Rihanna and Calvin Harris released “This Is What You Came For” in 2016. The song quickly became a mainstay in the club scene with the help of Harris’ incomparable EDM touch.
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Baby, this is what you came for / Lightning strikes every time she moves / And everybody’s watchin’ her / But she’s lookin’ at you, Rihanna sings on this No. 1 hit. The song reached the peak position on Billboard‘s Hot Dance/Electronica Songs chart.
The song was originally credited to Harris and a Swedish fellow named “Nils Sjöberg.” But, as time would reveal, Sjöberg is, in fact, a pseudonym for another pop princess. Find out which one, below.
Who Wrote “This Is What You Came For?”
Calvin Harris and Taylor Swift went through a very public breakup in 2016. Though the pair originally seemed to break things off amicably, the proverbial swords were drawn after a rep from Swift’s camp revealed that Sjöberg was actually Swift operating under a guise.
As the story goes (per TMZ), Swift wrote an early version of the Rihanna hit on piano and made a demo on her phone. Harris reportedly loved the mock-up and went into the studio with Swift to finish fleshing out the track.
According to the report, the power couple felt having both their names on the track would distract from the finished product. Swift agreed to use a pseudonym while retaining publishing rights to the track.
The collaboration was revealed after the pair’s breakup. Harris took to Twitter soon after the story broke to confirm the news. Though it started off as a simple reveal, it quickly turned sour.
In a since-deleted series of tweets Harris explained the collaboration. “I wrote the music, produced the song, arranged it and cut the vocals though” he wrote. “And initially she wanted it kept secret, hence the pseudonym. And she sings on a little bit of it too —Amazing lyric writer and she smashed it as usual.”
After that, Harris’ tone shifted toward the controversy at hand.
“Hurtful to me at this point that her and her team would go so far out of their way to try and make ME look bad at this stage though,” he wrote.
“I figure if you’re happy in your new relationship you should focus on that instead of trying to tear your ex-bf down for something to do,” he said referencing Swift’s relationship with actor Tom Hiddleston. “I know you’re off tour and you need someone new to try and bury like Katy ETC but I’m not that guy, sorry. I won’t allow it.”
He finished his thoughts with, “Please focus on the positive aspects of YOUR life because you’ve earned a great one.”
Swift has never commented on the incident, but fans have long thought “coney island,” “Getaway Car” and “I Forgot That You Existed” were about the DJ.
(Photo by Joseph Okpako/WireImage)
