One of the biggest love triangles in recent years was the triangle between actor and musician Joshua Bassett, actor and musician Olivia Rodrigo and actor and musician Sabrina Carpenter in 2021.
The trio became very popular in 2021 after the release of Rodrigo's song "Drivers License." Both Bassett and Rodrigo gained popularity through the hit Disney+ show "High School Musical: The Musical, The Series," and began rumored dating shortly after filming.
Drivers License' and its lyrics had everyone wondering more and whether it had anything to do with Josh, 20, and Sabrina, 21 – something they both fuelled as they went on to release their own songs, 'Lie Lie Lie' and 'Skin', within weeks of Olivia's hit.
Rodrigo and Bassett never confirmed their relationship but many assumed they broke up in the summer, as shortly after that Bassett was seen with Carpenter on Halloween dressed up as SharkBoy and Lavagirl.
Olivia’s lyric in ‘Drivers License’ where she sings ‘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’had fans guessing it was about Sabrina, after they uncovered an original version of the song in which it was ‘brunette girl’.
Rodrigo’s track came six months after Bassett released the song, “Anyone Else,” in July 2020, which appeared to be about her. “How am I supposed to think about anything else? / How am I to go on keeping this to myself? / I am done pretending I want anyone else / Anyone else, anyone else,” Bassett sings. He later confirmed that the track was written about falling for a friend who was unavailable.
In her song, Rodrigo, sings, “I just can’t imagine how you could be so OK now that I’m gone / Guess you didn’t mean what you wrote in that song about me.”
The love triangle theories took another turn when Joshua Bassett released 'Lie Lie Lie' and Sabrina released 'Skin', where she sings some very telling lyrics:
Maybe we could have been friends / If I met you in another life / Maybe then we could pretend / There's no gravity in the words we write / Maybe you didn't mean it / Maybe "blonde" was the only rhyme / The only rhyme. She later seemingly referenced Rodrigo’s title, with the lyric, “Don’t drive yourself insane.”
“I know what you say about me / I hope that it makes you happy / You can’t seem to get me off your mind (Get me off your mind),” Bassett sings in his January 2021 track, “Lie, Lie, Lie,” seemingly reacting to Rodrigo’s song. “Oh, I know you’re lying through your teeth / You told them the lies that you told me / I’ve had enough of it this time (Had enough this time).” The musician also released a corresponding music video on January 14, showing him driving alone in a car, in what appears to be a nod to his costar’s song.
Bassett released “Only a Matter of Time” on January 28, which he revealed was written in the summer of 2020, around the same time that he first started seeing Carpenter after his alleged fallout with Rodrigo. In the song, he talks about drama and a back-and-forth relationship, seemingly hinting at his own love triangle. “It’s only a matter of time / An eye for an eye / You’ll go blind / And when did you stop being kind? / You twisted your words like a knife,” he sings in the chorus. “I’m sure that you’re hurting inside / Why would you make your pain mine? / Making me pay me for your crimes.”
Three months after “Drivers License,” Rodrigo dropped her second single, “Deja Vu,” and all signs pointed to Bassett and Carpenter. As she sang about watching an ex move on, Rodrigo seemingly referenced Bassett’s jacket (again), teaching him about Billy Joel (he covered “Vienna” in 2019) and singing duets together. The most-telling lyric pointed to her ex dating someone else in the entertainment business. “Do you call her, almost say my name? / ‘Cause let's be honest, we kinda do sound the same,” Rodrigo sings. “Another actress, I hate to think that I was just your type.”
Weeks after her second single dropped, Bassett sent his costar love via Instagram Stories. “SUUUUUUPER late on this but!” he wrote in April 2021. “I love this song so much @oliviarodrigo!!! The world better watch out for the album!!!!!”
During a June 2021 interview with GQ, Bassett explained that "the hardest thing" about the rumored love triangle is not talking about. "The reality is it’s kind of like a lost cause trying to talk about any of that stuff, and I refuse to feed into any of the bulls--t, so I just don’t," he said. "[Everyone] is asking me about Sabrina and Olivia. Why don't we focus on these women for who they are? Let's focus on the art that they're making and how great they are instead of their relationship to a boy."
Bassett and Carpenter were photographed together at Harry Styles' concert in New York City in October 2021.
After Rodrigo confirmed that she would return for season 3 of HSMTMTS, Bassett addressed whether he was nervous to go back to the set of the show. “I am not. I’m very excited. I think we have a really, really awesome season lined up, and I think, you know, it’s gonna be truly a blast,” he said on the Zach Sang Show in December 2021. “I think we have a lot of really great episodes lined up, and it’s gonna be, I think, the most fun one yet, in terms of writing and moral and all that stuff. I’m really excited.”
In January 2022, fans noticed that Bassett unfollowed his costar on Instagram ahead of filming season 3.
Now, flash forward to today (March 6th 2022) Bassett has released four songs, "Crisis," "Secret," "Set Me Free," and "Doppelgänger." The first three were released on December 3rd 2021, and "Doppelgänger," was released on February 25th 2022. Bassett has gotten a lot of attention after using an Olivia Rodrigo look alike in the "Doppelgänger" music video.
“I saw someone who looked like you at our favorite coffee shop/And part of me was hoping we would get the chance to talk,” he sings. “I guess I’m not as over you as I thought/And I thought I was.” Bassett channels the longing through the aching lyrics about seeing his former lover’s lookalike in public.
In December, Bassett addressed the split and the emotional repercussions for the first time in his music. He bared it all on a trio of songs, including the scorching “Crisis,” where he sang (seemingly about Rodrigo) “messin’ with my life as a career move.” “Doppelgänger” appears to release some of that resentment, and instead chooses to acknowledge the deep feelings his relationship left him with.
“The truth is no one’s like you/And a heart cannot be lied to,” he sings at the end. “A lookalike could never take your place.” With “Doppelgänger,” Bassett reflects on the beauty of his former relationship, and with that openness, evokes nothing but empathy and understanding for a character who the world was convinced was a traitor.
As for Carpenter and Rodrigo. Carpenter has released new songs titled, "Skinny Dipping," and "Fast Times." Rodrigo has released her full album "Sour," and has a sold out 2022 tour.
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