# Vampire (Olivia Rodrigo song)
"Vampire" is a song by the American singer-songwriter [Olivia Rodrigo](https://www.edgepedia.org/olivia-rodrigo), released on June 30, 2023 as the lead single from her second studio album, *GUTS*. Written by Rodrigo with her regular collaborator Daniel Nigro, who also produced the track, it opens as a quiet piano ballad about a betrayal and builds into a loud pop-rock climax, with its central lyric "Bloodsucker, fame-f*cker, bleeding me dry like a goddamn vampire" aimed at an exploitative ex.[1](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/olivia-rodrigo-vampire/) • [2](https://www.nylon.com/entertainment/olivia-rodrigo-vampire-lyrics-meaning-explained)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | June 30, 2023, lead single from *GUTS* (Geffen)[1](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/olivia-rodrigo-vampire/) |
| Writers and producer | Olivia Rodrigo and Daniel Nigro; produced by Nigro[3](https://musicbrainz.org/release/1f411ef7-f4c6-4c48-9e50-322217d6d1d6) |
| Billboard Hot 100 | Debuted at No. 1, Rodrigo's third song to do so; over 36 million streams in its first week[4](https://files-backend.assets.thrillshare.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/2995/Shs/0e7eb463-fd99-47d9-935c-55cde43e83d2/118.1_Valkyrie_Fall_Issue_.pdf?disposition=inline) |
| UK Official Singles Chart | Rodrigo's third No. 1 after "Drivers License" and "[Good 4 U](https://www.edgepedia.org/good-4-u)"; peaked at No. 1 on the 07/09/2023 chart, 25 weeks on the chart (14 in the top 10)[1](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/olivia-rodrigo-vampire/) |
| 2024 Grammy nominations | Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Pop Solo Performance[5](https://apnews.com/article/49b892a97d7a2f1c069954c9be2d6f25) |
| Music video | Created with director Petra Collins; shows Rodrigo bleeding in a performance setting[6](https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/culture/story/olivia-rodrigo-drops-new-single-vampire-explains-meaning-100539357) • [1](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/olivia-rodrigo-vampire/) |
| Certification | Platine (Platinum) single in France, SNEP[7](https://snepmusique.com/les-certifications/?categorie=Tout&interprete=Olivia+Rodrigo&titre=Vampire) |
## Writing and production
Rodrigo wrote the first version of the song, a verse and chorus, in December 2022 and brought the idea to [Dan Nigro](https://www.edgepedia.org/dan-nigro) in January 2023. In a Grammy.com interview, Nigro, Rodrigo's chief songwriting and production partner since her debut album *SOUR*, called it one of the hardest songs on *GUTS* to make. He recalled the original tag line as "Bloodsucker, famef—er, love me like a vampire," and the pair then spent a full day workshopping the details, changing lyrics here and there in what he described as a slow evolution.[8](https://www.grammy.com/news/dan-nigro-interview-olivia-rodrigo-producer-of-the-year-2024-grammys/) • [9](https://www.soundonsound.com/techniques/inside-track-olivia-rodrigo-vampire)
**The lead-single decision.** Rodrigo described the song as "very therapeutic," and [Us Weekly](https://www.edgepedia.org/us-weekly) reported that she "tortured Dan for so long, for months" because she wanted to make it perfect before it became the album's lead single; Nigro was less certain than she was that it was the right choice.[10](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/olivia-rodrigo-shares-vampire-stories-040008149.html) • [11](https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/how-vampire-became-the-lead-single-of-olivia-rodrigos-guts/) Nigro also noted that the two worked on the track on the anniversary of the release of "driver's license".[8](https://www.grammy.com/news/dan-nigro-interview-olivia-rodrigo-producer-of-the-year-2024-grammys/)
## Composition and sound
The track begins as a betrayal-strewn piano ballad in the vein of "Drivers License," Rodrigo's 2021 debut single, and then opens into a pop-rock arrangement with jittery percussion and dramatic vocal runs; Yahoo's [Entertainment](https://www.edgepedia.org/entertainment) writer likened the effect to [My Chemical Romance](https://www.edgepedia.org/my-chemical-romance)'s *The Black Parade* refracted through an artist raised on [Taylor Swift](https://www.edgepedia.org/taylor-swift) and Lana Del Rey.[10](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/olivia-rodrigo-shares-vampire-stories-040008149.html) Nigro summarized the production approach as "starting in a really subtle place and then bringing it to a really big place."[12](https://www.musicradar.com/news/dan-nigro-olivia-rodrigo-vampire)
Lyrically the song criticizes both the man who took advantage of Rodrigo's naivety and herself for falling into his trap, and it addresses feeling used in a relationship; The Guardian noted that "Making the Bed" depicts fame and "[Ballad of a Homeschooled Girl](https://www.edgepedia.org/ballad-of-a-homeschooled-girl)" concerns social awkwardness.[13](https://files.eportfolios.macaulay.cuny.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/8014/2023/12/Modern-Love.pdf) • [14](https://es.rollingstone.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/RSEE_23_DANA%20PAOLA_SEP_OCT.pdf) • [18](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/sep/08/olivia-rodrigo-guts-review) As with much of her writing, Rodrigo has declined to identify its subject; asked by *The Guardian* whether it was about Taylor Swift, she answered, "I mean, I never want to say who any of my songs are about."[15](https://time.com/6312025/olivia-rodrigo-lacy-meaning/)
