Earlier this week, teen pop sensation Olivia Rodrigo shared her baffled but gracious reaction to receiving a shoe horn as a gift from President Biden when she visited the White House this summer — but now she’s admitted it wasn’t a shoe horn after all, but an ice cream scoop.
Speaking on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Tuesday, the Driver’s License singer said that she got several gifts from the Commander in Chief, including presidential M&Ms, the Ray-Bans she wore in photos, and a personalized shoe horn to help her put on tight shoes.
Rodrigo smiled and admitted it was a ‘strange’ gift, but now the 18-year-old has reveled on Instagram that she made a mistake.
The star shared a picture of the present, which was actually a metal ice cream scoop, and blamed her mother Sophia, who is a school teacher, for incorrectly identifying it as a shoe horn.
A thoughtful gift after all! Olivia Rodrigo said Thursday that President Biden gave her an ice cream scoop when she visited the White House – not a shoe horn, as she’d previously said
Here it is! She even showed off the ice cream scoop, which has Biden’s signature and the presidential emblem on it
President Biden famously loves ice cream, and has been pictured stopping to eat the frozen treat on countless occasions (pictured June 29)
‘I am a genuine lover of ice cream. I don’t drink. I don’t smoke. But I eat a lot of ice cream,’ he has said
‘Thank u for having me @jimmykimmellive!!!’ Rodrigo wrote on Instagram on Thursday.
‘Also thank u to my mom who told me this president biden ice cream scoop was a shoe horn and let me repeat it on national television lolllll.’
She included a photo of the ice cream scoop, which has a metal handle and spoon with a flat top. The presidential seal and Biden’s signature can be seen in the bowl of the spoon.
President Biden famously loves ice cream, and has been pictured stopping to eat the frozen treat on countless occasions.
‘My name is Joe Biden and I love ice cream,’ he said at he headquarters of Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream in Columbus, Ohio while campaigning in May 2016. ‘You all think I’m kidding, I’m not. I eat more ice cream than three other people you’d like to be with, all at once.’
‘I am a genuine lover of ice cream. I don’t drink. I don’t smoke. But I eat a lot of ice cream,’ he reportedly said in 2010.
Given that history, it’s fitting that he would give out personalized ice cream scoops at the White House — and is certainly less bizarre than gifting shoe horns.
Goodies! Speaking on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Tuesday, the Driver’s License singer said that she got several gifts from the Commander in Chief during her July visit
‘It was such an honor to go and to support such an important cause that I feel so passionately about,’ Rodrigo said
‘The White House is just the coolest place. I was so nervous to go,’ she said
Unfortunately, Rodrigo, who boasts 18.6 million followers on Instagram, trusted her mother on this one.
The star was invited to the White House on July 14 to speak to the media about the importance of COVID vaccines as part of the administration’s efforts to boost vaccinations among members of Gen Z.
In addition to speaking at the podium in the White House Briefing Room, she met with Biden in the Oval Office, where they smiles for the press in matching sunglasses.
When Kimmel asked whether Olivia had brought her own pair of Ray-Bans to pose for matchy-matchy snaps with the president, she revealed that they were a gift — and just one of several.
‘He gave them to me, actually. He gave me a few gifts,’ she said. ‘He gave me those. He gave me some M&Ms, and he also gave me a shoehorn, which was strange.
‘Really. It had, like, the presidential emblem on it. I’m serious. It’s in my house,’ she added.
Not this! She said one of the gifts was a shoe horn, echoing what her mother had told her. She admitted that it was ‘strange’ but has since corrected the mistaken assumption
Yum! She also got a box of signature presidential M&Ms with Biden’s signature
Cool! Best of all, he gave her the Ray-Bans that they wore for photos
Shoe horns are long sticks which curve to fit around the back of the heel of the foot. They can be inserted, upright, into the heel of a stiff shoe to help ease a foot into it while standing.
They are perhaps most commonly used by men to put on dress shoes or loafers — and also more commonly used by adults of older generations.
While gifting M&Ms to White House guests is a long-standing tradition that began when Ronald Reagan was in office, offering up a presidential shoe horn is thought to be much more unusual, and Biden’s unique choice of present was met with quick mockery from Kimmel.
‘Well, if you ever thought Joe Biden was too old to be president. Now we know he is,’ he joked. ‘He is giving out shoe horns. He’s giving out shoe horns!’
