Love the Way You Lie

Love the Way You Lie

Eminem (Ft. Rihanna)

This smash hit saw Eminem and Rihanna reflect on their ambivalent and abusive relationships with their respective ex-partners Kim & Chris Brown.

Skylar Grey wrote the track’s chorus in under fifteen minutes about her abusive relationship with the music industry. She recorded it herself for Alex Da Kid’s demo, which was eventually heard by Eminem who liked the beat and her chorus.

He wrote his verses and reached out to Rihanna, asking her to sing the chorus as she, like him, had experienced an abusive relationship, and he felt the song would resonate and connect with her.

Later that year, Eminem and Rihanna recorded a sequel to the song, entitled “Love the Way You Lie (Pt. II)”, which was narrated primarily from Rihanna’s perspective.

“Love the Way You Lie” is Eminem’s biggest-selling single ever, with over 12 million copies sold in the US alone. The track also went 14x Platinum in Australia and was the UK’s best-selling song for 2010. It is also one of the most viewed YouTube videos of all time, with 2.28 billion views as of September 2021.