Sabrina Carpenter’s most recent release, Skin, hasn’t come without its controversy. The song has come under heavy speculation by fans, with many believing the song a direct response to Olivia Rodrigo’s chart-topping hit, Driver’s License.
Many thought Rodrigo’s debut no. 1 single was a reference to her rumored ex, High School Musical star Joshua Bassett.
Speaking on The Late Late Show with James Corden, Carpenter explained her real intentions behind the lyrics to Skin.
“I genuinely was coming from a place as a 21-year-old that is navigating her feelings and was going through a lot in my personal life,” Carpenter shared.
“The reoccurring theme was I was allowing people to get under my skin. So I wrote from that place of knowing that there was so many different experiences that will continue to happen to me in my life where I kind of have to remind myself that people can only get to you if you allow them to and you give them that access to.”
“I like that, but I feel like you’ve skirted around the controversy.” Corden pushed for more.
“No, I haven’t skirted around it. I think it’s more the fact that people will make a narrative about something always,” Carpenter replied. “And I think this was a really interesting song for people to kind of misinterpret and make it into something that it wasn’t really supposed to be in the first place. But I’ve just been enjoying making music.”
How did the dating controversy start?
Olivia Rodrigo and Joshua Bassett first met on the set of High School Musical: The Series, in which they play on-screen couple Nina and Rocky. It didn’t take long for fans to notice the pair getting close as a video surfaced of Olivia talking about how Josh took her out driving for the first time.
Although never a confirmed item, fans assumed they broke up in the early months of 2020 after Rodrigo posted a cryptic TikTok referencing a “failed relationship”.
Dating rumors between Carpenter and Bassett first sparked after a report in People Magazine, when the pair were spotted brunching together in August 2020. The report also stated speculation that Basset and Carpenter had been getting close while he was still dating Rodrigo.
Speculation ran wild when the pair posted a TikTok video dressed as Sharkboy and Lavagirl for a Halloween bash in November 2020.
Who is Sabrina Carpenter dating?
Despite no further confirmation on the pair’s relationship status, rumors have continued to fly as Joshua Bassett announced the release of his single, Lie Lie Lie minutes after the drop of Rodrigo’s single.
Bassett however was quick to take to his Instagram stories to confirm that the song is in fact about a friend who had been lying behind his back, not the alleged love triangle.
For now, the pair appear to be just friends.