Rodrigo admitted that she didn’t discover the unconventional present until she’d left the President.
‘I didn’t see it when he gave it to me. It was in a bag, and I opened it up [later] and was like, “Ah! That’s so cool,”‘ she said.
Rorigo also shared her excitement to visit the White House.
‘It was such an honor to go and to support such an important cause that I feel so passionately about,’ Rodrigo told Kimmel on Tuesday.
‘Everyone was just so kind. Got to meet Biden and Fauci,’ she said, but admitted she was a bundle of nerves.
‘The White House is just the coolest place. I was so nervous to go,’ she said. ‘I, like, walked in there, and there is like all these plates that like George Washington used to eat his dinner on. And all of this crazy stuff. I was just, like, scared I was going to sneeze and break a priceless artifact.
‘It was crazy. But I walked out, didn’t break anything. Thank god,’ she said.
Say cheese! In July, the 18-year-old visited the West Wing to pose for photos with the president
Speaking out: She also joined Press Secretary Jen Psaki for her press briefing to stress the importance of receiving the COVID-19 vaccine
‘First I want to say I am beyond honored and humbled to be here today to help spread the message about the importance of COVID vaccinations,’ she said
Rodrigo had been called upon to speak at the podium to press during the visit, for which she wore a pink plaid peplum blazer and mini skirt.
‘First I want to say I am beyond honored and humbled to be here today to help spread the message about the importance of COVID vaccinations,’ she told reporters.
‘I am in awe of the work that President Biden and Dr. Fauci have done and I am happy to help them by supporting this important initiative.
‘It is important to have conversations with friends and family members, encouraging all communities to get vaccinated and actually get to a vaccination site, which you can do more easily than ever before, given how many vaccine sites we have and how easily you can find them at vaccines.gov.
‘Thank you Jen for having me today and thank you all for helping share this important message, it’s so appreciated.’
‘I am in awe of the work that President Biden and Dr. Fauci have done and I am happy to help them by supporting this important initiative,’ she said
‘It is important to have conversations with friends and family members, encouraging all communities to get vaccinated and actually get to a vaccination site,’ she said
Dressed to impress: The star wore a pink plaid suit for the momentous occasion
Flying high: The teenager paired her bubblegum-pink outfit with some sky-high white platform heels, which she wore with black socks
Shortly after her appearance at the podium, a video of Olivia urging young people to get vaccinated was posted on the President’s official Instagram account, with the clip reiterating many of the points that the popstar had made during her briefing.
‘It doesn’t matter if you’re young and healthy, getting the vaccine is about protecting yourself, your friends, and your family,’ she said. ‘Let’s get vaccinated!’
Before arriving at the White House, Olivia eagerly promoted her meeting on social media, re-sharing a post from the President on her Instagram Stories.
In the post, Biden shared an image of himself as a young man, writing: ‘I know this young person would’ve gotten vaccinated, but we’ve got to get other young people protected as well. Who’s willing to help?’
Olivia replied: ‘I’m in! See you tomorrow at the White House!’
Biden responded: ‘You bet!’
There she goes: Olivia was grinning from ear-to-ear as she made her way into the West Wing
Shortly after her appearance at the podium, a video of Olivia urging young people to get vaccinated was posted on the President’s official Instagram account
‘It doesn’t matter if you’re young and healthy, getting the vaccine is about protecting yourself, your friends, and your family,’ she said. ‘Let’s get vaccinated!’
Soon after her comment went viral, the White House confirmed that Olivia had been invited to meet with Biden and Fauci. They said that the singer would ‘record videos about the importance of young people getting vaccinated, including answering important questions young people have about getting vaccinated.’
Supporter: Although Olivia was not old enough to vote in the 2020 election, she actively promoted Biden and Harris’ campaign on social media
This was not the first time that Olivia has used her impressive online influence to lend a hand to the President.
She was very vocal in her support of Biden during the 2020 presidential campaign, during which she posted several videos and images to help promote him to younger people.
Olivia, who turned 18 in February, was not actually old enough to vote during the election. However, the engaged teen actively encouraged her older followers to throw their support behind Biden and Harris.
Olivia even teamed up with Biden’s granddaughter, Maisy, 20, to help promote Biden and his policies, with the two young women recording an interview together that was then shared on social media and YouTube.