Keri Hilson might’ve solidified her position in the music industry as a highly in-demand songwriter — penning multiple popular hits like Britney Spears’ “Gimme More” — but things famously took a turn for the worst after she transitioned into recording her own music.
Taking on the mic led to the ignition of rumors that she was feuding with superstar Beyoncé Knowles after Hilson released a remix of her 2009 song “Turnin’ Me On,” which seemingly included a swipe at Beyoncé and singer Ciara.
Though popular, the catchy tune didn’t go according to plan: it ultimately derailed her promising career after Beyoncé’s Beyhive — arguably one of the most dedicated groups of super fans — lambasted Hilson for more than a decade after the song’s release in retaliation.
While appearing on Wednesday’s episode of “The Breakfast Club,” Hilson revealed how the ill-fated tune truly came to be, and why she still regrets it nearly 20 years later.
“It’s a regret,” Hilson said of the song. “But not in the way people would think because that’s a song I actually didn’t write. Those are not my words.”
The song was supposedly arranged by mega-producer Polow da Don, who Hilson said asked her to take a brief break from touring with Lil Wayne to hit the studio and write up a new verse for the remix.
Hilson was signed to Interscope Records under Polow and fellow producer Timbaland at the time, and was gearing up to release her debut album, “In a Perfect World.”
“[Polow] wanted me to do a remix to ‘Turnin’ Me On,’” she explained. “He produced the record. Because I was on tour with Lil Wayne, I wasn’t able to lay anything down. He had been on me for a couple of weeks, [saying] we need to do a remix.”
Hilson said she received the shock of a lifetime after showing up to the studio only to find out Polow had lyrics from another writer already arranged.
“I come into the studio and he plays me this verse,” she recalled. “Automatically, I’m like, ‘I’m not saying that.’ That was my position.”
The verse read, “Your vision cloudy if you think that you’re the best / You can dance, she can sing, but she need to move it to the left, left / She need to go have some babies. She needs to sit down, she fake / I ain’t turning it off, I’m stay turning it on. Go ’head and tell these folks how long I’ve been writing your songs.”
Hilson claimed she didn’t know who the “shady” lyrics were aimed at, but said she felt pressured from producers like she “had no choice.”
“My album wasn’t out yet, I was told, ’It’s not coming out if you don’t do this,” she shared. “I was super young. I felt I had no choice... I’m still protecting everyone involved. I’ve been eating that for years.”
Hilson went on to say that she tried to “fight” off Polow but felt helpless after he allegedly “threatened her career.”
“I tried to fight him on it and I began writing my own but he… it was quite forceful,” she said. “In an executive-artist way only. Involving others and kind of threatening my career, in a real sense.”
“The mistake that I made was not continuing to fight, but I was in tears,” she added. “I was crying. I was adamant that I did not wanna do that.”
Hilson claimed that Polow told her she could write her own verse, but the other verse was leaked “days after,” which she said was “all part of” Polow’s plan.
After the questionable verse was released, Hilson was widely criticized for appearing to trash Beyoncé and Ciara.
“That was that,” Hilson said of the backlash. “And I protected him. I protected the girl that wrote it, who went on to become famous. I protected everyone in the story, so I have to eat that and I’m still eating it to this day. It’s like I’ve worn the scarlet letter.”
The “Energy” singer claimed she never came forward to expose the truth because she “didn’t want to step into shit anymore.”
“I was shook. I was scared. Not of [Beyoncé] — I love her. I think she’s incredible. She’s one of the greatest artists of all time. I’m a fan, have always been. That’s never been in question for me. But now it’s a name I can’t say,” she said.
Hilson, who is set to release her third studio album, “We Need to Talk,” on April 18, said she feels like she still wears a “scarlet letter” of shame over the years-old drama.
“I’m getting asked about that 15 however many years, 16, 17 years later, it’s like I’ve worn the scarlet letter, really,” she said.
Shortly after Hilson’s interview, singer Ester Dean revealed herself as a co-writer of the remix, writing on social media that “It was a hit!” But the gloating didn’t last long as just hours later, she posted an apology on Instagram.
“I submitted a lot of verses for that remix. One got picked, and it was co-written with Keri,” Dean wrote. “Looking back, it was childish and didn’t age well. I see how it hurt people, especially women, and I take full accountability. I’m sorry for my part in it. Growth is real, and so is this apology.”
Beyoncé has never publicly addressed the drama, but Hilson said the pair have since cleared the air.
“She actually has introduced herself. It was a gracious moment,” Hilson revealed while appearing on the “Middays With Persia” radio show in April 2021. “There was a bit of healing in that moment when we met.”
Watch Hilson’s interview on “The Breakfast Club” below.