Olivia Rodrigo has recently been accused of copying major artists including Taylor Swift and Paramore. She has established herself as a young pop-punk singer, and has been compared to the 2000s pop-punk queen Hayley Williams, who is a member of Paramore.
The first time the singer's fans heard Good 4 U, it was instantly compared to Paramore's 2007 hit song Misery Business.
After severe online backlash, Olivia added Williams and ex-guitarist Josh Farro as co-writers of the song. But they're not the only artist Rodrigo has borrowed inspiration from. Grunge rock vocalist Courtney Love has accused Olivia of replicating her album cover, and fans have noted a similarity between Taylor Swift's New Year's Day and one of Olivia's songs from Sour.
Olivia Paid Over $1.2 Million For Sampling Songs
As reported by Billboard, Olivia Rodrigo and her producer Dan Nigro have paid Hayley Williams and former Paramore member Josh Farro around $1.2 million, and about $824,000 was paid to Taylor Swift and her writing team.
1 step forward, 3 steps back is the only Rodrigo song that interpolates Taylor's piano tune from her track New Year's Day, which was released in 2017 as part of her album Reputation. Rodrigo gave Swift and Jack Antonoff writing credits for the song, as well as a heavy royalty payout for the same.
It is unknown whether Olivia reached out to Taylor Swift to ask if she could sample the song, but judging from their close-knit relationship, fans are certain she did.
1 step forward, 3 steps back is not the only song inspired by Swift. Olivia previously revealed that she was inspired by the bridge in Cruel Summer while writing the music for her hit song Deja Vu.
The Sour creator is a massive fan of Swift's, and has always referred to the Willow singer as one of her "biggest inspirations". Prior to Olivia releasing her single Driver's License, Swift even acknowledged her cover of Cruel Summer, and shared it to her own account, gushing over her "talent".
Taylor also approved of Rodrigo's single being at No. 3 on the iTunes chart under her own songs, and commented on Olivia's post saying "I say that's my baby and I'm really proud."
