Courtney Love Calls Olivia Rodrigo "Rude" for Copying Hole's 'Live Through This' Artwork

"love u and live through this sooooo much," says Rodrigo

BY Alex HudsonPublished Jun 28, 2021

Courtney Love has accused Olivia Rodrigo of stealing the concept of Hole's Live Through This cover art — and Rodrigo has responded, seemingly confirming the similarity.

The art for Rodrigo's upcoming Sour Prom concert film shows the singer dressed up like a crying prom queen, holding a bouquet of flowers with mascara streaming down her cheeks. That concept is pretty much identical to Hole's Live Through This album cover from 1994.

Love shared the photo of Rodrigo on Instagram and wrote, "Spot the difference! #twinning!" Rodrigo herself responded to the post, and although she didn't exactly confirm that the similarity was intentional, she wrote, "love u and live through this sooooo much."

Rather than take it as a compliment that a young pop star looks up to her, Love demanded that Rodrigo send her flowers. She responded to Rodrigo's comment and wrote, "Olivia – you're welcome. My favorite florist is in Notting Hill, London! Dm me for deets! I look forward to reading your note!"

And just in case this all seemed to be in good fun, Love posted the same image on Facebook and, in several comments on the thread, called Rodrigo "rude" for using the image.

She wrote, "This was bad form. That's not bullying or bomb throwing. This persons music has nothing to do with my life. Possibly never will. It was rude And I gave every right to stick up for my work. Don't gatekeep me ! I'm honorable as fuck to my fellow artists, and I expect the same." 

Love also wrote that photographer Ellen von Unwerth, who shot the Live Through This cover, "isn't amused."

As several commenters have pointed out, Hole's prom artwork is quite similar to the 1976 horror film Carrie, so accusing Rodrigo of plagiarism is a bit rich.

Rodrigo's Sour Prom film premieres tomorrow (June 29).
 

Latest Coverage