Bed of Lies

This article is about the song by Nicki Minaj. For the film, see Chris Cooper § Filmography.
"Bed of Lies"
Single by Nicki Minaj featuring Skylar Grey
from the album The Pinkprint
ReleasedNovember 16, 2014 (2014-11-16)[1]
Recorded2014
Genre
Length4:29
3:55 (album edit – international deluxe)
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Nicki Minaj singles chronology
"Only"
(2014) 		"Bed of Lies"
(2014) 		"Throw Sum Mo"
(2014)
Skylar Grey singles chronology
"Shot Me Down"
(2014) 		"Bed of Lies"
(2014) 		"Cannonball"
(2015)
Audio video
"Bed Of Lies" on YouTube

"Bed of Lies" is a song by rapper Nicki Minaj, taken from her third studio album, The Pinkprint (2014). The song was first premiered at the 2014 MTV EMAs in Glasgow, Scotland and was later released on November 16, 2014, by Young Money Entertainment, Cash Money Records and Republic Records as the fourth single from the album. The track features American singer-songwriter Skylar Grey on the chorus plus additional vocals on the verses as well as piano playing and was written by the latter along with Minaj. "Bed of Lies" features a restrained keyboard and lyrics that touch upon themes of "heartfelt litany of grievances" about an ex-lover.[4]

The song peaked at number 62 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and became Minaj's 56th Hot 100 entry, tying her with Madonna and Dionne Warwick for the third-most entries among women. It peaked at number seven in Australia and number 13 in New Zealand. "Bed of Lies" was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association and gold by Recorded Music NZ.

Background

Minaj debuted the song at the 2014 MTV EMAs in Glasgow, Scotland with Skylar Grey. In an interview with Billboard, Grey revealed that she had written and recorded a demo version of the track before it had been sent to Minaj who wrote and recorded verses of her own to the song. Grey commented, "She liked the demo of it enough to keep me on the song. I knew it was maybe gonna happen, but she released a lot of different singles first. So I didn’t really know when she was gonna drop this song. And then about a week ago I got a call from her team and they wondered if I could come to Scotland and do the song with them."[5] On November 15, the full song premiered on Saturday Night Online; it was made available on iTunes the next day.[citation needed]

Composition

"Bed of Lies" is a hip hop and pop song, written in the key of B major with a moderate tempo of 86 beats per minute. The vocals in the song span from G♯3 to B4, and the song follows a chord progression of B – F♯/A♯ – G♯m – F♯/A♯ – B.[6]

Critical reception

"Bed of Lies"
A 27-second sample of "Bed of Lies" by Nicki Minaj featuring Skylar Grey, where the chorus is heard.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

Deniqua Campbell from The Source gave the song a positive review, saying Minaj has yet to let up her unrelenting push to re-ignite her rapping flame and that "Bed of Lies" "appeals to Minaj's more serene nature".[7] Caitlin White from MTV News praised the song, saying "Nicki has always done emotional with just the right touch of vulnerability and strength".[8] Christina Lee from Idolator called it "a more pointed and detailed version of debut Pinkprint single 'Pills n Potions'".[9] Lindsey Weber from Vulture said "Nicki takes a sickly sweet Skylar Grey hook and wraps a nasty ode around it".[10] Sharan Shetty from Slate called "Bed of Lies" "perhaps the most confessional song Minaj has ever made" and praised the fact that Minaj didn't come off as having a "pity party".[11] Eliza Thompson from Cosmopolitan praised the song and said Grey's hook was "all pretty and wistful".[12]

Commercial performance

"Bed of Lies" debuted at number seventy on the US Billboard Hot 100, in doing so it became Minaj's 56th entry on the chart, tying her with Madonna and Dionne Warwick for the third-most entries among women since the chart began in 1958.[13] On January 16, 2015, ARIA certified the single Platinum in Australia for sales of 70,000.[citation needed]

Live performances

On November 9, 2014, Minaj and Grey debuted the song performing at the 2014 MTV EMA.[14] They also performed the song on November 23, 2014, at the 2014 AMAs and on December 6, 2014, on Saturday Night Live.[15] [16] On December 15, 2014, they performed the track at The Ellen DeGeneres Show.[17] On December 16, 2014, they performed the song twice, first on Today and after on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.[18][19]

