On her EP 'Hallucinogen,' Kelela told a breakup story in reverse. 'A Message' focuses on the end of the relationship. "I'm gonna let your body go for sure," she sings.
'Thank U, Next' comes after high-profile breakups with Pete Davidson and the late Mac Miller. "Wish I could say, 'Thank you' to Malcolm / 'Cause he was an angel,” Grande sings, ready for what's next.
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On 'Blame Game,' West went into detail about his relationship with ex Amber Rose. There's even a cameo from Chris Rock in a darkly comic sketch.
Demi Lovato dropped her new album 'Holy Fvck' in August 2022, but fans had already been discussing one particular song for weeks prior. Lovato released a teaser of the single '29' which seemed to make references to her ex-boyfriend, Wilmer Valderrama. Lovato and Valderrama met when she was 17 and he was 29. They started dating when she was 18 and continued on and off for six years. Lovato finally broke it off in 2016. The title might refer to the age she was when she wrote the song, or the age Valderrama was when they started dating. The significant age gap raised eyebrows at the time but Lovato has often spoken fondly of her ex and credited him with helping her work through her issues with addiction and disordered eating. However, it seems that the gloves have now come off. Lovato appears to be calling out her ex for taking advantage of her when she was so much younger than him: "Far from innocent / what the f--k's consent? / Numbers told you not to / but that didn't stop you." Later in the song she says, "I see you're quite the collector / Yeah you're 12 years her elder/ Maybe now it doesn't matter / But I know f--king better." As it so happens, Valderrama's current partner, model Amanda Pacheco, is the same age as Lovato, making her 12 years younger than him.
The song 'Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve' on Swift's 2022 album 'Midnights' caused a stir as soon as it was released. Fans of Swift's are certain the song is about one of her most deplorable exes, John Mayer. Swift began dating Mayer when she was just 19 years old and he was 32. While she doesn't mention any names in the song, she frequently references being 19 years old as she dissects the regrettable romance with a razor-sharp scalpel. The song opens with the lines: "If you would've blinked then I would've looked away at the first glance / If you tasted poison you could've spit me out at the first chance / And if I was some paint, did it splatter on a promising grown man? / And if I was a child did it matter if you got to wash your hands?" Fans don't think it's a coincidence that the song was track number 19 on the album. The most devastating line in the song is in the final verse: "Living for the thrill of hitting you where it hurts / Give me back my girlhood, it was mine first."
On Jan. 11, Argentinean super-producer Bizarrap released a new episode of his YouTube series 'BZRP Music Sessions.' Fans were delighted and shocked to see that superstar Shakira was the guest, but they were even more shocked when she took to the microphone. The Queen of Latin Pop performed a never-before-heard song which directly addressed her 2022 split from long-term partner Gerard Piqué, who was rumored to have cheated. She pulled no punches in asserting her power as a woman and as a star, while tearing Piqué to pieces.
"A wolf like me isn’t for guys like you," she declares in Spanish, referencing her 2009 hit 'She Wolf.' “I won’t get back with you, not if you cry, not even if you beg me,” she continues. "It’s clear that it’s not my fault if they criticize you. I just make music, sorry if it splashes you.” She emphasizes the "pique" sound in the Spanish word splash (salpique), just in case it wasn't already clear who the song was about!
Miley Cyrus' 2023 single 'Flowers' was hailed as another breakup anthem, and if there were any questions about who the song is about, you need only look to the release date: January 13, which happens to be her ex-husband Liam Hemsworth's birthday. But the connections don't end there. Beyond singing about how she can love herself better than he can, Cyrus sings in the opening verse, “We were good, we were gold/ Kind of dream that can’t be sold/ We were right till we weren’t/ Built a home and watched it burn,” which likely refers to the devastating Woolsey Fire of 2018 which destroyed the couple’s Malibu home.
The singer's joyful dancing in the 'Flowers' music video is said to resemble the moves Cyrus pulled with Hemsworth in an Access Hollywood interview at the Vanity Fair Oscars party when a reporter asked how they dance together. Hemsworth chided her, "Don’t do it, don’t do it. Sweetheart, we’re on the carpet," Billboard reports. Well, she can take herself dancing now.
Kelly Clarkson has become more famous for her hit TV talk show than her music in recent years, but recently she got back to the studio and produced some new bangers. In June, 2023, Clarkson released her 10th studio album 'Chemistry,' which she has revealed is all about the painful, public breakdown of her marriage to Brandon Blackstock. Clarkson and Blackstock got married in 2013 and have two children together, but Blackstock and his father, Narvel Blackstock, also worked with Clarkson through their talent management agency. During the messy divorce proceedings, Narvel Blackstock sued Clarkson for unpaid services and future commissions. Clarkson then countersued him alleging that his company in fact owes her millions and broke labor laws in their practice. The divorce was finalized in 2022, with Clarkson being ordered to pay Blackstock a hefty sum in spousal support, but the lawsuits are still ongoing.
Needless to say, tensions are still high and the feelings are still raw. Clarkson dropped the lyrics to two of the singles from her upcoming album on April 13, 2023, telling fans, "Here are the lyrics so y'all can learn them before it's out." The song 'Mine' shades Blackstock and appears to wish him a taste of his own medicine with the lyrics, “Someone’s gonna show you / How a heart can be used / Like you did mine." In the song 'Me,' she sings about losing her identity and learning to put herself back together after the breakup. "Loved you so much / Took an army to pull me up," the lyrics read. "But now on the other side / I remembered I could fly." Clarkson goes on, "I don't need somebody to hold me / Don't need somebody to love me / Don't need somebody to pick these pieces up."
Ever heard the phrase "write what you know?" For years, musicians have told their life stories through music. But love stories don't always end how one expects. Just ask Ariana Grande or Stevie Nicks!
Here's a roundup of some more of the spiciest songs written about exes, namely the ones with an extra slice of scandal. Click through to learn more.
Musicians' most scandalous songs about exes
Kelly Clarkson takes digs at ex-husband Brandon Blackstock in new songs
MUSIC Exes
Ever heard the phrase "write what you know?" For years, musicians have told their life stories through music. But love stories don't always end how one expects. Just ask Ariana Grande or Stevie Nicks!
Here's a roundup of some more of the spiciest songs written about exes, namely the ones with an extra slice of scandal. Click through to learn more.