Did Sabrina Carpenter Start A Feud Between Taylor Swift And Olivia Rodrigo? A Look At The Rumors
Taylor Swift's decision to make Sabrina Carpenter an opener for several Eras Tour stops may have gotten under Olivia Rodrigo's skin. It's no secret that Carpenter and Rodrigo weren't on the best of terms at one point because of Joshua Bassett. After the "Drivers License" hitmaker's rumored relationship with her co-star ended, he seemingly wasted no time in moving on with Carpenter. Based on the lyrics of "Traitor," from Rodrigo's mega-hit debut album, she felt betrayed by Bassett because he always reassured her that the "Nonsense" singer was just a friend while they were dating, but then ran to her as soon as they were done. While the singer-songwriter didn't have any harsh words for Carpenter personally, fans still labeled her a homewrecker.
The pop star notably responded to "Drivers License" with "Skin," in which Carpenter clapped back at the haters and called out Rodrigo for bringing unwarranted negativity into her life. Given these very public clashes, it's unsurprising that Rodrigo may not have been best pleased when her long-time idol, Swift, brought Carpenter out on the road with her. A source shared her feelings on the matter with Life & Style magazine, confirming, "There are a lot of whispers going around that there's bad blood between Olivia and Taylor." They continued, "While Olivia hasn't come out and said it was true, she's not happy that Sabrina is opening for Taylor." While the addition of the "Espresso" hitmaker may have worsened Swift and Rodrigo's relationship, their supposed feud began long before the Eras tour even came into existence.
Taylor Swift and Olivia Rodrigo's issues reportedly began in 2021
There was a time when Olivia Rodrigo and Taylor Swift openly gushed about each other. However, their supportive relationship was irrevocably changed when the former Disney star released "Sour" in May 2021. A mere day before, Billboard reported that Rodrigo had offered up a writing credit to Swift and her frequent producer, Jack Antonoff, for the track "1 Step Forward, 3 Steps Back." While appearing on "The Zach Sang Show,” Rodrigo clarified that she had credited the duo because the singer-songwriter interpolated "New Year's Day" on her song. Then, in July 2021, Variety reported that Swift, Antonoff, and St. Vincent had earned a writing credit for Rodrigo's "Deja Vu" because it bore some resemblance to their song, "Cruel Summer."
Billboard later noted that the "Good 4 U" hitmaker had shelled out millions of dollars in royalties to Swift and her writing team. We seemingly learned Rodrigo's thoughts on the situation when she spoke to TIME a few months later. "It was really frustrating to see people discredit and deny my creativity," she admitted. Meanwhile, "Sour" producer Dan Nigro was less subtle in pointing out that certain artists seemed hungry for royalties only after Rodrigo's career took off. The pop star added more fuel to the fire by releasing "Vampire" in June 2023. There was intense speculation that Rodrigo had called out the Grammy winner with lyrics like "How's the castle built off people you pretend to care about?" and "You sold me for parts / As you sunk your teeth into me."
Was there ever really a feud between Taylor Swift and Olivia Rodrigo?
During a September 2023 interview with The Guardian, Olivia Rodrigo addressed the swirling rumors that "Vampire" was about Taylor Swift. The "Happier" hitmaker stressed that she didn't like to talk about the inspiration for her music and was taken aback by all the feud speculation. In a chat with Rolling Stone, later that same month, she dispelled it completely by clarifying, "I don't have beef with anyone." Rodrigo elaborated, "I'm very chill. I keep to myself. I have my four friends and my mom, and that's really the only people I talk to, ever. There's nothing to say."
The former child star also addressed the controversial royalties situation by acknowledging, "I was a little caught off guard." As a greener artist, Rodrigo wasn't aware of the nitty-gritty of the music industry, so she didn't fully understand what was going on at the time. So, the Grammy winner understandably didn't take a hands-on approach to the discussion and let her team deal with it. Interestingly, when the interviewer wondered if she would ever ask a new artist to give her credit for their work in the future, Rodrigo said that she most likely wouldn't.
Since then, there have been several signs that the feud between Rodrigo and Swift was never that serious. After the "Bad Idea Right?" singer took the stage at the 2024 Grammys, the "Shake It Off" hitmaker even gave her a standing ovation (via X, formerly known as Twitter). And Rodrigo seemed similarly happy when Swift's "Midnights" bagged the album of the year award.