Why Olivia Rodrigo’s Comments Make Her Look Like A Hypocrite

I don’t really subscribe to hating other women because of boys. I think that’s so stupid, and I really resent that narrative that was being tossed around.

These comments Olivia Rodrigo made to Variety in a interview leave me confused. At a glance, her comments don’t look bad at all. If anything they look like something I should praise her for. I agree with this belief she shares. Yet, her comments ring hollow. They actually feel hypocritical.

Olivia Rodrigo gained popularity in January of this year when she released the song Driver’s License that details the breakup between her and Joshua Bassett. Joshua Bassett dated Olivia after they worked together on High School Musical: The Musical. The story goes the two dated and he broke up with her. Shortly after breaking with up with Olivia, Joshua began dating fellow actor and musician Sabrina Carpenter. Olivia was hurt by the breakup and that Joshua had moved on from her so fast. And thus, Driver’s License was written, a new pop-star was born, and Joshua and Sabrina took on the role of villains.

And you’re probably with that blonde girl
Who always made me doubt
She’s so much older than me
She’s everything I’m insecure about

People quickly found out Driver’s License was about Olivia’s breakup with Joshua. Not only did they figured out Joshua was the person she was talking about in the song, but they also figured out that Sabrina was the woman he was now seeing. Olivia did give people enough clues for them to track down whom she was referring to in the song.

It took you two weeks
To go off and date her
Guess you didn’t cheat
But you’re still a traitor

Joshua and Sabrina received a lot of hate from Olivia’s fans once the details of the breakup were revealed. Olivia has been open about how Joshua didn’t cheat on her. This hasn’t stopped the onslaught of hate both Joshua and Sabrina have received. Olivia’s fans felt the need to protect Olivia and they did so by sending uncalled-for and harmful remarks to Joshua and Sabrina that only made the situation worse.

Joshua was labeled a cheater, while Sabrina took on the role of the other woman. The hate the two received was unprecedented. Joshua couldn’t do anything without Olivia being mentioned. Worse, Sabrina had to deal with being slut-shamed and sent death threats by fans of Olivia’s. Nowhere during this time did Olivia speak out to denounce the actions of her fans. She instead was able to sell her album Sour by playing into the drama that was actively hurting the two other people involved in the situation.

With Olivia being silent, her fans took over and created a narrative. The fans placed Olivia in the role of the victim, Joshua as a cheater, and Sabrina as the other woman. This was an unfair, simplified, and untrue narrative. The narrative caused people to treat Joshua and Sabrina terribly, in a manner no person should ever be treated.

The only person who could have put a stop to this narrative kept quiet and benefited from it. It’s why Olivia’s comments feel disingenuous. If she truly believes that hating other women because of a guy is stupid, why did she let her fans hate and attack Sabrina Carpenter because of her breakup with Joshua Bassett? These comments are 7 months too late. She should have spoken up sooner.

My book Living Rent Free In My Head: Essays On Pop Culture comes out on August 2, 2022. Pre-order it now for only $3.99 on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other vendors.