Yungblud‘s new single “Tissues” samples The Cure‘s “Close to Me,” and on Tuesday (Aug. 30), the rock star explained in an interview how he got permission to use the song.
“I remember when we were making it I was like, ‘I just want to dance!’” he recalled to Zane Lowe for Apple Music 1. “The session wasn’t going well … I was thinking about packing it in and going home, but then we opened a crate of Bud Light, started putting songs on that we loved and [The Cure’s “Close to Me”] came on, and I was just like, ‘Yo we should sample this.’”
Initially, every producer balked at the possibility, but Yungblud was insistent. “That’s what I said to them, I was like, ‘If I can somehow convince Robert Smith to allow me to do this, I don’t care. Like, I’ve won.’ It was beautiful. I just wanted to make on this record music that me and my mates want to listen to. That was the formula. And obviously we grew up with this song.”
Yungblud dished to Lowe that he had met Robert Smith backstage at the 2019 NME Awards after his mom, who was his date for the evening, started chatting with the rock icon. So ultimately, he decided to reach out personally for The Cure frontman’s approval to use the band’s 1985 classic.
“I emailed and was like, ‘Hello Robert Smith of the Cure … ‘Close to Me’ — probably the most iconic British beat of all time. May I use it in the song?’ And I was like, I don’t know what I’m gonna do if he says no. But he got back in a couple days. He types in all caps, Robert. He was like, ‘HELLO DOM, YOU CAN USE IT ALL GOOD HERE, LOVE ROBERT.’ Called my boys up and was like, ‘I’ve sampled ‘Close to Me,’ they’ve let me use it.’ It was like a mosh pit. My boys in the North were like, ‘YOOOOOO.’”
The track precedes the release of Yungblud’s self-titled third album. Due out Friday (Sept. 2) via LOCOMOTION/Geffen Records, the follow-up to 2020’s Weird! will also include singles “The Funeral,” “Memories” featuring Willow and “Don’t Feel Like Feeling Sad Today.”
Listen to Yungblud’s “Tissues” and The Cure’s “Close to Me” below:
