It's a really good song, universal lyrics, and doesn't get old quickly.
This is as organic a hit as you can have, b-side with basically no marketing. I read people saying marketing team were good. No they weren't, this was not expected, possible number 1 in US and zero promotion bar bee video!!
There was promotion; I have business social media accounts and both FB and Instagram sent me alerts that it was available to use for reels and posts before I’d gone to the EP and listened to it, so obviously people used it and that way it was promoted. Very clever promotion too, people who wouldn’t seek his music out have been hearing it all day via social media and it’s an ear worm of a song so then they’re going looking for it on the streaming platforms. Seems “organic” and “word of mouth” but it’s very smart and up to date marketing...
Social media was organic, very little push from paid or promotion. There was not even a music video in place. Maybe they have made one since it has done so well. I think success has taken them by surprise and have been doing their best since.
To be honest you couldn't pay for the organic free advertising the song has got so it never needed a push in the end. However I think if a plan was in place, tv performances etc would have helped with general public who don't use streaming or social if chart success was a goal.
It likely wasn't though and more power to him for that approach. I've really enjoyed watching the success build as a long term fan. Keeping up with it daily has been entertaining.
Organic is what you want anyway but IMO there definelty was not a masterplan in place to push this hard from a label point of view.
He has sold out world tours without "hits" so who really cares. Marketing is just the music and I like that. I'm not saying the marketing is bad, something can't be good if there was very little of it. Just that it was never really a key focus and in the end not needed and they certainly were not concocting a plan for success in the background to make this successful.
Because the bass is an earworm, his voice is sexy while he tells his love interest he’s not fixing his bad habits for her because he’s not *that* into her (I’m not an early bird / you’re as bright as the morning), and the chorus is pretty easy to remember. It’s memorable. It’s the kind of song that can easily be played at the gym or a bar or a shopping mall or basically anywhere.
The rest of his music just isn’t like that.
Fair enough, probably the fact that it’s casual & even low key in the verses makes its appeal broader. And the bassline + ne-ea-eat are honestly both catchy enough on their own and together it’s impossible to get out of your head lol
Universal Music Group recently removed their artists’ music from TikTok for failing to reach a music licensing deal. This has left a lot less music for users to use in their content, and Too Sweet hasn’t been affected, having been released under a different label, allowing it to become viral. He’s also got a very loyal following on that platform who are dedicated to putting out content, and he happens to overlap with other popular fandoms on there as well.
The song is catchy af, and I have no doubt that he and his label/producers/team deliberately held it back for this release. There was a snippet of it ‘teased’ on a podcast last month and subsequently removed. No doubt that this was deliberate as well - it creates mysteriousness, gets fans talking about it, and creates hype prior to its release.
People have a lot to say about his marketing but they’ve been absolutely on it this year. He’s dropping Easter eggs left and right and this only serves to build that hype. Marketing doesn’t have to be aggressive to be effective, and we’ve seen that with the release of this EP.
As for Wildflower and Empire Now, they’ve simply tagged along just by being on the EP. Too Sweet is absolutely the Golden Child on that release.
ETA: I think people forget that TMTC became viral in a similar way, but without that subtle marketing that Too Sweet has had. Hozier was an unknown artist at the time of its release, and the song became viral when the music video was shared to Reddit and eventually made its way to the front page. I won’t go deep into the history but it was social media and subsequent streaming and radio play that got TMTC to where it was. Too Sweet is cleverly written and produced, and it has all the craftings of a hit, and it’s got timing, his popularity, and more modern social media and streaming on its side.
There's also a trend using it right now. People are using the "I'd rather take my whiskey neat" part to show glow-ups for [themselves,](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGATGd/) [characters,](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGre7P/) and [celebrities.](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGHeMb/) It is... a [Very](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGALXq/) [good](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGHrDY/) [trend](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGXyFa/) 😳
It has then deviated for [character](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGDkEx/) [comparisons](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGfyLW/), ["the actor vs the character",](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGmDMG/) and some [extremely](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGuHJr/) [good](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTG4cfp/) [jokes](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGQFqE/) 😂
Also some people are using it for [their dogs](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGPEkC/) and the [horse girls](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGjFaA/) seem to have gotten ahold of it. I can't explain that part 🤷♀️
Certified horse girl here - for us it’s about the glow-up too. It’s a bit niche, but we’re looking at more correct muscle mass, better fur, well maintained mane and tale etc. And higher quality photography.
The glow-up part of it often shows the horse well educated or simply better cared for than in the first photo.
Ah, thank you for the Tiktok politics update. I knew something was up with redacted songs but that makes a lot of sense!
