Everyone’s heart beat a little too fast during Olivia Rodrigo’s VMAs performance on Sept. 12. She totally fooled the crowd, including Selena Gomez, 31, with a faux stage malfunction. As Olivia, 20, continued singing “Vampire,” the pyrotechnics behind her looked like they were malfunctioning.
At one point, even Olivia appeared a little scared. The camera panned to the crowd, and Selena could be seen holding her hand to her ear. As she watched Olivia’s performance, her eyes appeared very worried.
La reacción de Selena mientras Olivia Rodrigo cantaba lmao pic.twitter.com/qBuddt9tse
— ruso ? (@dmpolop) September 13, 2023
Olivia was rushed off stage as the “malfunction” got worse, but it was all an act. The performance was a nod to Olivia’s “Vampire” music video where she is rushed off stage in a similar way. The HSMTMTS alum returned to the stage and sang her hit “Get Him Back.”
Selena was one of the stars who unexpectedly showed up on the VMAs carpet ahead of the show. The Only Murders in the Building star dazzled in a red floral gown. Taylor Swift, 33, Selena’s bestie, also made a surprise appearance and exuded Reputation vibes in her black Versace dress.
Olivia recently addressed rumors of bad blood between her and Taylor. Olivia notably had to give Taylor songwriting credits for two of her songs on her debut album, Sour, and therefore give up millions in royalties. In her recent Rolling Stone interview, Olivia said she does not have “beef with anyone.”
However, the singer said she was “caught off guard” by the whole situation. She added, “At the time, it was very confusing, and I was green and bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. Is that the phrase?”
When asked if she would make an artist give her credit for a song if a situation like this happened in the future, Olivia responded, “I don’t think I would ever personally do that. But who’s to say where I’ll be in 20, 30 years. All that I can do is write my songs and focus on what I can control.”
