Here’s Why Fans Think Olivia Rodrigo’s Song ‘The Grudge’ Is About Taylor Swift, Line By Line

Seems like “Vampire” isn’t the only Olivia Rodrigo song that fans thought was about Taylor Swift, as her song “The Grudge,” taken from her highly-anticipated sophomore album Guts, which was released on Friday, September 8th, is also making the internet believe that it could be about the “Bad Blood” singer. And we’re going to dissect some of the lyrics a little further down!

For what it’s worth, the 20-year-old High School Musical: The Musical: The Series star previously addressed the speculation that “Vampire” was about Taylor in an interview with The Guardian, telling the pub that she was “very surprised when people thought that.” Although she didn’t directly say whether it was or wasn’t about the “Anti-Hero” singer, she *did* say: “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. I think it’s better to not pigeonhole a song to being about this one thing.”

Although Olivia hasn’t confirmed anything, let’s take a look at some of the lyrics to see why fans think “The Grudge” might be about the 33-year-old “Look What You Made Me Do” singer, while briefly taking into account some of the history between them.

“I have nightmares each week ’bout that Friday in May / One phone call from you and my entire world was changed,” Rodrigo sings. “Ooh, your flowers filled with vitriol / You built me up to watch me fall / You have everything and you still want more.”

The lyrics “Friday in May” are significant because Olivia (a self-confessed Swiftie) and Taylor finally met at the Brit Awards in May 2021 and even posted a cute photo together on Instagram. The awards took place on a Tuesday, so it’s likely that the Friday in May that fans think Olivia could be referring to is when her debut album, Sour, was released: Friday, May 21st.

Fans think the lyrics “You built me up” could be in reference to Taylor saying she was proud of Olivia, as she publicly applauded her single “Drivers License” in January 2021, saying, “I say that’s my baby and I’m really proud,” and even reportedly sent her gifts. Things appeared to change after Olivia’s album was released in May that year, possibly because Olivia had interpolated a few of Taylor’s songs.

Rodrigo gave Swift and Jack Antonoff – who is Swift’s close friend and longtime collaborator – writing credits and royalties for her track “Déjà Vu” as it had interpolated Swift’s “Cruel Summer.” She also gave them writing credits for “1 Step Forward, 3 Steps Back” as it interpolated Swift’s “New Year’s Day.”