Robbie Williams has defended Olivia Rodrigo after fans pointed out musical similarities between two of their tracks. The American pop sensation recently released her debut festive single, Take Me Home (4 Christmas), drawing inspiration from The Waitresses' 1981 classic Christmas Wrapping. However, listeners quickly noted that the track also echoes Williams' 2012 UK number-one single, Candy.
Williams dismisses copyright claims
Addressing the comparison online, Williams dismissed claims of wrongdoing, branding many copyright accusations within the music business "absolute bollocks". He wrote on Instagram: "There's something about the music industry that's been bothering me for a while. People coming after people because they've spotted a similarity between two songs. Some of it I completely understand. Some of it is absolutely justified. Most of it, I think, is complete bollocks."
He added: "I've had plenty of people come after me over the years because something I've released apparently sounds like something somebody else released. And sometimes I listen and think, fair enough, I can hear that. Other times I think, are you having a f****** laugh?"
Rodrigo's first Christmas single
Referring directly to Rodrigo, the former Take That star said: "It sounds to me as though she may have accidentally stumbled across a musical echo of mine in one of her new songs. And do you know what? I couldn't care less. I don't know whether there's technically a publishing issue, a copyright issue, or no issue whatsoever. And I don't want to know. I'm not going after her. Because I think at some point, some f****** sanity has to prevail."
Williams acknowledged his position in the industry, writing: "Now, I appreciate I'm in a position in my career where I can afford to take that view. Not everybody is. And genuine theft is genuine theft. Artists deserve to be protected. But there's a difference between protecting your work and treating every vaguely familiar sequence of notes as a winning lottery ticket. Some of this stuff has become ambulance chasing. And I think it's disgusting."
Creative process defended
The singer-songwriter emphasised that overlapping melodies are simply part of the creative process. He wrote: "We all stand on the shoulders of people who came before us. Sometimes consciously. Sometimes without even knowing it. That's how music works. If we keep punishing people for accidentally arriving somewhere somebody else has already been, eventually we're going to frighten the creativity out of everyone. Anyway, Olivia, if you're reading this, I think you're f****** brilliant."
Meanwhile, Christopher Butler of The Waitresses revealed that Rodrigo personally reached out to him after being inspired by Christmas Wrapping to create her new single. Rodrigo's track shares a clear rhythm and vocal delivery style with the 1980s hit. Released on November 5, Take Me Home (4 Christmas) marks Rodrigo's first foray into holiday music. The release is accompanied by a star-studded music video featuring Sex And The City actress Cynthia Nixon alongside Saturday Night Live comedian Ben Marshall.
