Spanish flamenco singer Pitingo has responded to an article published by satirical online newspaper El Mundo Today, stating false quotes about Icelandic singer Björk.

According to Billboard, the El Mundo Today report, which was originally published on March 26 bearing the headline "Björk Retires Out of Fear That Pitingo will Cover Her Music," quoted Pitingo declaring, "Well, I don't know the girl [Björk], but I am interested in that sound of a weeping whale. I think that the whale's lament is very much my thing, it's very flamenco and very Spanish."

The comment from Pitingo, who did covers of songs from other artists such as The Beatles, Bob Marley, The Police, and Nirvana, received mixed reactions from his Twitter followers and propelled the singer to be a trending topic in Spain, Billboard noted.

In a lengthy Instagram post dated April 1, Pitingo has aired out his frustration on El Mundo Today. He wrote, as translated by Billboard: "Today I have received hundreds of insults and threats from a lot of people, I've also received a lot of heartfelt messages. It's incredible how mean so many people can be. It's obvious that freedom of expression has lost its virtue and they don't know that freedom of expression ends when the disrespect starts."

He continued: "I just want to say to all the people who have hurled all those awful things at me, that, without knowing me, without ever attending a concert of mine, without owning an album of mine, I don't even want to imagine how you treat the people that you do know and hate."

An official statement also indicates that Pitingo is threatening to file a lawsuit against the online publication, adding that he disapproves of El Mundo Today causing confusion among his fans.

The 34-year-old soul singer shared in an interview with Spanish program La Ventana that the satirical site hasn't "clarified the situation" yet and that he usually is "the first person" to laugh at sarcastic quips. However, the recent incident could affect his family and work if the jokes turn into insults, Billboard wrote.

"I am a believer that all the hate and bad things that you wish someone, sooner or later it will come back to you, that's why I believe in not causing harm to anyone and simply ignoring what is done to me. I will never fight with you because your worst enemy is your own heart. Kisses to everyone and I hope not to offend anyone with this message," Pitingo concluded in his Instagram post.

El Mundo Today, meanwhile, took to Twitter on April 1 to respond to the issue. In a satirical tone, the news site tipped its hat to French satirical weekly "Charlie Hebdo."

"We would like to clarify that all of our news is alleged, uncertain, supposed," the publication wrote, as translated by Billboard. Björk's label representatives also responded scathingly to the controversy.