All Hozier Needed Was Time

Photo: Mauricio Santana/Getty Images

Ten years ago, Hozier’s “Take Me to Church” was everywhere — except the top of the Hot 100. The down-tempo folk-rock track by an unknown Irishman had turned into an improbable hit thanks to radio play, late-night show performances, and even a spot in a Beats commercial starring LeBron James. Still, the song only peaked at No. 2, held off by Taylor Swift’s “Blank Space” at the top and a rising “Uptown Funk” just below. For most of the next decade, it looked like Hozier would never make it back to the upper echelon of the chart, much less to No. 1 — until this week, when his song “Too Sweet” crested the peak, and years of patient work paid off.

After “Take Me to Church,” Hozier could’ve passed for a one-hit wonder. A later single, “Someone New,” found a bit of traction on Billboard’s rock charts but never cracked the Hot 100, and multiple more songs stalled at radio. He waited four years before releasing another project, practically a death sentence in pop, especially as the folky, ballad-heavy moment of the early 2010s faded. His eventual follow-up, the 2018 EP Nina Cried Power, barely made a splash.

Then something weird happened: His second album, Wasteland Baby!, debuted atop the Billboard 200 the following spring. Most Americans hadn’t thought about Hozier much since “Take Me to Church,” but to his core fans, he was still talented, sexy, even godlike. It’s an easy image to craft for a tall, long-haired Irishman singing love songs in a smooth baritone. More than an EP or an album, those fans wanted to experience him live again after a yearslong break. It was all Hozier needed. He sold 75,000 copies in Wasteland’s first week largely thanks to a ticket-bundling scheme for his new tour of midsize theaters.

None of the songs from Wasteland cracked the Hot 100, which might have justified Hozier’s next four-year break. By the time he returned again, in 2023, the musical pendulum had swung back to him, as a new generation of folky, passionate, emotive singer-songwriters like Zach Bryan and Noah Kahan were bringing back the trend that once lifted “Take Me to Church.” It must’ve reminded even more listeners to check out Hozier once more, because that March, his groovy single “Eat Your Young” cracked the Hot 100 at No. 67, thanks to alternative-radio support and strong streaming numbers. On the heels of that song, he announced a fall amphitheater and arena tour that instantly sold out, and by August, his third album, Unreal Unearth, debuted at No. 3. Hozier still didn’t have another hit song yet, but he was emphatically sticking around.

The pivotal moment came last November, when Kahan, aiming to continue his own chart success, invited Hozier onto his song “Northern Attitude.” The track, already a favorite on TikTok, helped Hozier gain his own level of clout on the platform. Their duet debuted at No. 37, becoming Hozier’s first top-40 hit since “Church” and greasing the wheels for what was to come.

“Too Sweet,” his eventual No. 1, doesn’t sound much different from “Eat Your Young” or even his 2014 track “Work Song”: a big, soulful vocal singing sensual lyrics over slinky guitars and a robust rhythm section. Its biggest strength is its punchy chorus, built around the same clever wordplay you’ll find in decades of pop hits. That gave the song legs on TikTok, which quickly translated to success in streaming, radio, and the charts. In just its third week, “Too Sweet” hit No. 1, knocking off an impressive run by Metro Boomin, Future, and Kendrick Lamar’s buzzy “Like That.” (Hozier still can’t hold his own against Swift though, who’s set to sweep the top ten next week off The Tortured Poets Department.) Hozier’s music had barely changed — he just had the right song at the right time.

Now, “Too Sweet” looks likely to stick around on radio through the summer, when Hozier will play plum slots at festivals like Lollapalooza, Boston Calling, and Osheaga, plus a four-night stand at New York’s Forest Hills Stadium. After that, he’ll likely retreat and spend the next few years working on new music. Maybe they’ll be hits, or maybe pop will have passed him by again. But if Hozier’s learned anything from “Too Sweet,” it’s that he doesn’t need to change with the times.