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[40] 2× Platinum 140,000‡
New Zealand (RMNZ)[41] Gold 7,500*
Norway (IFPI Norway)[42] Platinum 10,000‡
Sweden (GLF)[43] 2× Platinum 80,000‡

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Radio and release history

Region Date Format Label
Worldwide November 16, 2014 Digital download
United States[44][45] November 18, 2014 Rhythmic radio
United Kingdom December 15, 2014 Digital download
Italy December 19, 2014 Mainstream radio

References

  1. ^ "iTunes - Music - Bed of Lies (feat. Skylar Grey) - Single by Nicki Minaj". iTunes. November 16, 2014. Archived from the original on December 27, 2014. Retrieved November 16, 2014.
  2. ^ "Nicki Minaj". exclaim.ca. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  3. ^ "Review: The many moods of Nicki Minaj on 'The Pinkprint'". Los Angeles Times. 15 December 2014. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  4. ^ "Nicki Minaj Pours Her Heart Out on 'Bed of Lies'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  5. ^ Steve Baltin (November 11, 2014). "Skylar Grey on Nicki Minaj Collaboration 'Bed Of Lies': 'It's a Nice Contrast to Her Other Singles'". Billboard.
  6. ^ Onika, Maraj (2 January 2015). "Bed of Lies". www.musicnotes.com. Retrieved 2016-02-05.
  7. ^ "Listen To Nicki Minaj's "Bed Of Lies," f/ Skylar Grey". The Source. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  8. ^ "Nicki Minaj Calls Out An Ex On The Full Version Of New Track 'Bed Of Lies". MTV. Archived from the original on November 19, 2014. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  9. ^ "Nicki Minaj Debuts "Bed Of Lies" Featuring Skylar Grey: Listen". Idolater. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  10. ^ "Nicki Minaj Gets Emotional on Her New Single, 'Bed of Lies'". Vulture. Archived from the original on 5 February 2016. Retrieved 17 November 2014.
  11. ^ "Nicki Minaj Teams Up With Skylar Grey for the Heartbreaking, Deeply Personal "Bed of Lies"". Slate. Retrieved 16 November 2014.[permanent dead link‍]
  12. ^ "Nicki Minaj Shares Full "Bed of Lies," It's Perfect". Cosmopolitan. 17 November 2014. Retrieved 17 November 2014.
  13. ^ "Hot 100 Chart Moves: Band Aid 30 Debuts, Nicki Minaj Ties Madonna's Hit Total". Billboard. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  14. ^ Erika Ramirez (November 9, 2014). "Nicki Minaj Debuts Skylar Grey Collabo 'Bed of Lies' at 2014 MTV EMA Awards: Watch". Billboard. Retrieved December 7, 2014.
  15. ^ Gia Peppers (November 23, 2014). "Nicki Minaj AMA Performance 2014: Rapper Gets Emotional, Performs 'Bed of Lies' with Skylar Grey After Lil' Wayne & Christina Milian [VIDEO]". Enstars. Retrieved November 24, 2014.
  16. ^ "NICKI MINAJ PERFORMS ON 'SNL'". Rap-Up. December 7, 2014. Retrieved December 7, 2014.
  17. ^ "NICKI MINAJ PERFORMS 'BED OF LIES' ON 'ELLEN'". Rap-Up. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  18. ^ "NICKI MINAJ PERFORMS 'BED OF LIES' ON 'TODAY'". Rap-Up. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
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  21. ^ "ARIA Australian Top 40 Urban Singles - ARIA Charts". ARIA Charts. 29 December 2014. Archived from the original on 3 January 2015. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
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  27. ^ "Chart Track: Week 51, 2014". Irish Singles Chart.
  28. ^ "The Official Lebanese Top 20 - Nicki Minaj". The Official Lebanese Top 20. February 1, 2015. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
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  38. ^ "ARIA Charts - End Of Year Charts - Top 50 Urban Singles 2015". ARIA. Retrieved March 20, 2016.
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  42. ^ "Norwegian single certifications – Nicki Minaj" (in Norwegian). IFPI Norway. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
  43. ^ "Årslista Singlar, 2015" (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
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