Skylar Grey Details the Surprising Reality of Working With Eminem and Dr. Dre

In a recent, deeply candid episode of the Dumb Blonde podcast, host Bunnie Xo sat down with singer-songwriter Skylar Grey to discuss the tumultuous highs and lows of her music career. From the brink of walking away from the industry entirely to collaborating with some of hip-hop’s biggest titans, Grey opened up about the immense pressure, the internet hate, and the jarring reality that often hides behind massive mainstream success.

The turning point in Grey’s career came in the most unexpected, disconnected way possible, birthing one of the biggest hits of the 2010s. When Bunnie Xo asked how her initial introduction to Eminem came about, Grey revealed that the mega-hit “Love the Way You Lie” was actually pieced together from different corners of the globe, long before she ever met the rap icon face-to-face.

Reflecting on that whirlwind moment, Grey shared the full story in her own words: “It just happened through the producer that I’d met on the email. After I sent him a hook that I wrote over his beat. For Love The Way You Lie, the song blew up and everything. Producer was the one who got the song to Em. And then Em was in Detroit, Rihanna was in Dublin and Alex, the producer was in New York and I was in Oregon and that’s when the song came out. We all have never been in the same room together. After the success of that song, Eminem wanted to invite us to work with Dr. Dre on his new album so Alex da Kid and I went out there it was so nerve-wrecking walking into the room and there’s Eminem and Dr. Dre. I was so quiet. Eminem later told me ‘I thought you were a b-tch!’ cause I was so quiet. I didn’t say anything. I was so nervous. We came up with ‘I Need A Doctor‘ hook there.”

Building on their conversation about her unexpected bond with the Detroit rap legend, Bunnie Xo asked Grey to name an artist who completely defied her initial expectations in the best way possible. Without hesitation, Grey pointed directly to Eminem, explaining how the reality of working with him stood in stark contrast to his intense public image. She explained: “Eminem is a good example of that. I didn’t expect him to be such a pleasure to work with, based on a persona he has out there and I was thinking he’s either gonna be mean or he’s gonna be just difficult to work with. And then getting to work with him, I was like, ‘Oh my god, I love this person so much.’ He’s so kind. Out of all the people that I send my music to, he gives me the most feedback. Like, I’ll just send him a song I wrote today, and I’m not even pitching him like a hook for himself, I’m just like ‘wanted to share this song that I wrote’ and he gives me the best feedback. He’s brilliant.”

You can watch the interview below:

Eminem Skylar Grey