Elvis Costello is fine with Olivia Rodrigo copying his guitar riff

[Teletubby 123,127]

Elvis Costello has defended pop star Olivia Rodrigo after she was accused of lifting one of his guitar riffs.

Brutal, a track on Rodrigo's number one album, is based around a punky chord sequence that also featured in Costello's 1978 hit Pump It Up. source

Twitter user noticed Rodrigo's song was "pretty much a direct lift",
Elvis Costello tweeted : "This is fine by me. "It's how rock & roll works," he wrote. "You take the broken pieces of another thrill and make a brand new toy."

You can compare the Costello and Olivia tracks below:
The guitar riff first appears at 15 seconds in Pump It Up and 14 seconds into Brutal:

 

 

[littlepotter 73,282]

Good on him

[babyboo 965]

So refreshing to hear someone not offended in this day and age

[Kimmo 76,866]

Both sound dated and forgettable so… 

[WhereIsLG7 1,348]

13 minutes ago, Kimmo said:

Both sound dated and forgettable so… 

Agree 

[nodandsmile 9,162]

being offended for someone else just for them to say they don't care

[Noah 25,968]

That‘s a very mature thing to do. Tho, even if he went to court I wouldn‘t have blamed him - but then again, can anyone really own a certain riff and do we even think Olivia heard a Song that came out like 25 years before she was even born?

[Teletubby 123,127]

Just now, Noah said:

do we even think Olivia heard a Song that came out like 25 years before she was even born?

she may not have heard but her team ...

[Noah 25,968]

1 minute ago, Lady Ava Gaga Max said:

she may not have heard but her team ...

She produced the Album in a very short amount of time with one producer. It‘s not a big production. I‘m guessing Interscope didnt even give her much budget until DL became a success. 

[bionic 38,841]

4 minutes ago, Noah said:

She produced the Album in a very short amount of time with one producer. It‘s not a big production. I‘m guessing Interscope didnt even give her much budget until DL became a success. 

Was she not already the HSMTMTS breakout star at that point

[CyanLights 15,285]

30 minutes ago, Noah said:

That‘s a very mature thing to do. Tho, even if he went to court I wouldn‘t have blamed him - but then again, can anyone really own a certain riff and do we even think Olivia heard a Song that came out like 25 years before she was even born?

Someone could own specific melodies and riffs if they are distinct enough 

[Bio 23,538]

I feel like Olivia Rodrigo is basically a xerox machine at this point 

[John Wayne 4,309]

is it just me or are people ripping apart olivia lately? Let the girl breathe

[Mr Peeps 1,027]

it's........... three notes 

[Blake 7,385]

I mean I hear this iconic song personally, so.