Keri Hilson & Beyoncé Beef: A Timeline Of The One-Sided Beef

Thurs, April 10, 2025 at 6:13 PM

Each decade brings stars with the potential to become generational talents, but few could have predicted just how powerful Beyonce's star would become throughout the 2010s and into the 2020s-least of all Keri Hilson. At one point, Hilson was one of R&B and pop's most promising breakout artists. But it felt like she overplayed her hand when she seemingly began taking digs at Beyoncé. Eventually, the one-sided feud gained traction and became part of modern R&B lore.

Tensions have since cooled as both artists evolved-Beyonce solidified her legacy, while Keri Hilson's career faded into nostalgia. The winner of the feud seems obvious, but the real question remains: was there ever a real beef at all? In a recent interview, Hilson shifted the blame for the initial diss toward a songwriter who allegedly wrote the lyrics for her. Still, whether you're too young to remember or have just been living under a rock, here's a full recap of the events.

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2009: The "Turnin' Me On" Remix Controversy

The saga began in 2009 when Hilson gained momentum with her hit record "Turnin' Me On" ft. Lil Wayne. The song was a smash, receiving heavy radio play. Like many popular tracks of the time, it earned a remix. But Hilson's new verse was widely interpreted as a shot at Beyoncé and Ciara.

"Your vision cloudy if you think that you're the best / You can dance, she can sing, but need to move it to the [left] / She need to go have some babies, she need to sit down, she fake," she rapped on the remix. Many believed these bars were aimed at "Irreplaceable."

Though subtle, fans quickly picked up on the lyrics and concluded Keri Hilson was coming for Beyonce. And while controversy can sometimes be good publicity, in this case, it overshadowed Hilson's rising talent. It would take years before she acknowledged the impact it had on her career.

2011: The Soul Train Music Awards Incident

At the time, there wasn't enough solid evidence to confirm a feud-it was mostly speculation. That changed when Keri Hilson refused to hold a Juicy Magazine featuring Beyonce and Jay-Z on the cover during a red carpet interview at the Soul Train Awards. "Yeah, who's that?" she asked before looking at the cover. "No, I'm sorry, I can't do that." The BeyHive saw it as a blatant snub-and the backlash was immediate.

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2013: Addressing Feud Allegations & The Wrath Of The BeyHive

It's TOO much!! Please! Is everything I tweet gonna be "intentionally misinterpreted" as a statement abt someone/drama I know nothing about?
— Keri Hilson (@KeriHilson) March 5, 2013

In January 2013, Hilson addressed the feud rumors in an interview with HipHollywood. "No, I don't have a beef with any female artist. I think it's just interesting that we live in such a gullible world. Anything that's written, anything that is posted, and a picture that is interpreted one way, is truth. It's like bible now. You can Photoshop something, put it out and everyone believes it," she said. She admitted the criticism was taking a toll on her.

But Beyoncé's fanbase wasn't buying it. Back when Twitter was still under a decade old, the BeyHive flexed its power online. After two years of speculation, Hilson hit a breaking point. "It's TOO much!! Please! Is everything I tweet gonna be 'intentionally misinterpreted' as a statement about someone/drama I know nothing about?" she tweeted.

"You have no idea what your hateful words could do to someone's spirit. Years of verbal abuse from strangers all day long," Keri added in a subsequent tweet. "Enough is enough! I'm here for MY FANS! I'm stronger than you imagine, but waking up/going to bed to your ugliness is just TOO MUCH, kids. I get it, OK? You can stop now. As far as WHATEVER you're really mad about, I had my reasons. It's been years! Just chalk it up to your ignorance of my reality and LET ... IT ... GO. As for my mistakes, God has dealt with me," she concluded.

2018: Hilson Opens Up About Personal Struggles

After stepping back from the spotlight, Hilson revealed in 2018 that she had battled depression for seven years. Though she didn't name Beyoncé directly, she suggested that the fallout from the feud contributed to her hiatus."You don't know where a person is, it's not just about what you are feeding your audience, but what you are doing to the creators. There are a lot of undeserving people that are being attacked by just a headline," Hilson said. "You don't understand some of the worst days of my life were from a lie. An attack on my character."

2021: A Reconciliatory Encounter

During an interview in April 2021, Hilson shared that she and Beyoncé had a chance encounter that brought clarity and peace. According to Hilson, Beyoncé approached her and introduced herself, creating a healing moment between them. "She actually has introduced herself. It was a gracious moment," Keri recalled of the time they actually met. "I appreciated it. I feel like she understood what happened, what had transpired and there was a bit of healing in that moment when we met."

2025: Hilson Clarifies Past Controversy

In a recent interview with The Breakfast Club, Hilson revisited the 2009 remix controversy and called it a "regret." "But not in the way people would think because that's a song I actually didn't write. Those are not my words," she added. The track, produced by Polow Da Don and co-written by Ester Dean, contained the disses toward Ciara and Beyoncé. Hilson said she initially refused to record the verse. "Automatically, I was like, 'I'm not saying that,'" she said. Though she said she wasn't entirely certain who the lyrics were about, she said she felt they were a touch "shady."

Even after pushing back, she couldn't escape the pressure. "I tried to fight him on it and I began writing my own but he... It was quite forceful," Keri said of Polow. "In an executive-artist way."

"My album wasn't out yet, so it was like, 'You're not coming out if you don't do this,'" Keri continued. "The mistake that I made was not continuing to fight, but I was in tears. I was crying. I was adamant that I did not wanna do that."

Later, Ester Dean addressed the controversy on Instagram and took responsibility.. "I submitted a lot of verses for that remix-one got picked, and it was co-written with Keri. Looking back, it was childish and didn't age well," Dean wrote on Instagram. "I see how it hurt people, especially women and I take full accountability. I've worked with and supported many women since, but that doesn't erase the moment. I'm sorry for my part in it. Growth is real, and so is this apology." It should be noted that Keri Hilson made it clear that she didn't co-write the song, but re-wrote a few lyrics.