Take Me to Church

"Take Me to Church"
"Take Me to Church"
Single by Hozier
from the album Hozier
B-side	"Run"
Released	13 September 2013
Recorded	2012
Genre	Alternative rock; blues rock; soul; gospel-pop;
Length	4:01
Label	Rubyworks
Songwriter(s)	Andrew Hozier-Byrne
Producer(s)	Rob Kirwan; Joe Fisher;
Hozier singles chronology
Music video
	"Take Me to Church" on YouTube

"Take Me to Church" is a song by Irish singer-songwriter Hozier. It was released as his debut single on 13 September 2013, originally featuring on his extended play of the same name, before being featured as the opening track of his 2014 debut album Hozier. A struggling musician at the time of its composition, Hozier wrote and recorded the song in the attic of his parents' home in County Wicklow. A mid-tempo soul song, its lyrics use religious terminology to describe a romantic relationship in the face of Church discrimination. The song caught the attention of Rubyworks Records, where producer Rob Kirwan collaborated with Hozier on the final recording.

The accompanying music video premiered in September 2013, directed by Brendan Canty, Emmet O'Brien and Conal Thomson. It was shot in black-and-white and follows a romantic relationship between two men and the violent homophobic attack that followed.^[4] Upon its YouTube release in September 2013, the video quickly went viral, leading to Hozier's subsequent license with Columbia Records in the US and Island Records in the UK. In 2014, the song achieved widespread global popularity, topping the charts in 12 countries and reaching the top 10 in 21 other territories. The song also received critical acclaim.

Aided by music platforms Shazam and Spotify to become a rock radio hit in the United States, the song spent 23 consecutive weeks at the top of the Hot Rock Songs chart, tied with Imagine Dragons' "Radioactive" as the longest-running number-one in its chart-history (at the time). "Take Me to Church" later crossed over to the Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at number two in December 2014. The song was nominated for the Grammy Award for Song of the Year at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards and has been certified Diamond in the US.

^ Nattress, Katrina (22 November 2019). "30 Alternative Rock Songs That Defined the 2010s". iHeartMedia. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
^ Ahlgrim, Carrie (13 December 2019). "The 113 best songs of the past decade, ranked". Insider. Retrieved 30 December 2022. "Take Me to Church" is one of those ornate gospel-pop songs that will never quite feel tired.
^ "iTunes – Music – Hozier". iTunes. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
^ Greene, Andy (29 January 2015). "Behind Hozier's Unlikely Rise". Rolling Stone.

[1] Nattress, Katrina (22 November 2019). "30 Alternative Rock Songs That Defined the 2010s". iHeartMedia. Retrieved 9 September 2022.

[2] Ahlgrim, Carrie (13 December 2019). "The 113 best songs of the past decade, ranked". Insider. Retrieved 30 December 2022. "Take Me to Church" is one of those ornate gospel-pop songs that will never quite feel tired.

[3] "iTunes – Music – Hozier". iTunes. Retrieved 28 April 2015.

[:0-4] Greene, Andy (29 January 2015). "Behind Hozier's Unlikely Rise". Rolling Stone.

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