People are not impressed with Rita Ora's "Running Up That Hill" cover: "Kate Bush needs to sue"

14 September 2022, 12:02 | Written by Cerys Kenneally

(News)

(Rita Ora)

Rita Ora recently performed at Rock in Rio 2022 and included a cover of "Running Up That Hill" in her setlist, and it hasn't been received well on socials.

Since "Running Up That Hill" went viral following its use in Stranger Things season four, people have been attempting to cover the iconic track, with many not going down well.

Rita Ora is the latest artist to attempt performing the song. She included the cover during her Rock in Rio 2022 set on Sunday (11 September), and the response has been pretty savage.

One user wrote, "absolutely not. Kate Bush needs to sue," while another commented, "Obsessed with this. Absolutely deranged. A complete massacre of the original. Each note more wild and unpredictable than the next. Ending with a cocky kiss, like she just fucking killed it. 100% perfect. No notes."

absolutely not. kate bush needs to sue. https://t.co/adwPrH3Iew
— river (@kissmeriver) September 14, 2022

Obsessed with this. Absolutely deranged.

A complete massacre of the original. Each note more wild and unpredictable than the next. Ending with a cocky kiss, like she just fucking killed it.

100% perfect. No notes. https://t.co/9oFbYPbCPV
— Bradley Stern (@MuuMuse) September 14, 2022

Fellow artist Shamir wrote, "I need Kate to run up that hill and make a deal with god to get him to end the epidemic of botched covers of this song."

I need kate to run up that hill and make a deal with god to get him to end the epidemic of botched covers of this song https://t.co/jOeVuxGvN9
— Shamir (@ShamirBailey) September 14, 2022

Another user commented, "We didn’t gatekeep Kate Bush enough," while another added, "How to destroy a classic song in under one minute."

We didn’t gatekeep Kate Bush enough https://t.co/1PgIBhV3ah
— Elise Bell (@eliseybell) September 14, 2022

How to destroy a classic song in under one minute https://t.co/U4zEqeidUG
— Mahyar Tousi (@MahyarTousi) September 14, 2022

There were also some positive reactions to Rita Ora's cover on socials that praised her vocals, with one user calling her a "boss lady" on Twitter.

I witnessed this live!!! @RitaOra is a boss lady! Her vocals, her fucking vocals! https://t.co/y7onIdnAP3
— Den (@JeffriesDennis) September 14, 2022

Haven't gone to circles yet b/c I'm trying to establish which group of people is most likely to agree that the Rita Ora Running Up That Hill sounds pretty good
— Harry Harris (@CmonHarris) September 16, 2022