Is Hilary Duff’s new song about Leonardo DiCaprio or Joel Madden? See her reaction

Hilary Duff is commenting on the swirling speculation around her new single, 'Mature,' even if she isn’t giving away all the answers. The 38-year-old actress and singer, who returned to music after a decade-long hiatus, recently addressed rumors that Leonardo DiCaprio might be the muse behind the track.

“First of all, we’re getting the biggest kick out of the speculations,” Hilary said during a Nov. 22 appearance on On Air With Ryan Seacrest. “It’s honestly, it’s thrilling. It’s 100 percent thrilling, and the internet is such a funny place. I’m obsessed with everyone, and I’m seeing all the videos.”

The conversation began as soon as the song dropped earlier this month. Fans pointed out lyrics like, “Very Leo of you with your Scorpio touch,” noting the apparent alignment with DiCaprio’s famously youthful dating pattern, zodiac sign, and even his art taste, Jean-Michel Basquiat. 

© Amy Sussman

Hilary also references leaving her car at Carbon Beach in Malibu, where the actor owns a home, adding further fuel to the speculation. Then came Hilary’s husband, Matthew Koma, co-writer of the track, who posted a meme of DiCaprio holding the single’s cover art, delighting social media sleuths. 

“No, you can’t take anything that Matthew posts seriously. He’s the biggest troll on the planet Earth,” Hilary said. “He will lead everybody down all the roads and have the most fun doing it.” She kept her cards close to her chest. “So, not confirming, not denying anything here,” she added, letting fans bask in the guessing game.

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Leo isn’t the only man whispered about online. Some think the song is about Joel Madden, Hilary’s ex-boyfriend from 2004 to 2006, when she was 19 and he was 28. Though neither Hilary nor Madden have confirmed this, Nicole Richie, Madden’s wife, chimed in with a playful nod on social media. 

Sharing a photo of herself and Hilary laughing together, Richie wrote, “'Mature' is not the word I would use to describe us, but regardless, this song is a BOP.” Joel later reposted the picture, delighting fans and further entwining the rumors.

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In interviews, Hilary has been clear about the personal lens she brought to the song. “The song is about reflecting on your past and coming to terms with the choices you’ve made, but without being too hard on yourself,” she told Vogue. “It is definitely about a brief experience that I had in my—a long, long time ago [laughs]. But it is not totally autobiographical."

She continued, "I took a few artistic liberties just to make the song work structurally, but the gist is the gist. I was looking back on this relationship and thinking about whether this guy had a habit of dating younger women or whether I was ‘special.’ The whole experience was super therapeutic to write about, but being so vulnerable through your music can be really scary.”

© Amy Sussman

“Mature” finds Hilary in reflective, playful form, singing lines like, “She looks like she could be your daughter / Like me before I got smarter / When I was flattered to hear you say / You're so mature for your age.” The track serves as both a wink at her younger self and a celebration of her current perspective. 

“‘Mature’ is a little conversation that my present self is having with my younger self. The two of us are reflecting on a past experience and sending love to each other. It’s a chuckle, a wink, and a sense of being grateful that we are sure-footed in where we landed," she said.

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The song marks Hilary’s first major musical release in a decade and is set to appear on her upcoming sixth studio album, 'Luck... or Something,' due Feb. 20, 2026. In discussing her return to music, she cited her husband’s support and the timing in her life as key inspirations. 

“Living with the person that I live with, who's my husband, and just being 10 years removed from music and being 38 and just arriving kind of where I am in my life,” she told the Therapuss podcast, “I just felt like I can finally fill in the blanks.”