gnash, i hate u, i love u | 1 Hit WONDERful

In the eighth edition of 1 Hit WONDERful (2025), we highlight “i hate u, i love u” performed by gnash featuring Olivia O’Brien. 

[otw_shortcode_dropcap label=”I” size=”large” border_color_class=”otw-no-border-color” shadow=”shadow” square=”square”]t only takes ONE hit to solidify a musical legacy 💯! On 1 Hit WONDERful, we highlight songs that were the SOLE hit by a given musician.  It is possible that the artists appearing on this list earned a minor hit or two, BUT for the most part, that ONE hit earned them recognition. So, in the eighth edition of 1 Hit WONDERful (2025), we dive into “i hate u, i love u”, the one-hit wonder by gnash featuring Olivia O’Brien.[/otw_shortcode_dropcap]

“Do you miss me like I miss you? / Fucked around and got attached to you.” Oh, snap, gnash (Garrett Nash).  He continues singing in his 2016, love/hate-driven hit single, “I hate u, i love u”, “Friends can break your heart too, and / I’m always tired but never of you.” “I hate u” was the crowning achievement of the singer/songwriter/producer’s EP, Us.  Notably, then-rising teen-pop artist, Olivia O’Brien collaborated with him.  The song peaked at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. It is Gnash’s highest-charting song as the lead artist.  It was also his only top 40 hit credited as the lead artist.  As a featured guest on “Lights Down Low” by MAX, gnash earned another significant hit, which technically excludes him from one-hit-wonder status.  However, his only other entry as the lead artist, “Home”, featuring Johnny Yukon, peaked modestly at number 76 on the Billboard Hot 100.  There can be a debate about whether Nash is a true one-hit wonder or not. What we do know is, he’s best known for this song, PERIOD.

The approach of “I hate u, I love u” is as ‘oxymoronic’ as its title. Before gnash drops his cool, calm, and collected, if profane lyrics, Olivia O’Brien draws first blood.  “Feeling used, but I’m / Still missing you and I can’t / See the end of this / Just wanna feel your kiss against my lips,” she sings in the dramatic, emotional first verse.  She follows up with the unforgettable chorus:

“I hate you, I love you

I hate that I love you

Don’t want to, but I can’t put

Nobody else above you…”

Gnash, then, takes the reins, where he utters the shit at the end of four consecutive lines – only after he “fucked around and got attached to you,” of course.

“If I pulled a you on you, you wouldn’t like that shit

I put this reel out, but you wouldn’t bite that shit

I type a text, but then I never mind that shit

I got these feelings, but you never mind that shit.”

What more can you say but, ‘oh, shit!’ Gnash also delivers a third verse, continuing to be affected by this love-hate. “You ever wonder what we could have been? / You said you wouldn’t and you fucking did / Lie to me, lie to me, get your fucking fix…” Word.  Gnash never struck gold after the late 2010s, but, the memorable “I hate u, i love u” remains a gem from the decade. No hate here!

Appears in 🔻:

• 11 Songs Where the Hate is Real (2018)

Gnash // Us // :): // 2016

Gnash, i hate u, i love u: 1 Hit WONDERful No. 8 (2025) [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; :):; Antoni Shkraba, KoolShooters, Pavel Danilyuk, Photo By: Kaboompics.com, RDNE Stock project from Pexels; AcatXIo, OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay]