American singer Joshua Bassett recently sparked intrigue with his new song, titled “The Golden Years.” On May 2, Bassett, 23, released a brief glimpse of the tune on TikTok. The video features the artist serenading the audience on a beach near the Santa Monica pier.
The lyrics of Bassett’s song reflect a theme of changing times and lost youth. His performance carries an evocative mood, “Four years gone by in a blink of an eye/We were young ’till we weren’t/It was fun ’till I hurt,” he sang into the camera.
Shortly after the post, fans began hypothesizing about the song’s inspiration. Many speculated that Bassett’s song might be related to his previous relationship with Olivia Rodrigo. The two artists had a four-year-long relationship that began in 2020 during the filming of High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.
Fan’s Fans Speculate About the Song’s Intended Subject
Bassett’s fans closely analyzed the song’s lyrics and linked elements of the song with their relationship. Some fans pointed out the numbers 17 and 21 printed on Bassett’s shirt. These numbers correspond to Rodrigo’s ages when she wrote her hit song “Driver’s License,” widely suspected to have been inspired by Bassett, and currently.
On May 3, Bassett shared another segment of the song on TikTok featuring photos from his days filming HSMTMTS. The images included Rodrigo along with other co-stars Sofia Wylie, Matt Cornett, Julia Lester, Frankie A. Rodriguez, and Larry Saperstein. An additional line was added to the song lyrics, “Now I’m terrified that I’ll never find love like yours.”
One picture focused on Bassett’s character, Ricky, and Rodrigo’s character, Nini, leading fans to speculate that the song might be dedicated to Rodrigo. Bassett and Rodrigo’s close-knit relationship, both on and off the set, fed this speculation. However, some fans theorized that the images served to commemorate Bassett’s time on the show, which ran for four seasons from 2019 to 2023.
Vague History Between Bassett and Rodrigo
The relationship status between Bassett and Rodrigo was never officially confirmed. However, they sparked romance rumors in 2019 after being cast as lead characters in HSMTMTS. The rumors intensified when they wrote a song for their television characters together.
Bassett had praised Rodrigo’s creativity in a 2020 interview with L.A. Times. He expressed how well they worked together creatively. Conversely, Rodrigo also shared her pleasant experience of working with Bassett, describing him as her best friend.
However, things took a turn when in August 2020, Rodrigo seemed to hint at a breakup through a TikTok video. This lead was followed by her debut album, Sour, which many fans believed was about their ill-fated romance.
Bassett and Rodrigo’s Life Post-Split
After their alleged split, Rodrigo dated Adam Faze and Zack Bia before her current relationship with Louis Partridge. On the other hand, Bassett had a brief relationship with Sabrina Carpenter in 2021 before she started seeing Saltburn star Barry Keoghan.
Wrapping Up
Despite the speculation, Joshua Bassett’s new song “The Golden Years” remains ambiguous. Whether it is about his past relationship with Olivia Rodrigo, his experience on HSMTMTS, or a completely unrelated topic, the song’s poignant lyrics and heartfelt performance have struck a chord with fans. To watch the latest content from your favorite artists, visit HitPlay.