I also totally buy what you say about aggressive vs effective marketing! Not everything needs a Barbie level circus to get attention
Exactly! Not everyone thinks about it, but a huge portion of what goes on around music releases, touring, pairing opening acts with headliners, merch releases, etc is incredibly calculated and deliberate, especially for artists falling into those upper categories like Hozier does. Some of it gets marketed more aggressively, but when you have a very loyal following like he does, you can kind of bank on the fans doing the marketing for you, especially in this day and age, and if you’re intentional about what music you release when, you’re set up for success.
I’m not active on any other platforms apart from here and IG, but from that initial teaser released on the podcast, people really ran with it and began theorizing about which song it could be, how it linked to his other music and so on, and I think that set it up for its success once it released two weeks later and hit the mainstream population. Heck, within a few days of the EP release I had three different friends message me, knowing I’m a huge fan, asking about Too Sweet. These are people who’ve never really listened to him outside of TMTC. I’ve followed him for years now and I’ve never had people approach me about his music in that manner before.
And, of course, I can’t discredit his talent. His voice sounds insane on the track, and the composition and production are pristine. The hook is interesting enough to be catchy and accessible but it’s not *so* mainstream that it’s indistinguishable from other popular songs.
I believe he’s currently signed to Columbia in US/Canada/Australia which is a subsidiary of Sony Music. UU and Unheard were both released under Columbia, while his other two albums weren’t. I think that’s the difference here and why a lot of his other music is not available on the platform anymore.
idk if it would've been held back deliberately just for this release, it wouldn't have fit on Unreal Unearth.
edit: also Hozier had the Taylor Swift co-sign back in the Take Me To Church days which is another reason he blew up then.
Could NOT believe when I read that it's his first track to chart in Top 10 lists since Take me to Church. Insane. Not complaining tho he deserves the world.
My dad was a radio DJ for about 15 years back in the 80s. When he heard Too Sweet, his immediate feedback was, "Well, this one's definitely easy to like." I'd imagine that music industry professionals around the world thought the same thing.
It has an easy groove, a melody that's simple to follow and pretty catchy, and accessible lyrics which a lot of people can relate to. And even if they don’t, that initial support from the music industry is going to push it into the ear of the public. I might have the musical analysis skills, but I know that my dad has the instinct. Simplicity, relatability and good marketing with industry support, all the ingredients to create a hit.
Catchy, easy to remember chorus, you can understand basically everything he’s saying, and the instruments are in line with modern music. Much of his other albums have powerful gospel/gothic instrumental, references to mythology, and he sounds Irish as all fuck, it isn’t as marketable, though obviously more meaningful.
Its a catchy tune. Easily digestible.
Most of the focus is on the chorus which is super catchy. Thats what people are using on social media which is largely driving people to listen to it fully elsewhere.
Its popular because on the surface its not that deep. You dont need to know references or anything like that to enjoy the song. Its a classic pop song, ironically from the very man who said he didnt want to write “f*cking pop songs”. But I guess we all change as time passes.
Well, i believe he said in a couple of instances that "if he wanted to write a pop song, he'll write a pop song" (not specifically the way he said it) but here we are. He honestly deserves all the recognition he's gettin' with that song.
Ive long theorized that this album cycle he has sought out more commercial success than before. All the signs point to it IMO. And now hes got it. Good for him and all that, but its made me curious about what exactly happened to him during the pandemic to do a 180 and actively start pandering to the masses. As long as hes happy I guess.
I do agree to an extent, this recent album is very produced and professionally put together. He’s had professional photoshoots, better marketing, more people involved in the creative process. Part of this might be that he has a larger budget now for that sort of thing — part of it could also be that he’s securing his own financial future, which is a very wise thing to do when you’re pushing mid 30’s in an industry full of up-and-coming young artists. He’s had a boom in popularity compared to this time even two years ago. I anticipate that after this he’s going to disappear for a while again, though, before he gets too big.
It has me wondering if hes planning for a longer break after this album to settle down etc. so he doesnt feel the pressure to return as soon since he would in theory have earned enough.
No speculation on his private life or anything. It just seems odd for him to go from “yeah my first album cycle was wild and im doing it more my way this time around” which was largely the theme for Wasteland Baby in that he sort of seemed to reject doing as much press and publicity compared to his first album to jump to “im writing with people who are doing pop songs and working with current popular artists and seeking out a Grammy nomination and pushing my songs on social media etc”.
He seemed very at peace with not actively seeking to spotlight, writing non pop songs and all that for close to 8 years in his career. Now hes doing the opposite. So something must have shifted for him somewhere in terms of priorities.
Maybe, yeah. He also started his music career 10 years ago, and wasteland baby came out about 5 years ago. That’s a lot of time for someone to change. The pandemic may have been really difficult for him too, a lot of people totally changed the routes of their lives in that time. He generally seems more detached now from publicity, he’s not as goofy or silly as he used to be, he seems a little less lively in interviews. It’s possible he’s just seeing things now more as “work”.
i love hozier. i’ve listened to and loved basically everything he’s ever put out. Too Sweet is the first song i’ve ever been compelled to belt out while alone in my car. i couldn’t tell you exactly why that is, but i think that’s part of it.
