Since its release earlier this year, “This Hell” by Rina Sawayama has become something of a battle cry for LGBTQ people around the world. But according to a new interview, the song may not have been the same had it not been for one Sir Elton John.
In a new interview with NME, published on Friday (Sept. 16), Sawayama said that when she was putting together “Hell” in the studio, she noticed that the song’s opening guitar riff bore a slight resemblance to ABBA‘s 1979 hit “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight),” and she began to panic. “I was stressed as f–k because I was like: ‘this is our first single, this is our lead single, and I can’t use the guitar riff that I want,’” she said.
Sawayama says she called John, who then sent out some emails, putting her in contact with ABBA’s Benny Anderson, who game the star his blessing to use the riff in her song. “Elton is always willing to help. He’s just amazing,” she said. “I trust him so much with songwriting. I’m literally like: ‘You are one of the best songwriters in the whole world, if not the best.’”
John and Sawayama’s relationship started back in 2020 when, on an episode of his Apple Music show Rocket Hour, he complemented the singer’s debut album Sawayama. That led to the pair eventually working together on her 2021 song “Chosen Family,” where she reworked the original into a duet featuring John. Today, she said, she regularly calls the icon for advice on her music; “I always ask him, ‘What do you think?’ and he gave me such great advice as well.”
Check out the official music for “This Hell,” off of Sawayama’s new album Hold the Girl (out now), below.
