Culture

The story of Rodrigo and Partridge might date back to an August interview the “Traitor” artist gave ahead of the release of Guts, where she was challenged to read aloud her most recent DM exchange. “My best friend Conan texted me a picture of this guy that I think is cute and I said, ‘Wow, he’s everything,’” Rodrigo hesitantly revealed, blushing.

Rodrigo and Partridge first sparked dating rumors in October 2023, when fans saw them together in public for the first time ever. In blurry pictures snapped by one onlooker, the singer — wearing festive Halloween cat ears on her head — wraps her arms around the actor, both of them smiling.

The dating rumors surrounding Rodrigo and Partridge only solidified when the Brit showed up to the 2023 Jingle Ball to support the Bizaardvark alum’s performance. While there, he was spotted hanging out with Rodrigo’s best friends Conan Gray and Maddie Hsu and singing and dancing along to “All-American B-tch,” after which the group all appeared to leave in the same car.

One day after Jingle Ball, Rodrigo performed on Saturday Night Live and took Partridge along with her to the show’s afterparty that night. Afterwards, the couple left the party venue together.

Not that fans needed it after photos of their gas-station PDA circulated online, but Rodrigo soft-launched her romance with Partridge on Instagram by sharing a photo of her playing darts with an opponent whose initials — “L.P.” — were visibly written in chalk on a scoreboard.

When Rodrigo kicked off her first-ever arena tour, of course Partridge was in the audience at Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs, Calif., to support her. Fan videos captured the actor walking around the venue with the singer’s best friend Iris Apatow and holding his cup with his teeth in order to free up his hands to snap a video, and afterward, he posted a picture of his girlfriend performing on Instagram Stories and wrote, “So so so good.”

In an interview with British Vogue, Partridge opened up about his relationship with Rodrigo for the first time. “Dating probably shouldn’t be done in the public eye,” he told the publication. “There’s enough going on between two people. You don’t need the voices of thousands of others in your head. I think she’s got it a lot worse than I have … She’s got tons and tons of eyes on her case.”

“If there’s a load of people nattering in a room about you, you can choose to put your ear to the door to hear what they say or not,” he added. “I think you’re probably better off not letting curiosity get the better of you.”

Partridge could barely wait for Rodrigo to get off stage to wrap her in an adorable bear hug at her March 19 concert in Chicago, something one fan caught on video.

The arrival of the deluxe edition of Guts marked a huge milestone for Rodrigo, as it featured the very first proper love song she’d ever released in her career thus far: “So American.” Fans were instantly positive the gushy track is all about the star’s British boyfriend, with lyrics like, “He laughs at all my jokes/ And he says I’m so American” and “God, I’m gonna marry him/ If he keeps this sh– up.”

“GUTS (spilled) is out!!!!!” Rodrigo wrote on Instagram after dropping the song alongside four other new deluxe tracks. “especialllyyy excited about so american.”

Rodrigo and Partridge stepped out for a casual dinner date in Los Angeles, as captured in photos that circulated on social media. While the Enola Holmes star sported a simple flannel and jeans, the “Get Him Back!” singer wore a red sundress, coat and cherry handbag.

Partridge joined Rodrigo in supporting one of her besties, Tate McRae, at the “Greedy” singer’s concert in London. Sitting in the middle of the mezzanine section of the venue, the couple cuddled up while enjoying the music as if they were just two random fans in a crowd.

Fans went wild when Rodrigo appeared to subtly confirm that she and Partridge have gotten serious by slightly altering the lyrics of “So American” at one of her Guts World Tour shows in Europe. Instead of singing “think I’m in love” as normal after the song’s bridge, she belted out “I’m so in love” — a small but eyebrow-raising change.

Partridge helped his girlfriend promote the Asia and Australia legs of her Guts World Tour in a TikTok posted by Rodrigo. Listen for his voice behind the camera:

Rodrigo had the sweetest comment for her boyfriend on his 21st-birthday post on Instagram: “welcome to the 21 club angel boy!!!! ????” she wrote.

Rodrigo and Partridge again packed on the PDA on the streets of New York City while taking a summer stroll together. The pair linked arms, held hands and stopped to share a kiss, with the “Vampire” artist wearing a Yankees cap and black spaghetti-strap blouse and Partridge sporting a plain white T-shirt.

After many months of dating, Rodrigo and Partridge made their first couple’s appearance at an industry event by hitting the Venice International Film Festival together. Though they didn’t pose on the red carpet, the singer did accompany her boyfriend to the screening of his new series Disclaimer, where she took an adorable video of the actor soaking in his applause. Plus, the pair attended a cocktail reception at the Hotel Excelsior, as a well as a post-screening reception at Palazzina Grassi.