Davis, a renowned music producer, claimed in his book that Clarkson had a “hysterical sobbing” reaction when he insisted on including her song “Since U Been Gone” on her 2004 album, Breakaway.
However, Clarkson vehemently denies this version of events. “Let’s provide some context, Davis,” Clarkson chuckled on the show last week. “I was deceived when they told me, ‘Hey, there are these producers who want to work with you.'”
According to Clarkson, “Since U Been Gone” only had placeholder lyrics during the initial stages of songwriting, and she was instructed to write the song.
“[They] flew me to Sweden, I arrived there, and these two individuals, [producers Max Martin and Łukasz ‘Dr. Luke’ Gottwald], was unaware that I was writing to it and already had it written,” explained Clarkson. “I felt foolish because the label had given me completely different information.”
“And I think that’s a red flag, too. Why lie to me like that?” she added, expressing her distaste for the deception. “That’s why I have a negative vibe about that song because of its origin story,” she concluded. Despite the associated drama, Clarkson emphasized that it’s still “fun as hell to sing.”
“I’m a great compartmentalizer,” Clarkson replied when asked if she could separate the song from its baggage with Davis. “I can put that aside and sing the hell out of it on tour.” Back in 2013, when Davis originally recounted the events, Clarkson made it clear that his version was “not true at all.”
“He has mixed up his stories and songs,” she stated in a post shared on the social media platform WhoSay. Clarkson further explained her strained working relationship with Davis and recalled crying in his office once.
“I cried after playing him a song I had written about my life called ‘Because Of You’,” Clarkson wrote. “I cried because he hated it and told me directly that I was a ‘sh*tty writer who should be grateful for the gifts that he bestows upon me.'”
“He went on about how the song didn’t rhyme and how I should just shut up and sing,” she added, expressing the devastation she felt hearing such comments from a musical hero she had esteemed as a young girl and was honored to collaborate with.
“But I continued to fight for the song, and the label eventually relented. And it became a worldwide hit. He didn’t include that in the book.”
In response, Davis stated at the time that he was “truly very sorry that [Clarkson] has decided to take issue with what I know to be an accurate depiction of our time together.”
He added, “Before the book was published, I had every fact checked with five independent individuals who were present on a daily basis throughout it all… I stand by the chapter as written in my book.”