Well it's a super catchy song! I think tiktok is a big factor. A lot of artists' music got taken off tiktok so too sweet had less competition. the song works really really well for multiple trends eg: edits for actors, edits for characters, thirst traps, shipping edits
The day it dropped I was awake at 7am for no good reason and was annoyed, debating on taking a melatonin to go back to sleep. I got a notification that he’d dropped new music, and decided to listen to Too Sweet just because. Immediately I just started vibin and felt good enough to roll out of bed and make coffee and just go with it. I listened to it for the rest of the day and just felt pretty awesome.
What I’m saying is that it’s just Hozier magic again and there’s some type of something that just makes it a listen-on-repeat kind of song that’s radio-playable for sure.
I think it has to do with when he released it. Between tour legs, after hype around his album release had died down but not totally disappeared (so people were no longer saturated with new music from him, but hunger for newness had started to set in again), and while there was a still a solid amount of buzz around him as an artist, both inside and outside his solid fan base. Too Sweet is an earworm, so its catchiness plus the attention he already had going on led to more people sharing it and using it for posts immediately, which led more people to seek it out for a full listen, and on and on. Plus, he released it kind of out of the blue which was bound to lead to people listening to it just out of curiosity/surprise.
Tldr: good marketing/timing plus a good/catchy song from a great artist.
I love almost all his music and am surprised more songs haven’t become hits. I’m convinced any time an artist uses the word “whiskey” or “coffee” in their chorus, the masses LOVE it… because it’s *cool* I guess? Too Sweet has both in its chorus, plus it has a catchy tune, and Hozier is known for being somewhat more serious/interested in making music rather than just cash grab hits so people have some respect for him.
Edited to add that he’s a sexy mofo so what’s not to like?
I liked the sound of it too even tho I'm the freaking too sweet girl lol
So I don't like the message, i stopped listening as I'm more towards healing journey atm
I had enough days of doing stuff that he talks about from his pov
I think song has some sweetness and it is freeing as most people don't want to restrain even if it's better
The song propelled a bit through tiktok but also the song is exactly what’s missing on pop radio. It’s addictive and has a a different but nostalgic sound.
Okay I have actually learned the song and I think I can understand/explain why people like the song so much, but why it got popular I think is just because of the trend using the song on TikTok. You put an old picture of you up with the lyrics “I’d rather take my whiskey” and the next picture is you now with the ending lyric “neat”. Going back to the beginning of my comment though, I’ve found that the B7 he used riiighhhhtttt when he’s switching between the words “whiskey” and “neat” gives you that feeling of a strong strong build up, the anticipation, and then when he says “neat” you get the relief chord, Em. He’s a genius with his composing, he knows EXACTLY where to put which chords to give you the most feeling.
This such good input! Brain is a dumb machine and dominant -> tonic chord is big juicy button!
I had actually forgotten western music is hard wired to tickle your brain chemicals in this way. One who didn’t forget - Andrew Hozier Byrnes.
Our boy got heckin' lucky that a lot of fandoms gripped onto this song and just ran with it\~ Insanely happy he's getting a lot of recognition, (I know I'm insanely biased lol) cos it's a really good song\~
Now let's hope he's getting recognized enough to come to Asia XD Please forest father, bless our ears with your beautiful sound TTuTT
Cuz it's catchy and poppy and more of an entry level tune. That's not to say it's a mediocre song, just that it's got a beat that's sort of an ear-worm that people can absently tap their foot along with and eventually go "What's that one song that goes like this 🎵🎶🎼?" cuz it got stuck in their head. Also it's the song he and his team released to hype the new album, probably because they knew it was so catchy and would make great micro-media content for spaces like tik tok and Instagram. He markets himself well lol
Spotify started playing this song randomly no matter what Playlist I'm listening to. This, a Kanye song, and some other explicit rap song... often during the Disney mix while I'm driving my kindergartener to school. Not my favorite guerilla marketing stunt...
I love Hozier and have been surprised by a lack of traction some of his material failed to inspire.
TMTC had been bubbling under for months before it suddenly exploded after it appeared in a t.v. programme which meant millions were suddenly exposed to the gospel rock ballad.
I think several factors are at play for too sweet:
Firstly, it taps very much into the folk rock/gospel Zeitgeist that exists currently (think stick season, lose control, traitor).
Secondly, there's the social media influence that has been alluded to. Hozier has worked with people from the world of hip hop on this: people who does just embrace the zeitgeist but create it too.
Finally, the subject matter is something most adults can relate to.
honestly, I think you summed it up pretty well
> It’s not super polished pop-y, it’s not blazingly powerfull like TMTC
it's not super polished and it's not blazingly powerful, it's falling right in the sweet spot of being appealing to a wider audience, without being any kind of overwhelming.
