Random Breakup Songs You Probably Didn't Realize Were About Other Celebrities (14 items)

• 

  (#8) Cold Case Love

  • Rihanna

  "Cold Case Love," from Rihanna's 2009 album Rated R, wasn't written by the singer, herself. Instead, it was written by Justin Timberlake, Robin Tadross, and James Fauntleroy II. However, the songwriters took inspiration for the lyrics from Rihanna's well-documented relationship with Chris Brown. Rihanna confirmed this fact when asked point blank about the song in an interview with CNN. "It's a song that everybody wanted to hear," she said. "That's exactly what everybody wanted to hear. Everything I didn't say for the past eight months. Exactly how I felt about that relationship and how I feel about it now, that says it all."
• 

  (#1) OutKast's 'Ms. Jackson' Is About Erykah Badu And Her Mother

  André 3000 of OutKast dated Erykah Badu in the late '90s. The couple had a child together, but split up in 1999. André 3000 wrote "Ms. Jackson" as a way to express his feelings about how it ended, and Badu appreciated the sentiment. "When I heard André’s verse, I felt very good because his verse was really, really inspiring," she said.

  The pair have developed a strong friendship as co-parents, with André 3000 saying, "She’s like a cool sister more than anything." As for her mother, Badu said she got really into the song. "She bought herself a Ms. Jackson license plate. She had the mug, she had the ink pen, she had the headband, everything. That’s who loved it."
• 

  (#3) Carly Simon's 'You're So Vain' Is About Warren Beatty... Among Others

  One of the most speculated-about songs of all time is Carly Simon's "You're So Vain." With the timeless line, "You're so vain, you probably think this song is about you," the song spent decades begging listeners to guess who Simon was referring to.

  Simon has been protective of the song's inspiration, but in 2015, she revealed that the song isn't about just one person, but a few different men. She also confirmed that the second verse is about Warren Beatty, including the lines:

  You had me several years ago when I was still quite naive

  Well you said that we made such a pretty pair

  And that you would never leave

  Not surprisingly, one huge fan of the song is Taylor Swift. "When I heard 'You're So Vain,' I just thought that is the best song that has ever been written," Swift said in 2013. "That is the most direct way anyone has ever addressed a breakup. It's amazing."
• 

  (#6) Cry Me a River

  • Justin Timberlake

  The video for JT's "Cry Me a River" heavily implies that the song is about his ex, Britney Spears. In 2012, rapper/producer Timbaland confirmed the speculation on an episode of E!'s True Hollywood Story. In the episode, Timbaland said that Timberlake "went to a concert and saw Britney, and Britney talked about him in the show and he was pissed." Timbaland further explained, "I was like, ‘Man, don’t worry about it’ and he's like, ‘I can’t believe she did that to me’ and he was like, 'You were my sun, you were my earth.'" And from there, a hit was born.
• 

  (#2) Katy Perry's 'Wide Awake' Is About Russell Brand

  When Katy Perry first released "Wide Awake" in 2012, the media immediately took it as a response to the end of her marriage to Russell Brand. The song includes plenty of telling lyrics, such as: 

  I wish I knew then

  What I know now

  Wouldn't dive in

  Wouldn't bow down 

  However, the song eventually turns to an affirming message about the peace you feel after realizing things are over, with Perry singing:

  I am born again

  Out of the lion's den

  I don't have to pretend 

  For his part, Brand has no problem with Perry writing about their relationship. "She's a good person, I've got nothing but love for her," he said. "It's a nice song."
• 

  (#10) Justin Bieber's 'Sorry' Is About Selena Gomez

  Justin Bieber's "Sorry" may have been composed by five different writers (including Bieber himself), but the song was directed specifically at just one person: Bieber's ex Selena Gomez. In an interview, Ellen DeGeneres asked Bieber a hypothetical question: "If there were [songs about Gomez], which three would they be?" He answered with the songs, "What Do You Mean?," "Mark My Words," and "Sorry." He elaborated, "There’s a lot of stuff that reminds me of her."

New Random Displays    Display All By Ranking