One of the most fascinating things about music today is how often stars call each other out or, more or less, have conversations in their music. Whether it's a collaboration between two stars or two rappers beefing back and forth, it's easier than ever to create buzz about relationship or friendship drama — sometimes with just a few lines.
That was especially true of Olivia Rodrigo's debut album, and her hit "drivers license." The song was about teenage heartbreak, but fans were quick to put the pieces together and guessed that the song was about Joshua Bassett breaking Olivia's heart. Not only that, they assumed that Sabrina Carpenter, a fellow songstress and Disney star, was the 'other girl' in Olivia's narrative.
A tangled web was woven after that, and to this day, no one has given any clarity on the subject. Yet Joshua Bassett has flipped a switch, fans say, and his new music is an absolute serve — and it only adds to the drama.
Joshua Bassett Was The Rumored Subject Of Olivia Rodrigo's Hit "Drivers License"
When "drivers license" came out, Olivia was tight-lipped about who the subject of the song might be. The song did come out a while after she and Joshua Bassett — who were never even confirmed to be dating — had apparently broken up.
Olivia also appeared to be calling out the ex's new love interest, writing, "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."
If the timeline was accurate, Olivia might have been ready to move on by the time her song actually hit the airwaves. Timing aside, an entire album of breakup tracks followed, and Olivia was dating someone new by then.
Either way, looking back, fans thought that Joshua had dumped Olivia for another girl, and the other songs on the album suggested that he was doing all the same things with his new girl that he did with Rodrigo.
A lot of the songs heavily dissed her ex and his new girl, which led to even more assumptions.
Sabrina Carpenter's Song Skin Seemed To Hint At Drama
By the time Olivia's album came out, Sabrina Carpenter had apparently heard all the theories about Olivia's song mentioning her. The two didn't seem to be on great terms, despite both being Disney darlings.
And when Sabrina's Skin came out in January, mere weeks after Driver's License's debut, fans were even more eager to pick things apart. Did Sabrina write a retort to Olivia's wildly popular song to clear the air, to capitalize on the drama, or both?
Or was her song completely unrelated, yet unfortunately timed? It wasn't clear.
A New Sabrina Hit Continued (Or Ended?) The Conversation
In 2022, another hit from Sabrina Carpenter came out and had fans thinking that perhaps the love triangle drama never even existed.
The lyrics include the line, "All because I liked a boy/Fell so deeply into it/It was all so innocent/Dating boys with exes/No, I wouldn't recommend it," among other hits that seem to drag Olivia's statements.
While the song could be about any number of exes in Sabrina's life, fans thought the lyrics were a bit too close to home with the whole love triangle mess. But after Sabrina's song, again, there was quiet. At least, there was, until Joshua Bassett seemed to rebrand himself and speak up a little more clearly.
Fans Call Joshua's New Song "She Said He Said She Said" An "Absolute Serve"
Back in late 2021, fans were thinking Joshua's then-new releases were all about Olivia Rodrigo. And with his new track, "SHE SAID HE SAID SHE SAID," stylized in all caps, fans again clamored all over the lyrics, picking them apart and reading possibly way too far into them.
It's unlikely that Bassett will ever reveal exactly what he means by writing the lyrics (as is generally the case, and creates more intrigue around an artist), but fans have a theory.
Bassett's track includes references that listeners think refer to Olivia and that drama, like "I guess high school never ends/You sure got a lot to say/When you're talkin' on my name/You sure got a lot to say/But did you tell them everything?"
Fans online were thrilled that not only did Joshua change his image, and "beat the White Boy With A GuitarTM allegations!!" but also that he drew attention to himself via a plan to "go on TikTok and p*** off some Olivia stans to get hype."
Whatever Joshua's intentions, he did earn plenty of attention for the new song, which fans say is a "banger," and he may have also put an end to the criticisms of both him and Sabrina Carpenter for having broken Olivia's heart. Supposedly.
