Aussie music duo Royel Otis have issued a statement after their latest single “Moody” faced criticism by some social media users.
The track was released on May 9, and its lyrical content has been labelled by listeners as misogynistic, particularly a line which refers to a woman as a “bitch when she’s moody”.
News.com.au reports that on Thursday, a post shared by Royel Otis promoting the single was flooded with critical comments, including one which described the lyrics as “not only boring but misogynistic”.
“Releasing a song with lyrics like this during a femicide epidemic is crazy,” another commenter reportedly wrote, adding that the duo’s “whole team should have a think about this.”
Others accused Royel Otis of removing comments calling them out for the song.
“Nice try deleting comments and blocking women strong enough to call out your misogynistic behaviour,” one user reportedly wrote.
At the time of writing, very few negative comments remain on Royel Otis’ Instagram post.
Adding to the backlash, a former schoolmate of Otis Pavlovic — who forms one-half of the duo alongside Royel Maddell — anonymously responded to “Moody” in a statement to news.com.au, saying they were disappointed by the song’s lyrics.
“In 2025, it’s disheartening to hear a local Australian artist — someone I know or I knew — casually refer to women as ‘bitches’ in their lyrics,” they said.
“They’ve been deleting comments that call out the lyrics and video, while only replying to the positive ones. It’s dismissive and cowardly, and it says a lot about whose voices they value.”
The schoolmate added: “When artists use their platforms to propagate harmful language, they contribute to a culture that devalues women and hinders progress toward equality and safety.”
“It’s so important that we hold creators accountable and demand more responsible representation.”
In a statement responding to the backlash on behalf of Royel Otis, Kay and Hughes Art and Entertainment Lawyers told news.com.au that the song “is written from a specific perspective”.
“It is not intended to convey a broader view or standpoint about women in general,” the statement read.
“We apologise if anyone understood those lyrics otherwise.”
It comes after a whirlwind year for the Sydney-based duo, whose cover of “Murder on the Dancefloor” became a viral success and placed second on Triple J’s 2024 Hottest 100.
It’s not the first time a lyric has been subject to widespread backlash, with Taylor Swift changing a misogynistic line of “Better Than Revenge” in 2023 and Beyoncé removing an ableist slur from her 2022 track “Heated”.
“Moody” is the first single to be released from what’s thought to be Royel Otis’ upcoming sophomore album, which will follow their 2024 debut, Pratts & Pain.
Lead image: Instagram/Getty Images
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