'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Ester Dean responded to Keri Hilson's "regret" for her part in the alleged Beyoncé diss track Turnin' Me On. Hilson appeared on The Breakfast Club podcast on April 9, where she claimed that she was forced to release the 2009 track and that the words dissing Beyoncé were not hers.
While Hilson didn't name the songwriter of the verse, Ester Dean took accountability shortly after Hilson's statement and said in an Instagram post that it was "childish and didn't age well," further claiming that she co-wrote it with Hilson.
However, Keri Hilson later clapped back at Dean's apology and denied co-writing the line.
After the back-and-forth on social media, Ester Dean posted on Instagram on Thursday, April 10, 2025, to post an "open letter" to Wilson and other creatives to the air.
Trending
She explained why she kept quiet about the matter, something that Hilson had previously called her out for. She said:
"Keri was already massive. She didn't need saving. She was out here making history. Why Speak Now? Keri was speaking on big platforms I didn't have access to—and it was her story to tell, not mine. I stayed writing. No hate. No shade. Just truth."
Dean also acknowledged the backlash Hilson reportedly experienced after Turnin' Me On, saying that it was "sad" because Hilson is a "great artist" and "deserves grace." She concluded her post by saying:
"She took her lessons. I'll take mine."
Ester Dean explained her part in writing Keri Hilson's Turnin' Me On
In her "open letter" posted on Instagram on April 10, 2025, Ester Dean cleared the air about her part in writing the alleged Beyoncé diss Turnin' Me On by Keri Hilson. She said that in July 2008, she started working with American record producer Polow Da Don, who is based in Atlanta.
She reportedly moved to Los Angeles later and went on to write for Polow's artist at Interscope. Dean further explained:
"I was in the studio—day and night—writing 3 to 4 songs a day. No friends. No family. Just work. Whenever the studio was open, I wrote. When Polow called, I showed up. That's who I was."
Her work with Polow was how she reportedly came to work on Hilson's Turnin' Me On. She further gave context as to how it happened, saying:
"One night, Polow asked me to write a remix verse for Keri Hilson—something street, something for the culture."
After trying different ideas, Ester Dean claimed that she came up with two lines. She also called those lines "tacky" but not "forced."
Dean also clarified that she wasn't in the room writing the lyrics with Keri Hilson, but claimed that Hilson came in another time to write her verse, "her pen, her voice."
Ester Dean further claimed that she didn't work with Beyoncé until several years after the songwriting fiasco when she signed as a writer with Roc Nation. She said that, at the time, there was "no 'plot.' No 'beef squad.'"
In Keri Hilson's The Breakfast Club interview, she mentioned that part of the blame for the release of Turnin' Me On was Polow Da Don.
