Olivia Rodrigo Explains What the Lyrics of ‘Vampire’ Mean

Olivia Rodrigo dropped “Vampire,” the lead single from her yet-to-be-released sophomore album, Guts, at the very end of June. The rock-opera track immediately shot to the top of the Billboard Hot 100, and fans everywhere have been caught up in speculation about what — or whom — the song is about. Olivia sat down for a nearly 20-minute interview on SiriusXM Hits 1 to talk about her newest chart-topper and much more.

Olivia Rodrigo Vampire Meaning

The lyrics tell a story about a “cool guy” she spent “six months of torture” with; a “bloodsucker” she truly loved but who “sold her for parts,” taking advantage of her age and naïveté. Unsurprisingly, rumors swirled about what industry veteran and/or ex-boyfriend Olivia could potentially be singing about.

The singer-songwriter confirmed that she wrote “Vampire” in December 2022 and chose it as the lead single because it “expressed something [she]’d been trying to express for a long time.” The track served as a good introduction to the “new world” of Guts, the 20-year-old said.

“To me, it’s not a song about, ‘Oh, this person hurt me, this guy hurt me.’ I think that’s kind of surface level,” Olivia clarified during an interview with Tony Fly and Symon on SiriusXM Hits 1. “To me, what I love about [‘Vampire’] is, it kind of looks inward. It’s more about my regret and kind of beating myself up for doing something that I knew wasn’t gonna turn out great. And kind of just taking ownership of that and dealing with those feelings.”

Olivia explained that she’s so close to these songs that it almost feels like putting out pages of her diary. But at the same time, she wants listeners to be able to relate to “Vampire” (and all the tracks off Guts) in their own way, so she doesn’t want to tie it to one specific story from her life that could alter fans’ relationships with the lyrics.

“That’s what [‘Vampire’] means to me, but obviously anyone can have their own interpretation of it,” she added. “But that’s kind of why [the song] was so special to me.”

Olivia Rodrigo Vampire Lyrics

Hate to give the satisfaction asking how you’re doing now
How’s the castle built off people you pretend to care about?
Just what you wanted
Look at you, cool guy, you got it
I see the parties and the diamonds sometimes when I close my eyes
Six months of torture you sold as some forbidden paradise
I loved you truly
You gotta laugh at the stupidity

‘Cause I’ve made some real big mistakes
But you make the worst one look fine
I should’ve known it was strange
You only come out at night
I used to think I was smart
But you made me look so naïve
The way you sold me for parts
As you sunk your teeth into me, oh
Bloodsucker, famefucker
Bleeding me dry like a goddamn vampire

Every girl I ever talked to told me you were bad, bad news
You called them crazy, God, I hate the way I called them crazy too
You’re so convincing
How do you lie without flinching? (How do you lie? how do you lie? how do you lie?)
Ooh, what a mesmerizing, paralyzing, fucked up little thrill
Can’t figure out just how you do it, and God knows I never will
Went for me and not her
‘Cause girls your age know better

I’ve made some real big mistakes
But you make the worst one look fine
I should’ve known it was strange
You only come out at night
I used to think I was smart
But you made me look so naïve
The way you sold me for parts
As you sunk your teeth into me
Oh, bloodsucker, famefucker
Bleeding me dry like a goddamn vampire

You said it was true love, but wouldn’t that be hard?
You can’t love anyone, ’cause that would mean you had a heart
I tried you help you out, now I know that I can’t
‘Cause how you think’s the kind of thing I’ll never understand

I’ve made some real big mistakes
But you make the worst one look fine
I should’ve known it was strange
You only come out at night
I used to think I was smart
But you made me look so naïve
The way you sold me for parts
As you sunk your teeth into me, oh
Bloodsucker, famefucker
Bleeding me dry like a goddamn vampire