Olly Murs fiancée defends singer over ‘disgusting’ lyrics criticism
Singer’s been branded ‘controlling’ for his controversial new song
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Olly Murs’ fiancée Amelia Tank has hit out at criticism of the pop star’s new single.
Following its release on Friday (25 November), the lyrics of “I Hate You When You’re Drunk” were branded “cruel”, “disgusting” and “misogynistic” by some listeners.
The upbeat pop track, which was co-written by Murs, sees the singer lambast a loved one for getting drunk on a night out. Murs himself has said the song’s words can apply to a family, friend or romantic love interest.
One criticism came from DJ Shaun Keaveny, who wrote on Twitter: “Olly Murs is quite the sad, controlling boyfriend according to the lyrics of his new song, ‘I Hate You When You’re Drunk’.
“I look forward to her reply song ‘I Hate You When You Sing’.”
Tank, who has been in a relationship with Murs since 2019, responded to Keaveny on Instagram.
NME reports Tank as writing in an Instagram Stories post on Monday (28 November): “Many thanks for your concern here however I can confirm that I in fact love my *NON* controlling *FIANCE* even more when he sings and this latest single is actually one of my favourites from the album.”
The bodybuilder and model added: “I wouldn’t lose any sleep over it bbz because I’m defo not #itsjustabitoffun. Lots of love and have a magical evening.”
Tank and Murs announced their engagement in June 2022.
The lyrics in “I Hate You When You’re Drunk” begin: “Oh, you’re slurrin’ all your words, there’s make-up on my shirt / You’re dancin’ on the tables, can’t you see / That you look like a mess and you’re singin’ Whitney?”
In the second verse, he sings: “Oh, you got them drunken eyes, should we call it a night? /‘Cause you’ve been tellin’ stories four-five times / Yeah, I’ve heard it before and my ears are bleedin’.”
Murs then repeatedly sings the words: “Oh, I hate you, hate you, I hate you, hate you when you’re drunk.”
In another part of the song, he sings: “Because you wanna buy champagne / And you wanna throw the shots back / And now you’re takin’ photographs / Why am I the only one that don’t laugh?”
Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music
Sign up now for a 4 month free trial (3 months for non-Prime members)
Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music
Sign up now for a 4 month free trial (3 months for non-Prime members)
Murs, who asks his loved one to “quit acting like a fool” then reassures them that he will “love you all the same” as “I’ll pick you up when you do it all again”.
The singer declined to comment on the criticism.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments