--- title: "Robbie Williams Refuses to Sue Olivia Rodrigo Over Christmas Song Similarity to His Hit Candy" description: "Robbie Williams publicly supported Olivia Rodrigo and refused to sue over the similarity of her Christmas single to his hit Candy, criticizing the practice of plagiarism accusations for melodic coincidences." date: 2026-11-10T13:32:54.150Z lang: en url: https://xab.info/en/posts/robbie-williams-refuses-to-sue-olivia-rodrigo tags: [robbie-williams, olivia-rodrigo, christmas-song, plagiarism, copyright, candy, music] author: "Inna Kinsheva" publisher: "XAB.info" --- # Robbie Williams Refuses to Sue Olivia Rodrigo Over Christmas Song Similarity to His Hit Candy ![Singer Robbie Williams at the Better Man film premiere wearing a black suit](https://xab.info/media/2026/11/10/robbie-williams-otkazalsya-suditsya-s-oliviey-rodrigo/robbie-williams-otkazalsya-suditsya-s-oliviey-rodrigo-1.webp) ## Key Points - Robbie Williams stated he will not sue Olivia Rodrigo over similarities between her single take me home (4 christmas) and his 2012 hit Candy. - Rodrigo's single was also compared to The Waitresses' 1981 track Christmas Wrapping, cited as an inspiration. - Williams criticized the practice of accusing artists of plagiarism over accidental melodic overlaps, urging not to scare musicians away from creating. British singer Robbie Williams has publicly responded to the wave of plagiarism accusations directed at American artist Olivia Rodrigo following the release of her debut Christmas single *take me home (4 christmas)*. Listeners and parts of the music community began comparing the new track to Williams's hit *Candy*, released in 2012, pointing out noticeable melodic overlaps. Instead of using the situation for his own benefit, the artist took his colleague's side and explicitly stated that he has no intention of suing her. ### Where the Plagiarism Debate Came From The discussion flared up immediately after the release of Rodrigo's festive track. In it, fans and critics caught not only similarities to *Candy* but also references to the classic 1981 Christmas song *Christmas Wrapping* by the American band The Waitresses. According to participants in the discussion, this older song served as one of the inspirations for the singer's new work. Thus, the dispute boiled down to the question of where the line is drawn between acceptable borrowing and the appropriation of someone else's material. ### Public Support and Refusal to Sue Williams commented on the situation in an extended Instagram post. He emphasized that he appreciates Rodrigo's work and has been following her for a long time: «I love Olivia Rodrigo. I've loved her since *brutal*. What an incredible song. Wish I'd written it myself». Answering direct questions about potential legal action, the musician was categorical: «I don't know if there's a formal publishing issue, a copyright issue, or no issue at all. And I don't want to find out. I'm not going to sue her». ### Stance on Copyright and Creative Inspiration The artist acknowledged that protecting musicians' copyrights is necessary, but drew a clear line between genuine appropriation of someone else's work and hunting for grounds to file lawsuits over familiar note progressions. According to him, he has repeatedly faced situations where his own songs were accused of resembling other people's works, and therefore he fully understands both sides. Williams believes that musicians inevitably draw inspiration from their predecessors, sometimes without even realizing it, and that excessive scrutiny of accidental similarities can harm the entire industry. ### Conclusion: Creativity Instead of Lawsuits Concluding his message, Williams warned against turning every melodic coincidence into the subject of a claim: «If we keep punishing people for accidentally arriving at something someone else created before, we're just going to scare everybody away from creating». In the end, he once again called Rodrigo a talented artist and wished her a Merry Christmas. Thus, the high-profile dispute over Rodrigo's Christmas single received a public resolution from one of its key participants without legal proceedings — in favor of creative freedom and mutual respect between colleagues. ## Fact-Check & Sources - [Рождественскую песню Оливии Родриго обвинили в плагиате хита Робби Уильямса: реакция певца](https://wave.rbc.ua/ukr/stars/rizdvyanu-pisnyu-oliviyi-rodrigo-zvinuvatili-1794314133.html) - Primary source: contains Williams's Instagram quotes, the context of the debate regarding Candy (2012) and Christmas Wrapping (1981), and his refusal to sue. All facts in the article have been verified against this text. ## FAQ ### Why was Olivia Rodrigo's song accused of plagiarism? Listeners noticed melodic overlaps between her Christmas single take me home (4 christmas) and Robbie Williams's 2012 hit Candy, as well as the older 1981 track Christmas Wrapping by The Waitresses. ### Will Robbie Williams sue Olivia Rodrigo? No. In an Instagram post, he explicitly stated that he does not want to figure out if there is a formal copyright issue and has no intention of suing her. ### What is Williams's stance on such accusations? He believes that musicians inevitably draw inspiration from predecessors, sometimes unconsciously, and that punishing accidental coincidences can scare people away from creating, while still acknowledging the need to protect copyrights.