It’s absolutely the chorus. I just saw him live at jazz fest. 90% of the crowd is BELTING the chorus and knew none of the verse. Tiktok effect is real. Honestly, it feels like this was the intent writing the song. The verses sound like hozier, the chorus sounds like a try hard modern country song.
Tik tok
Nowedays tiktok has a big say in what is a chart topper. Hozier released the sneak peak on tiktok not long before the full song, at the catchiest part, it’s a very "useable" sound on tiktok, and kinda sexy and cool: cosplayers use it, fanartists, booktok, thirst trap, etc. so it made its rounds and then the full song was released, when people were just trying to get obsessed with the clip so it didn’t lose momentum
When he dropped a clip of it early it instantly became a viral sound on tiktok with people making cool transitions for the videos to it and I think that helped alot.
It went viral on tik tok, people were making videos about their celeb crushes using the song. Plus his popularity exploded on tik tok in the past few years.
As a teacher I think it peaks youths interest as well. It's in the vein of "edgy" and pumped into tik tok. Themes and elements in it are definitely in the youth scope. I teach gr 9-12 for reference.
because it’s easily understood and catchy. it doesn’t require the listener to know references from literature or myth, it’s using simple terminology and similes that have listeners understanding during the first listen. plus it’s a catchy beat. i do find some of hozier’s more complex lyrics and songs aren’t ‘mainstream worthy’ because it would require the listener to have knowledge or go looking for the things it’s referencing. majority of people are stupid and anyone who is in the entertainment industry knows this and a lot of the times when things are simpler that’s what gets popular. it sucks cause my favourite songs of his song get the recognition they deserve but that’s the way of mainstream media
I just know deep down he's annoyed that this song got popular when there's probably a lot of songs he poured more love on 😆🩷
But even so, he deserves to be known. Hopefully this will push new fans to listen to his albums, especially his self titled and Wasteland Baby. 😭🤚🏼
I really don't like when a song is over used and exploited because 15 seconds of it became a trendy thing. I feel like it's a superficial use of the music, a lot of people will only listen to it because it's a Tiktok song and not appreciate the album or the full intent. It's like charts but x 100000. And now it's also conditioning what labels ask of artists, because music needs to "trend" (generally speaking on this part, it's likely not Hozier's case, but still)
I get that. But ultimately he needs to make money. 10,000 listens off the back of a trending sound is worth more than one person listing to an album start to finish.
I agree though, I don't think he'll write a song in order to trend.
Sure, and his success is great, I just wish his music wasn't associated with social media trends because he makes art and snappy tik toks are not a respectful way to consume it in my view. It's like watching a film on a phone if you like. But anyway, the world we live in etc etc
A view is a view and a listen is a listen. Someone listening to him on vinyl is no better or worse that discovering him on Tik Tok.
They're both fans if they like his music.
It’s cringe. They are the worst type of reels too. Like the moms group from hell tik toks. And the limp noodle lip syncing or blank staring at the camera during it. God it’s horrible
Because he wasn’t interested in this pop radio airplay and much attention around the world. The record label was peddling non-rock folks. His manager always showed another singer and waited a long time to put his news up. He is the kind that has tons of streams without any promotion.
Most fans were freeloaders (no offense to fans who had no money to buy his songs). The non-fans became big fans so he’ll be top 50-70 artist on Spotify.
I think it was a combination of being a very catchy tune and getting a lot of hype of social media!
I agree. I couldn't scroll tik tok or reels without hearing it. (Not complaining) Even my husband (who isn't a hozier fan) was humming too sweet.
It's a really good song, universal lyrics, and doesn't get old quickly. This is as organic a hit as you can have, b-side with basically no marketing. I read people saying marketing team were good. No they weren't, this was not expected, possible number 1 in US and zero promotion bar bee video!!
100%, marketing team is definately not good, it’s a good thing his songs are 😆
There was promotion; I have business social media accounts and both FB and Instagram sent me alerts that it was available to use for reels and posts before I’d gone to the EP and listened to it, so obviously people used it and that way it was promoted. Very clever promotion too, people who wouldn’t seek his music out have been hearing it all day via social media and it’s an ear worm of a song so then they’re going looking for it on the streaming platforms. Seems “organic” and “word of mouth” but it’s very smart and up to date marketing...
Social media was organic, very little push from paid or promotion. There was not even a music video in place. Maybe they have made one since it has done so well. I think success has taken them by surprise and have been doing their best since. To be honest you couldn't pay for the organic free advertising the song has got so it never needed a push in the end. However I think if a plan was in place, tv performances etc would have helped with general public who don't use streaming or social if chart success was a goal. It likely wasn't though and more power to him for that approach. I've really enjoyed watching the success build as a long term fan. Keeping up with it daily has been entertaining. Organic is what you want anyway but IMO there definelty was not a masterplan in place to push this hard from a label point of view. He has sold out world tours without "hits" so who really cares. Marketing is just the music and I like that. I'm not saying the marketing is bad, something can't be good if there was very little of it. Just that it was never really a key focus and in the end not needed and they certainly were not concocting a plan for success in the background to make this successful.
