Olivia Rodrigo released her second studio album, Guts, which included a song called "Ballad of a Homeschooled Girl", in 2023.[1] On November 1, 2023, it was announced that "Can't Catch Me Now", her single from The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, would be released on November 3, 2023.[2] While announcing the song alongside a clip from the film, Rodrigo stated: "Soooo beyond excited that I got the opportunity to write a song for The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes."[3][4] The clip included a 60-second snippet featuring the lyrics: "There's blood on the side of the mountain / There's writing all over the walls / But I'm in the trees, I'm in the breeze / My footsteps on the ground."[5] It was made available for pre-order and included as the opening track on the 17-song soundtrack album released via Geffen Records.[6][7]
"Can't Catch Me Now" is three minutes and 25 seconds long. Dan Nigro produced and mixed the song, and he engineered it with Dylan Waterhouse. He plays guitar, keyboards, bass, mellotron; Paul Cartwright conducted the string arrangement and plays viola and violin; and Chappell Roan provides the background vocals. Randy Merrillmastered it.[8]
"Can't Catch Me Now" is a folk rock song,[9] which begins with acoustic guitar instrumentation and subsequently features strings and harmonies.[10] The song escalates in intensity during the chorus, when Rodrigo sings "You can't, you can't catch me now" over orchestral instrumentation. During the song's conclusion, Rodrigo sings lyrics which allude to the plot of the film: "Yeah, sometimes the fire you founded / Don't burn the way you'd expect / Yeah, you thought that this was the end."[10]Rolling Stone's Charisma Madarang wrote: "the track features Rodrigo over intimate acoustic guitars as the melodies build to a slow crescendo and tell the story of vengeance".[11]
Leonn Ward directed the music video for "Can't Catch Me Now",[18] which was released on November 3, 2023. In it, Rodrigo sits in an isolated cabin while agonizing about something before sprinting through a field while singing the song's lyrics, interspersed with scenes from the film.[19][20]
Rodrigo performed the song live for the first time on the Los Angeles date of iHeartRadio's Jingle Ball Tour 2023 in December 2023.[21] She again performed it on the New York City show of the tour that month.[22] On December 11, 2023, Rodrigo performed "Can't Catch Me Now" on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.[23] On March 6, 2024 in Miami, Rodrigo added the song to the setlist for her Guts World Tour.[24]
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – SINGLES DIGITAL – TOP 100 and insert 202347 into search. Retrieved November 27, 2023.
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select SINGLES DIGITAL - TOP 100 and insert 202348 into search. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
