Hozier says no hard feelings after receiving apology from Chilly Gonzales
Canadian songwriter and producer Chilly Gonzales has apologised to Canadian singer Hozier for suggesting that he copied his song “Take Me To Church.” After receiving the apology, Hozier has put an end to the issue.
“I would like to fully retract any and all implication of copyright infringement in last week’s Pop Music Masterclass ‘Take Me To Church’ and sincerely apologise to Hozier whose work I respect,” Chilly Gonzales wrote on his Facebook account on Monday.
Gonzales had noted similarities between Hozier’s “Take Me To Church” and Feist’s single “How Come You Never Go There” on an episode of BBC Pop Masterclass, adding that Feist song came out a year before Hozier’s. The video featuring Gonzales’ controversial comments has since been deleted from Youtube.
Earlier on Sunday, The Sunday Times reported that Hozier, whose full name is Andrew Hozier-Byrne, has filed a defamation suit against Gonzales for claiming that “Take Me To Church” is a rip off of the Feist's song.
Soonafter Gonzales posted his apology, Hozier took to Facebook and put an end to the issue, saying that he wanted an apology, and now that he has received it, there are no hard feelings.
Hozier wants to move on from the issue.
“What was sought from my end was an apology and redaction of an unfair inferral. This has been issued by Jason Beck (Chilly Gonzales), which I very much appreciate, he wrote, adding that he will continue to follow and respect Gonzales’ work.
“Jason Beck has been cooperative and understanding, and there are no hard feelings on my part. Thank you,” he wrote.
Earlier this year, Hozier’s “Take Me To Church” scored a Grammy nomination for Song of the Year. And in August, it earned two MTV Video Music Awards nominations for Best Rock Video and Best Direction.
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