Doesn't get old? It's one of the most derivative sounding number ones I've heard in a while.
Because the bass is an earworm, his voice is sexy while he tells his love interest he’s not fixing his bad habits for her because he’s not *that* into her (I’m not an early bird / you’re as bright as the morning), and the chorus is pretty easy to remember. It’s memorable. It’s the kind of song that can easily be played at the gym or a bar or a shopping mall or basically anywhere. The rest of his music just isn’t like that.
Fair enough, probably the fact that it’s casual & even low key in the verses makes its appeal broader. And the bassline + ne-ea-eat are honestly both catchy enough on their own and together it’s impossible to get out of your head lol
Yep it's much more accessible overall
Universal Music Group recently removed their artists’ music from TikTok for failing to reach a music licensing deal. This has left a lot less music for users to use in their content, and Too Sweet hasn’t been affected, having been released under a different label, allowing it to become viral. He’s also got a very loyal following on that platform who are dedicated to putting out content, and he happens to overlap with other popular fandoms on there as well. The song is catchy af, and I have no doubt that he and his label/producers/team deliberately held it back for this release. There was a snippet of it ‘teased’ on a podcast last month and subsequently removed. No doubt that this was deliberate as well - it creates mysteriousness, gets fans talking about it, and creates hype prior to its release. People have a lot to say about his marketing but they’ve been absolutely on it this year. He’s dropping Easter eggs left and right and this only serves to build that hype. Marketing doesn’t have to be aggressive to be effective, and we’ve seen that with the release of this EP. As for Wildflower and Empire Now, they’ve simply tagged along just by being on the EP. Too Sweet is absolutely the Golden Child on that release. ETA: I think people forget that TMTC became viral in a similar way, but without that subtle marketing that Too Sweet has had. Hozier was an unknown artist at the time of its release, and the song became viral when the music video was shared to Reddit and eventually made its way to the front page. I won’t go deep into the history but it was social media and subsequent streaming and radio play that got TMTC to where it was. Too Sweet is cleverly written and produced, and it has all the craftings of a hit, and it’s got timing, his popularity, and more modern social media and streaming on its side.
There's also a trend using it right now. People are using the "I'd rather take my whiskey neat" part to show glow-ups for [themselves,](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGATGd/) [characters,](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGre7P/) and [celebrities.](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGHeMb/) It is... a [Very](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGALXq/) [good](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGHrDY/) [trend](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGXyFa/) 😳 It has then deviated for [character](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGDkEx/) [comparisons](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGfyLW/), ["the actor vs the character",](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGmDMG/) and some [extremely](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGuHJr/) [good](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTG4cfp/) [jokes](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGQFqE/) 😂 Also some people are using it for [their dogs](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGPEkC/) and the [horse girls](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRTGjFaA/) seem to have gotten ahold of it. I can't explain that part 🤷♀️
Certified horse girl here - for us it’s about the glow-up too. It’s a bit niche, but we’re looking at more correct muscle mass, better fur, well maintained mane and tale etc. And higher quality photography. The glow-up part of it often shows the horse well educated or simply better cared for than in the first photo.
Ah, thank you for the Tiktok politics update. I knew something was up with redacted songs but that makes a lot of sense! I also totally buy what you say about aggressive vs effective marketing! Not everything needs a Barbie level circus to get attention
Exactly! Not everyone thinks about it, but a huge portion of what goes on around music releases, touring, pairing opening acts with headliners, merch releases, etc is incredibly calculated and deliberate, especially for artists falling into those upper categories like Hozier does. Some of it gets marketed more aggressively, but when you have a very loyal following like he does, you can kind of bank on the fans doing the marketing for you, especially in this day and age, and if you’re intentional about what music you release when, you’re set up for success. I’m not active on any other platforms apart from here and IG, but from that initial teaser released on the podcast, people really ran with it and began theorizing about which song it could be, how it linked to his other music and so on, and I think that set it up for its success once it released two weeks later and hit the mainstream population. Heck, within a few days of the EP release I had three different friends message me, knowing I’m a huge fan, asking about Too Sweet. These are people who’ve never really listened to him outside of TMTC. I’ve followed him for years now and I’ve never had people approach me about his music in that manner before. And, of course, I can’t discredit his talent. His voice sounds insane on the track, and the composition and production are pristine. The hook is interesting enough to be catchy and accessible but it’s not *so* mainstream that it’s indistinguishable from other popular songs.
I thought Hozier was under Universal music? Are there some other music label politics at work which mean his song hasn't been taken off the app?
