailand.
“I’m SO stoked that all the net ticket sales from last night could be donated to @jhpiego through my fund 4 good,” she continued. “I got to visit the organisation while I was in Manila and was so impressed by the work they are doing providing healthcare to women and girls in the Philippines.”
Rodrigo continued: “It was the most special show and the most meaningful trip. to say I’m grateful doesn’t even cut it! Mahal kita.”
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In her carousel of photos, Rodrigo shared pictures from her trip to Manila and visiting the nonprofit onsite. She also wore a ‘Miss So Filipina’ sash along with a ‘Pinoy Pride’ tank top throughout her performance as an homage to the Philippines.
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The singer made it a point to give back while on her sprawling world tour, which kicked off this past February, by launching Fund 4 Good — a global initiative “committed to building an equitable and just future for all women, girls and people seeking reproductive health freedom.” For the first leg of her US tour dates, Rodrigo partnered with the National Network of Abortion Funds to “ensure those most impacted by systemic racism, misogyny, and healthcare barriers can get the reproductive care they deserve.”
Olivia Rodrigo has made sure to speak about her experience as an Asian-American artist in the U.S. including the kind messages from other girls and women who relate to her. “I sometimes get DMs from little girls being like, ‘I’ve never seen someone who looked like me in your position.’ And I’m literally going to cry. Like, just thinking about it,” Rodrigo said in a 2021 interview with V Magazine. "I feel like I grew up never seeing that. Also, it was always like, ‘pop star’ — that’s a white girl.”
This article originally appeared on Teen Vogue.
