Olivia Rodrigo has addressed the subject of her song “Vampire”, which is rumoured to be about Taylor Swift.
The song, which is the lead single from the singer’s forthcoming album Guts, references a “bloodsucker, fame f***er, bleedin’ me dry like a goddamn vampire!” which has led to much speculation among fans about who it could be.
Fans are convinced that Swift is the subject of the song, with many sharing their theories online. Some fans alleged that the pair had a feud over a song credit issue on Rodrigo’s hit “Deja Vu”, in which Rodrigo had interpolated ( meaning the re-recording of a melody instead of sampling) Swift’s “Cruel Summer”. Rodrigo ended up giving Swift a co-writing credit and royalties for the track.
The plot apparently thickened when fans noticed that Rodrigo did not attend any of Swift’s shows in her Eras tour. This surprised fans since Rodrigo has long been vocal about being a dedicated Swiftie (a Taylor Swift fan) and has previously said she always “looked up to” the “Blank Space” musician.
Other fans noted that it once seemed like the pair had a budding friendship and would sometimes share supportive Instagram posts about each other’s work. But now fans are claiming that sentiment has vanished.
However, when asked about the subject of the song in a new interview with The Guardian, Rodrigo said that she was “surprised” that fans came to that conclusion.
Addressing the initial question about whether Swift is the subject of “Vampire”, Rodrigo did not deny this was the case, replying: “How do I answer this?”
“I mean, I never want to say who any of my songs are about. I’ve never done that before in my career and probably won’t.”
Olivia Rodrigo photographed in July— (Getty Images for SiriusXM)
“I think it’s better to not pigeonhole a song to being about this one thing,” she said. “I was very surprised when people thought that.”
This wouldn’t be the first time Rodrigo has addressed the speculation around the song’s subject. In July, she jokingly posted a video of herself with a TikTok comedian Jake Shane sipping on bright blood-coloured drink out of a fake hospital “Type A” blood bag.
In the caption, she sarcastically wrote: “For everyone asking… ‘Vampire’ is about @Jake Shane.”
Olivia Rodrigo’s second album Guts will be released on 8 September.
