‘Christmas Wrapping’ songwriter praises Olivia Rodrigo’s “homage” festive single and Robbie Williams wades in on comparisons

Olivia Rodrigo’s new festive single, ‘Take Me Home (4 Christmas)’, has drawn comparisons to The Waitresses’ 1981 song ‘Christmas Wrapping’ and Robbie Williams’ ‘Candy’. Christopher Butler, who wrote ‘Christmas Wrapping’, praised Rodrigo’s song as a homage and said he did not consider it plagiarism, while Williams said he would not pursue her over a possible similarity.

Butler said Rodrigo contacted him about two months before release to share the song, and he praised her songwriting and recognition of earlier artists. Williams said songs can share musical echoes after music has existed for so long, and warned that treating every familiar sequence of notes as a copyright claim could discourage creativity. Rodrigo’s single was released with a video featuring Cynthia Nixon and Ben Marshall.