What is the true purpose of the pop music documentary?

thefader.com:

Pop documentaries are almost always marketed on the allure of proximity – allowing the viewer the privilege of being up close and personal with an artist despite that intimate feeling often being crafted within a space that still holds the audience at an arm’s length.

In the new Disney+ documentary-concert film Driving Home 2 U, Olivia Rodrigo looks back on the making of her debut album Sour through in-studio footage captured on a GoPro tucked in the Los Angeles studio where she wrote and recorded the album with producer Dan Nigro.

The footage is woven together with performances reimagining the tracklist in chronological order of when each song was created.

Mostly, her commentary is provided through the lens of hindsight as she sifts carefully through memories of the time. Throughout the film, the 19-year-old singer and songwriter holds her cards close to her chest – neatly circumventing the who, what, why, and how of the record’s rumored subject matter.