Olivia Rodrigo has landed back in the middle of Taylor Swift feud speculation because of a single Instagram like, but the post she supported was primarily about another singer she has already praised publicly.
Screenshots published by Just Jared show Rodrigo’s account among those that liked an Aug. 18 Pitchfork carousel about rising pop singer Audrey Hobert. One slide included a line comparing Hobert’s songs to the kind of lead singles Swift “doesn’t release anymore,” prompting some commenters to interpret Rodrigo’s like as agreement with the criticism.
The like itself does not establish that. Instagram applies a like to an entire carousel, not an individual slide, and Rodrigo had already been publicly enthusiastic about Hobert’s music before Pitchfork made the Swift comparison.
The reaction also arrives less than three months after Rodrigo was asked directly about persistent theories of tension between herself and Swift. She said she tries not to get consumed by “internet detective” speculation and sees little value in continuing to dwell on something that happened years ago.
The Pitchfork Carousel Put Taylor Swift in the Comparison
View this post on Instagram
The Instagram post promoted a Pitchfork column by Sam Sodomsky titled “It’s a Good Time to Get Into Audrey Hobert,” published after Hobert’s recent Tiny Desk performance drew significant online attention.
The piece uses both early-career Swift and Ween as reference points for understanding Hobert’s offbeat approach to pop. Sodomsky writes that hearing Hobert’s 2025 debut album, Who’s the Clown?, initially made him think, “These sound like the lead singles Taylor Swift doesn’t release anymore.”
Pitchfork pulled that comparison into the Instagram carousel Rodrigo liked. The full column goes further, arguing that Swift has reached what Sodomsky calls “legacy artist” territory while Hobert currently captures some of the unpredictability, humor and intensely personal songwriting he associates with an earlier stage of Swift’s career.
Rodrigo Was Praising Audrey Hobert Before the Post Appeared
There is already a direct explanation for why a Pitchfork post celebrating Hobert might catch Rodrigo’s attention. In a July 29 interview with NYLON, Rodrigo was asked what had been part of her summer soundtrack. “I love Audrey Hobert,” she said.
Rodrigo added that Hobert’s music makes her “really happy” and “really confident,” then named “Silver Jubilee,” “Sue Me,” “Phoebe” and “Sex and the City” among the songs she had been enjoying.
Hobert has been building a larger audience since releasing Who’s the Clown? in 2025. Before establishing herself as a solo artist, she was already closely connected creatively to longtime friend Gracie Abrams, co-writing songs for Abrams’ The Secret of Us era.
Hobert Herself Has Called Taylor Swift a Major Influence
Hobert has spoken openly about growing up on Swift’s songwriting. In a January interview with Vulture, she described Swift as an enormous childhood influence and credited the singer’s longevity to her ability to write from a perspective listeners continue to care about. “I would be the biggest, fattest liar on the planet if I didn’t say she was my god growing up,” Hobert said.
Rodrigo Addressed the Swift Feud Theories in May
Rodrigo addressed the larger feud narrative during a May 28 appearance on The New York Times‘ Popcast. She was asked about speculation surrounding her relationship with Swift and whether there remained a “frost” between them.
Rodrigo declined to validate the theories. “If I dove into every internet detective sleuth that, like, got things right or wrong about my life, or any of my relationships, I think I’d just go crazy,” she said.
She explained that the intense scrutiny surrounding “Drivers License” had taught her to become detached from online theories as a way of handling sudden fame.
When the discussion returned to the older Swift storyline, Rodrigo said she preferred to move forward. “I think there’s no use in, like, harping on it,” she said, adding that her priorities are making music she loves, being kind and supporting other artists.
The Original Speculation Grew After the ‘Deja Vu’ Credits
Much of the scrutiny dates back to 2021 and Rodrigo’s debut album, Sour. Swift, Jack Antonoff and Annie Clark, better known as St. Vincent, were retroactively added to the songwriting credits for “Deja Vu.” Rodrigo had previously explained that she drew inspiration from the high-energy bridge of Swift’s “Cruel Summer,” which Swift wrote with Antonoff and Clark.
Rodrigo later told Rolling Stone that she had been “a little caught off guard” by the credit situation and indicated that much of it had been handled between professional teams.