Charli XCX’s team has weighed in after Sky Ferreira seemed to suggest several of her old demos were used on Charli’s Wuthering Heights soundtrack album without proper credit.
Ferreira is credited as a writer and vocalist on one album cut, “Eyes of the World,” but an exchange with a fan account on social media appeared to indicate that she made additional contributions that weren’t officially acknowledged. In a statement shared with Billboard, Charli’s team countered, insisting that proper accreditation procedures were followed and “all credits were finalized and formally approved by the appropriate parties prior to the album’s release.”
The whole thing spiraled out from an X post by the Charli/Ferreira fan account @skyferrori, which has a sizable following (and is apparently well-known enough to warrant an easter egg mention in Charli’s “360” video). Their quip about how Ferreira — who infamously hasn’t released an album since her 2013 debut — makes an income, prompted a response from Ferreira on Instagram, who said, “I toured for years. I work. I hate to break it to you, but your favorite artist records my old songs. I hope that answers your question.”
The fan account then claimed to contact an “industry insider” about Ferreira’s alleged extra work on Wuthering Heights. They posted a screen grab of an alleged exchange with this anonymous “industry insider,” who said the “Chains of Love” intro was “ripped from” an old Ferreira demo called “Ancient Idols,” and that the Wuthering Heights track “Alters” was based on another Ferreira demo from 2015. (The original X post containing the screen grab of this alleged exchange has since been deleted.)
Back on Instagram, Ferreira said the “insider” was “wrong,” though with the caveat, “Close but wrong.” She declined to expand further, however, saying only, “It was definitely more than an intro. I have proof of everything with dates. It isn’t worth the trouble bc I know how the world works.”
In a separate comment, Ferreira added, “I wasn’t going to say anything. I’m over being dragged & humiliated for no reason. It brought back a lot of things I have worked really hard to move past. … I don’t want the actions of multiple people fucking things up for me & my album. I’m an honest person. People don’t care about the truth. It’s about whatever narrative is fitting or more exciting. I’m glad I can finally move on with my life.”
As for the statement from Charli’s team, it stresses that “she always shares credits fairly and appropriately, and values her collaborators tremendously,” due to her own history of working as a songwriter for other artists over the years.
It continues: “Ahead of the Wuthering Heights album release, a standard review process was conducted on a small number of tracks from the album, including fragments of material originating from earlier sessions. This process involved managers, legal representatives, artists and producers, and included a thorough review of archival materials and demo recordings. All relevant parties were consulted throughout, and the album was played in full in advance of release to everyone. Songwriting credits and splits were determined and agreed collectively in writing, with reference to documented timelines and contributions.”
A rep for Ferreira did not immediately return a request for comment.
