Skylar Grey, who composed Eminem and Rihanna’s “Love the Way You Lie” and Diddy’s “Coming Home” in 2010, has stated that she had to sell her music collection to “afford” her divorce from fellow singer-songwriter Elliott Taylor.
Grey stated her life and career were overtaken by a divorce and lawsuit that began in 2017 and was finally settled last year in an interview published on Variety on Monday, June 6.
She stated,
“I’ve been going through a divorce and lawsuit since 2017, and it’s been hurting me emotionally and financially/
“We finally sorted it, settled it this past year, 2021.”
“In order to pay for the settlement, I had to sell my collection, which was a shame because those tunes enjoyed
When asked if the arrangement was equivalent to the blockbuster deals negotiated by musicians such as Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan in previous years, Grey said:
“No. I wanted to keep constructing and expanding it. But now that the case is done, I’m not on the phone with lawyers every day, and I’m not responsible for all these legal expenditures.”
Grey rose to notoriety in 2010 after co-writing “Love the Way You Lie” with producer Alex da Kid, which became a major success for Eminem and Rihanna. She co-wrote Diddy and Dirty Money’s track “Coming Home” the same year, and she co-wrote and performed on Dr. Dre’s “I Need a Doctor” the next year.
While those songs were undoubtedly her most popular in the United States, she also had international success with collaborations with David Guetta (“Shot Me Down”), Nicki Minaj (“Bed of Lies”), and Macklemore (“Glorious”). Grey also had her own solo career, releasing three albums, seven EPs, and a slew of singles between 2005 and 2020.
As Grey noted, selling her catalog means she will no longer be able to sell it.
