Cruel Summer singers Bananarama haven't heard Taylor Swift's hit song of the same name, here's why

Taylor Swift's synthpop anthem Cruel Summer topped the Billboard chart last October, four years after its release on her 2019 album Lover. However, the title isn't exclusive to Swift; the legendary British pop group Bananarama had their own hit single titled Cruel Summer in 1983.

Though Bananarama, comprised of co-founders and co-singers Keren Woodward and Sara Dallin, are aware of Taylor Swift's recent hit, with entirely different lyrics from their own song, they admitted in a recent interview with People that they haven't had the chance to listen to it yet.

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Bananarama's Take on Taylor Swift's Cruel Summer

"A great title, isn't it?" Dallin remarks in response to the Swift song when asked about it. "I have to confess I haven't listened to it," Woodward admits. "I've listened to quite a lot of her songs, but that one seems, I kept thinking, 'I must listen and hear it.' But I haven't. I must be one of the few people."

After featuring on The Karate Kid film soundtrack in 1984, Cruel Summer soared as Bananarama's inaugural U.S. Top 10 hit, solidifying its status as one of their iconic tracks. Co-written by Woodward, Dallin, and former member Siobhan Fahey, in collaboration with producers Steve Jolley and Tony Swain, the song remains a standout in their repertoire.

The Inspiration Behind Cruel Summer

It was about their friends because they had just sort of made it quite big at that point, Dallin explained. Their friends were on Top of the Pops, so they were doing loads and loads of promo. They were used to going on their little annual holiday, and then they couldn't go because they had so much promo.

They were just moaning because all their friends were going on holiday and they couldn't, and the city is very oppressive in the heat in London and New York or wherever. So that was the kind of inspiration for it.

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