Olivia Rodrigo Opens Up About That Taylor Swift Song Credit Drama

Olivia Rodrigo’s sophomore album, Guts, is destined for many a replay. From “All-American Bitch,” to “ballad of a homeschooled girl,” “get him back,” and “pretty isn’t pretty,” the singer-songwriter/pop star has delivered a strong showcase of her eclectic style, her vocal range, and the clear influences she’s wading through when writing. From Alanis Morissette to Lorde, Rodrigo has never been shy about expressing affection for the forebearers of alt-rock and pop who paved the way to her success, having been embraced by many of them such as Paramore’s Hayley Williams or even Katy Perry. In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, she mentions artists such as Rage Against the Machine to Bob Dylan playing a role in how her sound develops.

But naming influences comes with potential trouble, something she discovered on her first album, Sour. Rodrigo had to give writing credits to Taylor Swift and Jack Antonoff for “Deja Vu,” which was inspired by “Cruel Summer” — a comparison I still think is a reach. The Paramore influences on “Good 4 U,” drawing inspiration and hooks from the band’s song “Misery Business,” are more obvious even if they don’t detract from the song.

In the interview with Rolling Stone, Rodrigo is asked about the co-write song credits:

“I was a little caught off guard,” she says. “At the time it was very confusing, and I was green and bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.”

Though she mentions it was more of a discussion between teams, the journalist asks if she could see herself pulling the same move once she’s an older, more established artist, against up-and-comers.

“I don’t think I would ever personally do that,” she says. “But who’s to say where I’ll be in 20, 30 years? All that I can do is write my songs and focus on what I can control.”

As for a potential feud with Swift due to the drama that surrounded the credits — something that resulted in the loss of royalties for Rodrigo? She shut those rumors down.

“I don’t have beef with anyone.”

The internet is predictable, so of course listeners are already trying to find notes and hooks of songs off of Guts that sound like others that came before it. Miley Cyrus fans have already started to comment that “All-American Bitch” (the standout song on the album, by the way) seems to sample her song “Start All Over.”

Ironic, since “All-American Bitch” is all about the impossible standards of being a woman in the modern world, singing about navigating the image of womanhood that best checks off everyone’s boxes of what is and isn’t likable. There’s this insidious eagerness to tear down rising, talented, female artists like Rodrigo that’s undying.

Hollywood, media, fans, and the intersection of all three have a history of chewing up young starlets like Rodrigo and spitting them out. I can’t help but look at this singer, who is closer in age to my 15-year-old sister than myself, and see how the industry and those most prolific in it have already taken aim at her rising star and tried to tear her down, and hope that despite the noise surrounding some of her releases, she remains unscathed. Music is cyclical, artists will always and forever draw on what inspires them, and mileage varies on whether or not that influence will be accepted as something charming or damning. Rodrigo should fall into the former.