Taylor Swift and Olivia Rodrigo's Friendship Timeline: What Happened?

“I got a letter from Taylor Swift last night, which is crazy. Last night I opened it for the first time, so I'm still reeling,” Rodrigo said Radio.com in March 2021. “My tears are over, my snot from sobbing is over. I love her. One of my favorite lyrics of hers is, “Beyond me, I'd like to tell you don't get lost in these little things / Your enemies will defeat themselves before you get a chance to swing.” It's in 'Long Story Short' by Always. So she wrote a little bit about that in her letter. She says, “I think we make our own luck and I think if you're kind to people and do what's right, it always comes back to you in the best way.” I just adore her and I've literally been thinking about that since I opened that thing last night, it's the only thing on my mind. […] I can't really talk about it, I'm almost crying. It's so crazy I can't even fathom it.”

Swift seemingly became a mentor to Rodrigo, but the duo's relationship seemed to hit a snag after Rodrigo released her second single “Deja Vu” in April 2021. Some listeners pointed out similarities to Swift's 'Cruel Summer' – a song Rodrigo admitted she used as inspiration while writing her album.

Swift – together with her employees Jack Antonoff And Saint Vincent – ultimately received retroactive royalties on the song, but Swift and Rodrigo have not spoken publicly since.

Keep scrolling for all the highs and lows between Swift and Rodrigo over the years:

A cruel cover

In April 2020, Rodrigo performed a cover of “Cruel Summer” – a song from Swift's 2019 album Lover – for MTV's Alone Together Jam Session.

“THE TALENT,” Swift wrote about the rendition via her Instagram Story. “I love this!!! Thank you for this beautiful performance @olivia.rodrigo @mtv.”

Born Swiftie

Even before she uploaded Instagram videos of herself rocking out in her car to Swift's “Better Than Revenge,” Rodrigo was “the biggest Swiftie in the world,” and she claimed she was the biggest Swiftie in the world. Folklore The singer's lyrics even helped her form some of her first songs.

“I made up songs about pickups, even though I had never seen a pickup in my life,” Rodrigo said. Nylon magazine in 2021 to be inspired by Swift's hit 'Picture to Burn'.

Promo dance party

Rodrigo and BFF Conan Grey took to social media to tease the April 2021 re-release of Swift's song “You Belong With Me.” In the TikTok clip, the pair recreated the iconic music video by writing gestures to each other, jumping on the bed and lip-syncing into hairbrushes.

Screaming, crying, throwing up

When Rodrigo's song “Driver's License” hit No. 3 on iTunes in January 2021, it landed directly below two of Swift's songs, “It's Time to Go” and “Right Where You Left Me.” Rodrigo at the time shared a screenshot of the list via Instagramwriting: “Next to Taylor on the US iTunes chart, I sit in a puddle of tears.”

For her part, Swift responded with her own comment: “I say this is my baby and I'm proud of it.”

Rodrigo then shared the comment on her social media page: subtitle of the message“What is breathing?”

Rodrigo later said that so many of her idols had contacted her to congratulate her on her success. “Taylor obviously responded to my Instagram post and that made a big impression, it was crazy,” she said in an interview with Britain's “Big Top 40” later that month. “I'm the biggest Swiftie in the world and the fact that she did that really changed my life.”

An invention in the making

Swift sent Rodrigo a handwritten note and gifts in March 2021.

“She gave me this ring because she said she wore one exactly like it when she wrote Red and she wanted me to have one of those and all these great things,” Rodrigo told Sirius XM's “The Morning Mashup” at the time. “She wrapped these gifts by hand.”

Nice to meet you

The pair eventually met in person at the Brit Awards in May 2021, where they posed for a sweet photo. Before the ceremony, Rodrigo wrote a handwritten note to Swift – and also Harry Styles and Small Mix.

Turn sour?

The duo's blossoming friendship seemingly hit a snag when Rodrigo's debut album, Pickles, was released later that month. Swift was always credited with the song “1 Step Forward, 3 Steps Back,” which uses an interpolation of her song “New Year's Day.”

However, Swift was retroactively credited with Rodrigo's second single, “Deja Vu”, in July 2021, after listeners accused her of plagiarism and copyright infringement on social media.

Billboard later reported in September 2021 that Rodrigo had declared “millions” in royalties for each of the songs.

Leech, Fame F-ker?

After Rodrigo released the single “Vampire” in August 2023, some fans began speculating that the pop song was about Swift. The sharp lyrics seemed to tease an argument, but it was unclear whether Rodrigo was singing about a romantic or platonic relationship.

Rodrigo later appeared to quell the rumors The guard in September 2023: “I mean, I never want to say which of my songs are about. I've never done that before in my career and probably never will. I think it's better not to pigeonhole a song that's about this one thing… I was very surprised when people thought that.”

Not in any era

At the request of The guard when she went to Swift Eras tourRodrigo explained that the promotion of her second album, Innardsprevented her from attending.

'I didn't do that [gone] not yet,” she told the outlet. “I'm going to Europe this week.”

Have a grudge?

After the release of Rodrigo's second studio album, InnardsIn September 2023, listeners immediately began speculating whether the song “The Grudge” referred to the copyright issue going on between her and Swift.

“The arguments I won against you in my head / In the shower, in the car and in the mirror before bed,” Rodrigo sings in the second verse. “Yeah, I'm so tough when I'm alone, and I make you feel so guilty / And I fantasize about someday when you'll be a little sorry.”

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She adds in the chorus, “Ooh, you think I deserve it all? / Oh, your flower is filled with vitriol / You built me ​​up just to watch me fall / You have it all and you still want more.

Show support

While attending the 2024 Grammys, Swift was seen singing along to Rodrigo's performance. She also applauded Rodrigo, who returned the favor when Swift won for Best Pop Vocal Album later that night.