## Commercial performance
In the United States the song debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, the third Rodrigo song to achieve that feat, on first-week streams exceeding 36 million.[4](https://files-backend.assets.thrillshare.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/2995/Shs/0e7eb463-fd99-47d9-935c-55cde43e83d2/118.1_Valkyrie_Fall_Issue_.pdf?disposition=inline) In the United Kingdom it entered the Official Singles Chart on 13 July 2023, peaked at No. 1 on the chart dated 7 September 2023, spent 14 weeks in the top 10 and 25 weeks in total on the chart, making it Rodrigo's third chart-topper after "Drivers License" and "Good 4 U."[1](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/olivia-rodrigo-vampire/) France's SNEP certified the single Platine (Platinum), with the label credit [Interscope Records](https://www.edgepedia.org/interscope-records) / Polydor / Universal Music France and a release date of 30/06/2023.[7](https://snepmusique.com/les-certifications/?categorie=Tout&interprete=Olivia+Rodrigo&titre=Vampire)
## Music video and recognition
Rodrigo made the song with Nigro "last winter" and the video with Petra Collins, as she wrote on social media when it was released.[6](https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/culture/story/olivia-rodrigo-drops-new-single-vampire-explains-meaning-100539357) The Official Charts Company describes the video as showing Rodrigo "literally bleeding for her art," a visual mirror of the song's themes of betrayal and public image.[1](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/olivia-rodrigo-vampire/)
At the 2024 [Grammy Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/grammy-awards) the song received nominations for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Pop Solo Performance, part of six nominations for Rodrigo and the *GUTS* campaign overall.[5](https://apnews.com/article/49b892a97d7a2f1c069954c9be2d6f25) The Associated Press framed it as the opposite of "drivers license": where that song descended into loss, "vampire" has Rodrigo standing atop her anger in a textured, theatrical revenge anthem. She performed it at the ceremony with red liquid dripping down the walls behind her.[5](https://apnews.com/article/49b892a97d7a2f1c069954c9be2d6f25) • [16](https://apnews.com/article/75f0eda337c9289f846f9a047d191703) A live version recorded at [Glastonbury](https://www.edgepedia.org/glastonbury) for the BBC has also been released.[17](https://music.apple.com/us/song/1854932705)
## References
1. [VAMPIRE – OLIVIA RODRIGO, Official Charts Company](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/olivia-rodrigo-vampire/)
2. [Olivia Rodrigo's "Vampire" Lyrics Meaning, Explained, Nylon](https://www.nylon.com/entertainment/olivia-rodrigo-vampire-lyrics-meaning-explained)
3. [Release "vampire" by Olivia Rodrigo, MusicBrainz](https://musicbrainz.org/release/1f411ef7-f4c6-4c48-9e50-322217d6d1d6)
4. [Valkyrie Fall Issue 118.1, student publication review of GUTS](https://files-backend.assets.thrillshare.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/2995/Shs/0e7eb463-fd99-47d9-935c-55cde43e83d2/118.1_Valkyrie_Fall_Issue_.pdf?disposition=inline)
5. [Olivia Rodrigo on the 2024 Grammy Awards, performing rage on 'GUTS,' and learning from Leonard Cohen, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/49b892a97d7a2f1c069954c9be2d6f25)
6. [Olivia Rodrigo drops new single, 'vampire,' explains meaning of the track, Good Morning America](https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/culture/story/olivia-rodrigo-drops-new-single-vampire-explains-meaning-100539357)
7. [Les certifications – SNEP (VAMPIRE, OLIVIA RODRIGO)](https://snepmusique.com/les-certifications/?categorie=Tout&interprete=Olivia+Rodrigo&titre=Vampire)
8. [The Genius Of Dan Nigro: The Producer Of The Year Nominee On Olivia Rodrigo's GUTS, Grammy.com](https://www.grammy.com/news/dan-nigro-interview-olivia-rodrigo-producer-of-the-year-2024-grammys/)
9. [Inside Track: Olivia Rodrigo 'Vampire', Sound on Sound](https://www.soundonsound.com/techniques/inside-track-olivia-rodrigo-vampire)
10. [Olivia Rodrigo Shares 'Vampire' Stories: Inside Her 'Very Therapeutic' New Single, Yahoo Entertainment](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/olivia-rodrigo-shares-vampire-stories-040008149.html)
11. [How 'Vampire' Became the Lead Single of Olivia Rodrigo's 'Guts', Us Weekly](https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/how-vampire-became-the-lead-single-of-olivia-rodrigos-guts/)
12. [Dan Nigro talks tempo, vocals and artist relationships in the production of Olivia Rodrigo's Vampire, MusicRadar](https://www.musicradar.com/news/dan-nigro-olivia-rodrigo-vampire)
13. [Modern Love (essay on Vampire as lead single of GUTS), Macaulay Honors College ePortfolio](https://files.eportfolios.macaulay.cuny.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/8014/2023/12/Modern-Love.pdf)
14. [Al igual que en SOUR, Rodrigo coescribió las canciones con Dan Nigro, Rolling Stone España (PDF)](https://es.rollingstone.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/RSEE_23_DANA%20PAOLA_SEP_OCT.pdf)
15. [Why Everyone's Debating the Meaning of Olivia Rodrigo's New Song 'Lacy', Time](https://time.com/6312025/olivia-rodrigo-lacy-meaning/)
16. [Taylor Swift wins album of the year at the Grammy Awards for the fourth time, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/75f0eda337c9289f846f9a047d191703)
17. [vampire (Live From Glastonbury (A BBC Recording)), Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/song/1854932705)
18. [Olivia Rodrigo Guts Review, theguardian.com](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/sep/08/olivia-rodrigo-guts-review)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musical works and recordings › Compositions and songs › Pop, rock, and metal songs › Pop songs › Pop songs of the 2020s › 2022 and 2023 songs*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license