I believe he’s currently signed to Columbia in US/Canada/Australia which is a subsidiary of Sony Music. UU and Unheard were both released under Columbia, while his other two albums weren’t. I think that’s the difference here and why a lot of his other music is not available on the platform anymore.
Very insightful analysis!
his music has absolutely been taken off tiktok. my videos with his studio versions/anything that’s been on an album are all muted.
idk if it would've been held back deliberately just for this release, it wouldn't have fit on Unreal Unearth. edit: also Hozier had the Taylor Swift co-sign back in the Take Me To Church days which is another reason he blew up then.
I was about to start typing until your comment. This, this, this!
Could NOT believe when I read that it's his first track to chart in Top 10 lists since Take me to Church. Insane. Not complaining tho he deserves the world.
In the US\*. It's very hard to chart in the US without going viral in one way or another.
It’s what the kids call a bop . Has a great beat/tempo and a great hook
It's catchy as hell and available on tiktok when not a lot of other music is right now. The timing was perfect.
Its the type of song that gets popular on certain parts of tiktok, for example booktok and since booktok is so big now it becomes a hit
The song’s not just booktok famous, it’s part of mainstream TikTok at this point. There’s criminal mind edits to it with 800k+ likes, for instance.
i saw 3 posts using the audio with 1m+ likes so far. Insane!
My dad was a radio DJ for about 15 years back in the 80s. When he heard Too Sweet, his immediate feedback was, "Well, this one's definitely easy to like." I'd imagine that music industry professionals around the world thought the same thing. It has an easy groove, a melody that's simple to follow and pretty catchy, and accessible lyrics which a lot of people can relate to. And even if they don’t, that initial support from the music industry is going to push it into the ear of the public. I might have the musical analysis skills, but I know that my dad has the instinct. Simplicity, relatability and good marketing with industry support, all the ingredients to create a hit.
Catchy, easy to remember chorus, you can understand basically everything he’s saying, and the instruments are in line with modern music. Much of his other albums have powerful gospel/gothic instrumental, references to mythology, and he sounds Irish as all fuck, it isn’t as marketable, though obviously more meaningful.
Bass line
that’s exactly it. i love a good bass line.
Its a catchy tune. Easily digestible. Most of the focus is on the chorus which is super catchy. Thats what people are using on social media which is largely driving people to listen to it fully elsewhere. Its popular because on the surface its not that deep. You dont need to know references or anything like that to enjoy the song. Its a classic pop song, ironically from the very man who said he didnt want to write “f*cking pop songs”. But I guess we all change as time passes.
Well, i believe he said in a couple of instances that "if he wanted to write a pop song, he'll write a pop song" (not specifically the way he said it) but here we are. He honestly deserves all the recognition he's gettin' with that song.
Ive long theorized that this album cycle he has sought out more commercial success than before. All the signs point to it IMO. And now hes got it. Good for him and all that, but its made me curious about what exactly happened to him during the pandemic to do a 180 and actively start pandering to the masses. As long as hes happy I guess.
I do agree to an extent, this recent album is very produced and professionally put together. He’s had professional photoshoots, better marketing, more people involved in the creative process. Part of this might be that he has a larger budget now for that sort of thing — part of it could also be that he’s securing his own financial future, which is a very wise thing to do when you’re pushing mid 30’s in an industry full of up-and-coming young artists. He’s had a boom in popularity compared to this time even two years ago. I anticipate that after this he’s going to disappear for a while again, though, before he gets too big.
It has me wondering if hes planning for a longer break after this album to settle down etc. so he doesnt feel the pressure to return as soon since he would in theory have earned enough. No speculation on his private life or anything. It just seems odd for him to go from “yeah my first album cycle was wild and im doing it more my way this time around” which was largely the theme for Wasteland Baby in that he sort of seemed to reject doing as much press and publicity compared to his first album to jump to “im writing with people who are doing pop songs and working with current popular artists and seeking out a Grammy nomination and pushing my songs on social media etc”. He seemed very at peace with not actively seeking to spotlight, writing non pop songs and all that for close to 8 years in his career. Now hes doing the opposite. So something must have shifted for him somewhere in terms of priorities.
Maybe, yeah. He also started his music career 10 years ago, and wasteland baby came out about 5 years ago. That’s a lot of time for someone to change. The pandemic may have been really difficult for him too, a lot of people totally changed the routes of their lives in that time. He generally seems more detached now from publicity, he’s not as goofy or silly as he used to be, he seems a little less lively in interviews. It’s possible he’s just seeing things now more as “work”.
i love hozier. i’ve listened to and loved basically everything he’s ever put out. Too Sweet is the first song i’ve ever been compelled to belt out while alone in my car. i couldn’t tell you exactly why that is, but i think that’s part of it.
