Chris Butler, Writer of 'Christmas Wrapping,' Endorses Olivia Rodrigo's Holiday Single

By Tom Whitfield

Olivia Rodrigo released her first holiday single, "Take Me Home (4 Christmas)," late Thursday night, and within hours the song's most consequential endorsement came from Chris Butler — the 77-year-old songwriter behind the Waitresses' 1981 cult classic "Christmas Wrapping," who says Rodrigo contacted him two months before anyone else heard the track.

Butler did not merely approve of the song. He predicted a chart-topping future for it. "Her song was/is great. It's going to be a smash, maybe even that elusive Christmas #1 contest they have every year in the UK," he wrote on Facebook. "I think it's a fantasticbangersmash, and if it has the same upbeat vibe as 'CW,' well…how cool is that? I'm a fan, and I wish her monster success with it. Thanks, Olivia, for the chance to connect."

Why did Butler speak up at all?

His message was, in part, a rebuttal. Social media commenters had claimed Rodrigo's song sounded too similar to "Christmas Wrapping." Butler addressed one of them directly: "Thank you for all the comparisons to 'Christmas Wrapping.' The vibe is there, but no plagiarism — and this is from the guy who wrote 'CW.' LOVE O.R., too. Happy holidays."

That is the verdict that matters here: the writer of the original song finds no plagiarism, only shared spirit. By the source's own account, there is no notable compositional or lyrical similarity between the two songs — what links them is a loose, spry, irreverently romantic energy that fans of Christmas music picked up on quickly.

How did the two songwriters connect?

Butler's Facebook post laid out the backstory in his own words. About two months ago, he received what he assumed was a fake email from someone claiming to be Olivia Rodrigo. "It was filled w/ Waitresses gush, and just had to be fake," he wrote. He did not know who Rodrigo was, so he looked into her career, then replied with a list of what he admired:

• Her arrangements — "Soft-loud-soft, etc. And that your recordings sound like people are playing on them"
• Her insistence "that you be recognized as a songwriter"
• The women in her band
• Lyrics that are "intense, real, and poetic"
• That she "was smart enough to hold on to your masters"

The contact did not stay virtual. Butler wrote that Rodrigo invited him and Beth to her Daisy Chain Festival in Los Angeles — too short notice — but her label minder then arranged a meeting after her tour stop in Columbus, part of an 86-show, six-month run. "So, Beth & I did meet her after the show. After just killing it for two+ hours…. A delight," Butler wrote. After the BBC reported on his message, he added: "Kudos to Olivia Rodrigo for doing the right thing. Respect, Fan Boy gush, and wishing that her song is a monster smash."

What does this change for the song?

In practice, Butler's blessing removes the only serious objection anyone had raised. If the writer of "Christmas Wrapping" sees no plagiarism, the copycat claim has nowhere to stand.

"Christmas Wrapping" has its own arc worth noting. Butler wrote it solely for the Waitresses — one of the strongest bands of the new wave era, fronted by singer Patty Donahue — and it spent years as a cult item, initially overshadowed by the group's early hit "I Know What Boys Like" and their "Square Pegs" TV theme. In recent years it has become a playlist standard alongside era behemoths like Wham!'s "Last Christmas." The band parted ways in the late 1980s; Donahue died of lung cancer in 1996.

What remains to be seen is whether "Take Me Home (4 Christmas)" achieves the UK Christmas #1 Butler predicted — or settles, like its spiritual ancestor, into a long, slow climb toward seasonal standard status.