Obsessed

Album: Guts (Spilled) (2024)
Charted: 10 14
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Songfacts®:

  • In "Obsessed," Olivia Rodrigo delivers a vocal performance dripping with attitude as she fixates on her partner's ex-girlfriend. Lines like, "If I told you how much I think about her," and the unsettling detail of knowing "her star sign, her blood type" paint a vivid picture of an unhealthy obsession.
  • The song explores the destructive power of jealousy, highlighting how it can chip away at self-esteem and create insecurity within a relationship. Rodrigo even mentions the ex's glamorous career as an actress, admitting to watching "every movie she's been in." This detail underscores the narrator's intense focus on this seemingly perfect woman.
  • "Obsessed" carries thematic echoes of past Rodrigo songs. Like "Happier" from Sour and " Lacy" from Guts, the object of jealousy is portrayed as an impossibly beautiful woman. This recurring theme suggests a complex mix of emotions – admiration, envy, and a consuming obsession – that plagues the narrator.
  • Rodrigo co-wrote "Obsessed" in 2021 with Annie Clark, aka St. Vincent, and longtime collaborator Dan Nigro, who also produced the track.
  • Along with three other songs, "Obsessed" was initially only made available on vinyl editions of Rodrigo's sophomore album, Guts. She later included it on the deluxe edition, Guts (Spilled).
  • Rodrigo first performed "Obsessed" during the first date of the North American leg of her Guts world tour in Palm Springs, California, on February 23, 2024.
  • In the Mitch Ryan-directed music video, we see Rodrigo wearing a sash that reads "Miss Right Now" in a hotel ballroom. The area is filled with competitive pageant queens who have dated the same guy, all wearing sashes with titles such as "Miss Mom's Favorite," "Miss Put Him in Therapy," "Miss Still His Closest Friend" and "Miss 2 Summers Ago."

    Among the women sitting around the tables in the banqueting hall, each with their superlatives, is actress Talia Ryder. She previously starred in the video for "Deja Vu" as Rodrigo's ex's new woman.

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