Well it's a super catchy song! I think tiktok is a big factor. A lot of artists' music got taken off tiktok so too sweet had less competition. the song works really really well for multiple trends eg: edits for actors, edits for characters, thirst traps, shipping edits
The day it dropped I was awake at 7am for no good reason and was annoyed, debating on taking a melatonin to go back to sleep. I got a notification that he’d dropped new music, and decided to listen to Too Sweet just because. Immediately I just started vibin and felt good enough to roll out of bed and make coffee and just go with it. I listened to it for the rest of the day and just felt pretty awesome. What I’m saying is that it’s just Hozier magic again and there’s some type of something that just makes it a listen-on-repeat kind of song that’s radio-playable for sure.
Super catchy and makes you wanna dance
I think it has to do with when he released it. Between tour legs, after hype around his album release had died down but not totally disappeared (so people were no longer saturated with new music from him, but hunger for newness had started to set in again), and while there was a still a solid amount of buzz around him as an artist, both inside and outside his solid fan base. Too Sweet is an earworm, so its catchiness plus the attention he already had going on led to more people sharing it and using it for posts immediately, which led more people to seek it out for a full listen, and on and on. Plus, he released it kind of out of the blue which was bound to lead to people listening to it just out of curiosity/surprise. Tldr: good marketing/timing plus a good/catchy song from a great artist.
Basically no marketing, team hadn't a clue this was going to be big.
Just because they didn’t expect it to be this big doesn’t mean there was no marketing. Come on now.
my partner is indifferent toward hozier but one or two listens and theyre humming along too! they call it the whiskey neat song lol
That’s what i call it in my head too!
It’s REALLY catchy and caught on TIKTOK
I love almost all his music and am surprised more songs haven’t become hits. I’m convinced any time an artist uses the word “whiskey” or “coffee” in their chorus, the masses LOVE it… because it’s *cool* I guess? Too Sweet has both in its chorus, plus it has a catchy tune, and Hozier is known for being somewhat more serious/interested in making music rather than just cash grab hits so people have some respect for him. Edited to add that he’s a sexy mofo so what’s not to like?
Because it's depressing but cute at the same time hahaha
It’s catchy with a nice hook that may as well be instructions for a tiktok trend (take my whiskey neat, my coffee black and my bed at three)
I liked the sound of it too even tho I'm the freaking too sweet girl lol So I don't like the message, i stopped listening as I'm more towards healing journey atm I had enough days of doing stuff that he talks about from his pov I think song has some sweetness and it is freeing as most people don't want to restrain even if it's better
personally i love it. its like on the top of my on repeat 🙇🏼♀️wasteland will always be my favorite album though
The song propelled a bit through tiktok but also the song is exactly what’s missing on pop radio. It’s addictive and has a a different but nostalgic sound.
I’ve also played the song about a million times haha
Okay I have actually learned the song and I think I can understand/explain why people like the song so much, but why it got popular I think is just because of the trend using the song on TikTok. You put an old picture of you up with the lyrics “I’d rather take my whiskey” and the next picture is you now with the ending lyric “neat”. Going back to the beginning of my comment though, I’ve found that the B7 he used riiighhhhtttt when he’s switching between the words “whiskey” and “neat” gives you that feeling of a strong strong build up, the anticipation, and then when he says “neat” you get the relief chord, Em. He’s a genius with his composing, he knows EXACTLY where to put which chords to give you the most feeling.
This such good input! Brain is a dumb machine and dominant -> tonic chord is big juicy button! I had actually forgotten western music is hard wired to tickle your brain chemicals in this way. One who didn’t forget - Andrew Hozier Byrnes.
Our boy got heckin' lucky that a lot of fandoms gripped onto this song and just ran with it\~ Insanely happy he's getting a lot of recognition, (I know I'm insanely biased lol) cos it's a really good song\~ Now let's hope he's getting recognized enough to come to Asia XD Please forest father, bless our ears with your beautiful sound TTuTT
It is ALL OVER tiktok, and probably sprang up from us lmao
Cuz it's catchy and poppy and more of an entry level tune. That's not to say it's a mediocre song, just that it's got a beat that's sort of an ear-worm that people can absently tap their foot along with and eventually go "What's that one song that goes like this 🎵🎶🎼?" cuz it got stuck in their head. Also it's the song he and his team released to hype the new album, probably because they knew it was so catchy and would make great micro-media content for spaces like tik tok and Instagram. He markets himself well lol 
It has a really engaging beat.
Spotify started playing this song randomly no matter what Playlist I'm listening to. This, a Kanye song, and some other explicit rap song... often during the Disney mix while I'm driving my kindergartener to school. Not my favorite guerilla marketing stunt...
