Ester Dean wrote an open letter to set the record straight after Keri Hilson clapped back at her apology for dissing Beyoncé on the “Turnin’ Me On (Remix).” Now, the songwriting powerhouses are still going pen for pen to get the last word on explaining the despised diss as Dean receives a bit of the backlash Hilson lived with for more than a decade. “Tacky? Yes. Forced? No. That was me,” Dean wrote.
Welp, the girls are still fighting writing! Ester Dean apologized after Keri Hilson called her out about the writing infamous lyrics that seemingly stalled her career. Hilson recently revealed that she didn’t write them and fought to keep them off of the song. She never pointed fingers at anyone else involved in the process as Hive members turned dragging her into a sport.
As BOSSIP previously reported, Dean admitted she was wrong once the “Bae” baddie told The Breakfast Club that she was forced to include the lyrics at risk of Polow Da Don shelving the entire album. While Dean took accountability for the verse that “was co-written with Keri,” Hilson called her out for trying to share the credit for this group project from hell.
The “Drop It Low” diva took to Instagram with an open letter to transparently take responsibility for the unprovoked shade scripted for Hilson’s remix. Dean didn’t share a motive for the lines beyond just trying to keep her career going like Hilson. When she answered the call to contribute to the song the pen-for-hire was fighting for her place in the industry.
“Open Letter from Ester Dean. For Keri. For Creatives. For The Record. I’ve stayed quiet for a long time, but I believe in telling the truth – especially when the internet starts telling its own version of the story. Back in July 2008, I started working with Polow Da Don in Atlanta. Later, I moved to Los Angeles to write for Polow’s artists over at Interscope. I wasn’t famous. I wasn’t chasing clout. I was in the studio – day and night – writing 3 to 4 songs a day. No friends. No family. Just work. Whenever the studio was open, I wrote. When Polow called, I showed up. That’s who I was,” she began.
When tasked with writing “something street, something for the culture,” she experimented. Eventually, she landed on the reference to Beyonce’s 2006 hit “Irreplaceable”:
“‘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… (don’t do it) She need to go have some babies, she needs to sit down she fading’ Tacky? Yes. Forced? No. That was me,” she admitted about the verse.
Many comments noted that Beyoncé later revealed she was trying to become a mother around this time, but suffered a miscarriage.
The Pitch Perfect star conceeded to Keri Hilson’s correction about the writing process.
“I wasn’t in the room with Keri writing this together. I didn’t know her personally. She was already a star. I was just a writer trying to earn my place. I did my job and left,” she clarified. “Keri came in another time an wrote her own verse – her pen, her voice.
Dean explained continuing her own career with Queen Bey after the verse virtually halted Hilson’s.
“I didn’t work with Beyoncé until years later when I signed to Roc Nation as a writer. There was no ‘plot’ no ‘beef squad’. No secret industry mission. Just writers writing.
“Keri was already massive. She didn’t need saving. She was out here making history. Why Speak Now? Keri was speaking on big platforms I didn’t have access to – and it was her story to tell, not mine. I stayed writing. No hate. No shade. Just truth,” the letter continued.
Dean expressed more remorse about what happened to Hilson and the role she played in it. She gave the “Pretty Girl Rock” star her flowers with “respect.”
“She’s a great artist, a beautiful spirit, and she deserves grace. She took her lessons. I’ll take mine,” she concluded.
Hopefully, that’s good enough for Hilson to find some closure after ultimately taking the biggest L in this situation as her former collaborators moved on in peace.
What do you think of Ester Dean’s open letter? Do you think Keri Hilson will re-enter the chat?
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