On April 9th 2024, Taylor Swift released her album ‘The Tortured Poets Department‘. Amongst the many great hits on the album, the one that stood out the most to me was ‘Clara Bow‘. There has been a lot of speculation online which states that the song has been written about Olivia Rodrigo which takes us back to the rumored drama that occurred between the two in 2021. This article will reflect on the 2021 drama, the song ‘Clara Bow’ and how women in the pop industry are often pitted against each other.
They Say Never Meet Your Idols
Olivia Rodrigo grew up idolizing Taylor Swift. Often in interviews she mentioned the impact Taylor’s music had on her. On January 8th 2021, Olivia released her single ‘Drivers License‘ which was rumored to be about her ex-boyfriend Joshua Bassett and his rumored girlfriend Sabrina Carpenter. The song was a massive hit and had a huge cultural impact. Olivia put up a celebratory post on Instagram when she saw her song next to Taylor’s on the iTunes chart. Taylor then commented on the post, showing her support.
This marked a moment where Taylor tried to take Olivia under her wing and mentor her. In an interview, Olivia called Taylor “the kindest individual” she had ever met and proceeded to show off her ring which was a gift from Taylor herself. She mentioned that the ring came with a note where it said Taylor was wearing a similar ring while writing her album ‘Red‘. It wasn’t until Olivia released her song ‘Deja Vu‘ on 1st April 2021, that things started to go south.
The Grudge
Credit: Rolling Stone
On 7th April 2021, Rolling Stone published an interview with Olivia where she naively mentioned the love she had for the vocals in Taylor’s song ‘Cruel Summer‘ and compared her new single with it. A few months later, it was made public knowledge that Taylor Swift, Jack Antonoff and St. Vincent got cowriting credits on Deja Vu. After a while, Olivia gave an interview where she spoke about how she was upset her work was sometimes discredited.
This led to the public believing that there was a business disagreement between the two singers. In a conversation with Alanis Morissette, Alanis talked about how when she released her first album she had to deal with a lot of jealously and people she adored her whole life becoming mean girls. Olivia instantly agreed with her saying, “Same!”. In her new album ‘Guts‘, Olivia released a song called ‘The grudge‘. A lot of fans speculate that the song has been written about Taylor Swift. The entire song is about a moment of betrayal which came in the shape of a phone call on a Friday in May. This was around the same time as the ‘Deja Vu’ drama. There is also a line in the song where Olivia states that she hears the persons voice every time she thinks she’s not enough, which could very well be a career-related insinuation.
“I have nightmares each week about that Friday in May
One phone call from you and my entire world was changed
Trust that you betrayed, confusion that still lingers
Took everything I loved and crushed it in between your fingers”
Immediately after Olivia’s interview with Alanis, Sabrina Carpenter posted a story with a ‘Red-themed’ care package from Taylor Swift which came with a ring and red scarf. The same package that had been previously gifted to Olivia! After all the ‘driver’s license’ drama between Sabrina and Olivia which led to Sabrina Carpenter releasing her songs ‘Skin‘ and ‘Because I liked a boy‘ it seemed a bit too well-thought out to be just a coincidence. Sabrina Carpenter was then put back in the spotlight when Taylor announced her to be one of her openers on The Era’s Tour. Sabrina Carpenter has reached an all time career high and had recently been nominated for 8 grammys.
Jealousy, Jealousy?
Circling back to the root cause as to why all this happened the reason seems simple. Taylor Swift’s song ‘Clara Bow‘ talks about how the pop industry is always in a constant need of an ‘it girl’. But also, with age the ‘it girl’ fades away until a new girl steps in to fill her shoes. The most special thing about Taylor Swift is her ability to write lyrics that resonate.
She is known to be one of the best songwriters of our time. Nobody in the industry today can give Taylor a run for her money when it comes to songwriting. Nobody except Olivia. Which is why a lot of people believe that Olivia Rodrigo poses as a threat to Taylor Swift. Even Taylor didn’t reach the level of fame Olivia has managed to reach at this young an age. Which is why the last verse of Clara Bow seems to be a tribute to her.
“You look like Taylor Swift
In this light
We’re loving it.
You’ve got edge she never did
The future’s brightDazzling.”
If I Was A Man
There is obviously no confirmation about who ‘Clara Bow‘ is definitely about. Maybe the idea is not ‘who’ the song is about but rather ‘what’ it seems to represent. The idea that women are often still compared to each other is what depicts the true misogyny in our society. This would never happen with male artists. They get the liberty of being credited with their own individualism and are never pitted against each other to be seen as competitors.
The truth is plain and simple. All three female artists in this situation are bright, talented pop sensations and women in 2024 are running the pop industry. They all have something unique to offer and are graceful in handling their feuds and battles by turning it into art. Men still get away by doing the bare minimum but women just have to be these absolutely flawless figures. It really does take you back to Taylor’s song ‘The Man‘.
“I’d be a fearless leader
I’d be an alpha type
When everyone believes ya
What’s that like?I’m so sick of running as fast as I can
Wondering if I’d get there quicker if I was a man”
