Hozier on the legacy of Take Me to Church as a rallying cry for activists around the world
The Irish singer-songwriter reflects on the impact of his biggest hit 10 years after its release
When Irish singer-songwriter Hozier wrote his debut single Take Me to Church in his parents' attic 10 years ago, he had no idea the song would become a massive hit, let alone a rallying cry for people fighting intolerance around the world.
Take Me to Church has been embraced as a protest song by the LGBTQ community as well as by victims of sexual abuse from clergy members in the Catholic Church. Last year, 16-year-old Iranian vlogger Sarina Esmailzadeh sang along to the track in her first YouTube video, which went viral shortly after she was killed by Iranian security forces at one of the nationwide protests that erupted following the death of Mahsa Amini.
In an interview with Q's Tom Power about his new album, Unreal Unearth, Hozier reflects on the legacy and power of Take Me to Church today, starting with what went through his head when he learned of Esmailzadeh's tragic death.
"I'm confronted by a lot of things — it's a year ago since her murder," he tells Power. "But first of all, was just how easy it was for me to write that song and sing that song, and have no understanding of … the license that I had to write it and sing it.
"I most likely will never understand the bravery and the courage that it takes to be in Sarina's place in the world, or to live her life, and to engage in a peaceful protest for what she engaged in — the simple right to wear her hair, display her hair in a public place. She paid the ultimate price for that."
While Hozier is honoured by the incredible impact Take Me to Church has had internationally, he also feels humbled by it.
"I didn't have a global view when I was writing it as a 22, 23-year-old man," he says. "And what's funny to me is that in our part of the world it seems more applicable now than it did 10 years ago."
WATCH | Official video for Take Me to Church:
The 2013 music video for Take Me to Church is a critique of Russia's anti-LGBTQ policy, which the singer-songwriter says some people found controversial at the time.
"Russian state media was sort of doing this whole campaign that tried to equate child abuse with [LGBTQ people]," explains Hozier. "That led to this horrendous rise of attacks by very far-right gangs that filmed these attacks and put them on social media with impunity….
"That was what the music video back then was about. And the criticism that I faced — mild criticism — was, 'Hey, this is happening somewhere else in the world, why make a big fuss about it?' … And increasingly, you know, in the last 10 years, we've witnessed some of that culture kind of cross borders…. What strikes me is that song is sadly more applicable now than it was 10 years ago."
WATCH | Hozier's interview with Tom Power:
The full interview with Hozier is available on our podcast, Q with Tom Power. He also talks in depth about his new album, Unreal Unearth, and how it was inspired by Dante's Inferno. Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.
Interview with Hozier produced by Mitch Pollock.
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