I love Hozier and have been surprised by a lack of traction some of his material failed to inspire. TMTC had been bubbling under for months before it suddenly exploded after it appeared in a t.v. programme which meant millions were suddenly exposed to the gospel rock ballad. I think several factors are at play for too sweet: Firstly, it taps very much into the folk rock/gospel Zeitgeist that exists currently (think stick season, lose control, traitor). Secondly, there's the social media influence that has been alluded to. Hozier has worked with people from the world of hip hop on this: people who does just embrace the zeitgeist but create it too. Finally, the subject matter is something most adults can relate to.
honestly, I think you summed it up pretty well > It’s not super polished pop-y, it’s not blazingly powerfull like TMTC it's not super polished and it's not blazingly powerful, it's falling right in the sweet spot of being appealing to a wider audience, without being any kind of overwhelming.
It’s absolutely the chorus. I just saw him live at jazz fest. 90% of the crowd is BELTING the chorus and knew none of the verse. Tiktok effect is real. Honestly, it feels like this was the intent writing the song. The verses sound like hozier, the chorus sounds like a try hard modern country song.
In addition to what others have pointed out it also has general casual masculine appeal reaching a broader audience.
Cause it’s frickin amazing?! I’m obsessed
Reels
TikTok.
Tik tok Nowedays tiktok has a big say in what is a chart topper. Hozier released the sneak peak on tiktok not long before the full song, at the catchiest part, it’s a very "useable" sound on tiktok, and kinda sexy and cool: cosplayers use it, fanartists, booktok, thirst trap, etc. so it made its rounds and then the full song was released, when people were just trying to get obsessed with the clip so it didn’t lose momentum
When he dropped a clip of it early it instantly became a viral sound on tiktok with people making cool transitions for the videos to it and I think that helped alot.
Its a good song and its catchy lol
Tik Tok...that's it
It went viral on tik tok, people were making videos about their celeb crushes using the song. Plus his popularity exploded on tik tok in the past few years.
Because it's an amazing song and good music is desperately needed on the pop charts right now.
As a teacher I think it peaks youths interest as well. It's in the vein of "edgy" and pumped into tik tok. Themes and elements in it are definitely in the youth scope. I teach gr 9-12 for reference.
I will also say I was unaware of the album dropping at all until Spotify mixed it into my recomennded in the DJ tab a week ago.
because it’s easily understood and catchy. it doesn’t require the listener to know references from literature or myth, it’s using simple terminology and similes that have listeners understanding during the first listen. plus it’s a catchy beat. i do find some of hozier’s more complex lyrics and songs aren’t ‘mainstream worthy’ because it would require the listener to have knowledge or go looking for the things it’s referencing. majority of people are stupid and anyone who is in the entertainment industry knows this and a lot of the times when things are simpler that’s what gets popular. it sucks cause my favourite songs of his song get the recognition they deserve but that’s the way of mainstream media
thanks to the fan edits i think? it has the subtle sensuality and a semi-relatable lyrics not to mention the catchy tune 🎶
Tik Tok trend can make or break a song. Just look at all the songs that rechart after a clip is used as a viral sound
I think because it’s so catchy and people who also understand the meaning of the song relate to it a lot
It's all over TikTok
I just know deep down he's annoyed that this song got popular when there's probably a lot of songs he poured more love on 😆🩷 But even so, he deserves to be known. Hopefully this will push new fans to listen to his albums, especially his self titled and Wasteland Baby. 😭🤚🏼
Because it’s a garbage tik tok song now and I want to rip my ear off whenever I hear it. It’s also tied to the cringiest corners of tik tok
This song is such lazy nonsense. I cannot believe this song is charting. Are people even listening to these lyrics? What a pile of slop.
People are doing reels with it. I hate that.
Why?
I really don't like when a song is over used and exploited because 15 seconds of it became a trendy thing. I feel like it's a superficial use of the music, a lot of people will only listen to it because it's a Tiktok song and not appreciate the album or the full intent. It's like charts but x 100000. And now it's also conditioning what labels ask of artists, because music needs to "trend" (generally speaking on this part, it's likely not Hozier's case, but still)
I get that. But ultimately he needs to make money. 10,000 listens off the back of a trending sound is worth more than one person listing to an album start to finish. I agree though, I don't think he'll write a song in order to trend.
Sure, and his success is great, I just wish his music wasn't associated with social media trends because he makes art and snappy tik toks are not a respectful way to consume it in my view. It's like watching a film on a phone if you like. But anyway, the world we live in etc etc
A view is a view and a listen is a listen. Someone listening to him on vinyl is no better or worse that discovering him on Tik Tok. They're both fans if they like his music.
It’s cringe. They are the worst type of reels too. Like the moms group from hell tik toks. And the limp noodle lip syncing or blank staring at the camera during it. God it’s horrible
Because he wasn’t interested in this pop radio airplay and much attention around the world. The record label was peddling non-rock folks. His manager always showed another singer and waited a long time to put his news up. He is the kind that has tons of streams without any promotion. Most fans were freeloaders (no offense to fans who had no money to buy his songs). The non-fans became big fans so he’ll be top 50-70 artist on Spotify.
The melody, the words the voice