Tate McRae released “Tit For Tat” on September 26, 2025, delivering what feels less like a pop single and more like a calculated response.
The Canadian pop star dropped this track mid-tour, and the timing tells its own story. The song appears to be a response to McRae’s recent breakup with The Kid Laroi, who recently shared “A Cold Play.”
Fans have speculated that the lyrics directly address their split, and the connection isn’t subtle: McRae sings “Let’s go song for song, let’s go back to back, let’s go tit for tat, boy, you asked for that.”
In “A Cold Play,” The Kid Laroi sings about how he couldn’t “fix” an ex. McRae’s response cuts deep: “Fix your f*cking self, kiss my ass for that.”
The line seems like a pointed reference to “A Cold Play,” where Laroi sings, “It’s my fault for thinking I could fix you, fix you, fix you.”
Tate revealed that she wrote the single “two weeks ago” in Nashville, which places the writing session just one week after Laroi’s September 5 release. The math is telling.
The song arrives in the midst of her Miss Possessive Arena Tour, which continues tonight at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles.
Earlier this year, McRae earned her first No. 1 album with So Close to What. She recently performed at the MTV VMAs, where she also took home two trophies, including Song of the Summer for “Just Keep Watching.”
The Canadian pop singer told Rolling Stone that she began writing songs that would end up on So Close to What shortly after her second album, Think Later, was released in December 2023.
The production, handled by Ryan Tedder and Grant, keeps things sleek. Reddit users describe it as “basically a trap pop song straight out of the late 2010s” with 2000s R&B undertones.
It’s more mood piece than immediate earworm, built for repeat listening rather than instant addiction.
The opening verse sets the temperature: “Thought I might love you again, see how I feel / Now that you’re acting like that, boy, I never will.”
She also hints at a new girl in her ex’s life: “Last night, she answered my call, it sealed the deal / Right now, I’m not even about you.”
The British phrase ‘tit for tat’ means retaliating with insult or injury, and McRae weaponises the idiom perfectly.
She’s literally going tit for tat with her ex by appearing to release a song in response to ‘A Cold Play’.
It’s also the first song that Tate has stylised in capitals, and The Kid Laroi famously styles his songs in capitals. The details matter.
McRae’s numbers are staggering: over 17.6 billion career streams worldwide, multiple No. 1 Top 40 hits, and accolades that include Artist of the Year at both the 2024 and 2025 JUNO Awards.
The recognition doesn’t end there: she’s a two-time MTV VMA winner, with nominations for Billboard Music Awards, People’s Choice Awards, and iHeartRadio Music Awards.
As McRae continues her North American tour, her schedule remains relentless, with Seattle dates on the horizon and a final performance back at the Kia Forum in November.
“Even though it’s work, writing feels like my safe space,” she explained to Rolling Stone. “The stable part of my life is when I’m able to talk about my feelings.”
This candidness comes through in her music, offering fans not just catchy hooks, but honest reflections on love, loss, and resilience.
While many artists shy away from airing personal grievances in public, McRae uses her platform to transform vulnerability into strength.
“Tit For Tat” is well executed, choosing surgical precision over emotional spillage. McRae transforms potential messiness into controlled artistry, turning personal drama into pop gold without sacrificing her dignity in the process.
As Rolling Stone wrote of the tour: “One of the things that makes her Tate McRae is that even when she sings about self-doubt, as in ‘She’s All I Wanna Be,’ she sounds fearless and invincible without even worrying about it.”
The song works because it feels necessary rather than opportunistic. If you’re going to air personal business, might as well make it slap.
As one fan puts it: This is pure pop perfection, the soft vocals with the sassy lyrics.. THIS is why you can’t spell Tate without ATE!
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