"Bed of Lies" is a song by Trinidadian-American rapper and singer

Nicki Minaj Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (; born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj ( ), is a Trinidadian-born rapper based in the United States. She is known for her musical versatility, animated flow in her rapping, alter egos and accent ...

, taken from her third studio album, ''

The Pinkprint ''The Pinkprint'' is the third studio album by rapper Nicki Minaj, released on December 15, 2014, by Young Money Entertainment, Cash Money Records and Republic Records. Minaj co-executive-produced the album alongside Birdman, Lil Wayne and Rona ...

'' (2014). The song was first premiered at the 2014 MTV EMAs in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

and was later released on November 16, 2014, by

Young Money Entertainment Young Money Entertainment is an American record label founded by rapper Lil Wayne. Young Money's president is Lil Wayne's lifelong friend and fellow rapper Mack Maine. The label was an imprint of Cash Money Records and is distributed by Republi ...

Cash Money Records Cash Money Records is an American record label founded in 1991 by brothers Ronald "Slim" Williams and Bryan "Birdman" Williams. Distributed by Republic, formerly known as Universal Republic, the label has been home to a roster of mostly hip h ...

and

Republic Records Republic Records is a New York City–based American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). It was founded by Avery Lipman and Monte Lipman as an independent label in 1995, and was acquired by UMG in 2000. Republic was initially an ...

as the fourth

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

from the album. The track features American singer-songwriter

Skylar Grey Holly Brook Hafermann (born February 23, 1986), known professionally as Skylar Grey, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer from Mazomanie, Wisconsin. In 2004, at the age of 17, Grey signed a publishing deal with Universal Music ...

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. The song peaked at number 62 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and became Minaj's 56th Hot 100 entry, tying her with

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

and

Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick (; born December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. Warwick ranks among the 40 biggest U.S. hit makers between 1955 and 1999, based on her chart history on ''Billboards Hot 100 pop singles cha ...

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 Certification is the provision by an independent body of written assurance (a certificate) that the product, service or system in question meets specific requirements. It is the formal attestation or confirmation of certain characteristics of a ...

platinum by the

Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing th ...

and gold by

Recorded Music NZ Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded Mus ...

Background

Minaj debuted the song at the 2014 MTV EMAs in

with

. In an interview with ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'', Grey revealed that she had written and recorded a

demo Demo, usually short for demonstration, may refer to: Music and film *Demo (music), a song typically recorded for reference rather than release * ''Demo'' (Behind Crimson Eyes), a 2004 recording by the band Behind Crimson Eyes * ''Demo'' (Deafhea ...

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." On November 15, the full song premiered on ''Saturday Night Online''; it was made available on

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

the next day.

Composition

"Bed of Lies" is a hip hop and pop song, written in the key of

B major B major (or the key of B) is a major scale based on B. The pitches B, C, D, E, F, G, and A are all part of the B major scale. Its key signature has five sharps. Its relative minor is G-sharp minor, its parallel minor is B minor, and its ...

with a moderate

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

of 86 beats per minute. The vocals in the song span from G₃ to B₄, and the song follows a

chord progression In a musical composition, a chord progression or harmonic progression (informally chord changes, used as a plural) is a succession of chords. Chord progressions are the foundation of harmony in Western musical tradition from the common practice ...

of B – F/A – Gm – F/A – B.

Critical reception

Deniqua Campbell from ''

The Source ''The Source'' is an American hip hop and entertainment website, and a magazine that publishes annually or . It is the world's longest-running rap periodical, being founded as a newsletter in 1988 by Jonathan Shecter. David Mays was the ma ...

'' 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". Caitlin White from

MTV News MTV News is the news production division of MTV. The service is available in the US with localized versions on MTV's global network. In February 2016, MTV Networks confirmed it would refresh the MTV News brand in 2016, to compete with the likes ...

praised the song, saying "Nicki has always done emotional with just the right touch of vulnerability and strength". Christina Lee from

Idolator An idolator is a practitioner of idolatry. Idolater or Idolator may also refer to: Books *''Os Idólatras'', 1968 Portuguese novel by Maria Judite de Carvalho Music * Idolator (website), an American music blog * ''Idolator'' (album), third album ...

called it "a more pointed and detailed version of debut ''

Pinkprint ''The Pinkprint'' is the third studio album by rapper Nicki Minaj, released on December 15, 2014, by Young Money Entertainment, Cash Money Records and Republic Records. Minaj co-executive-produced the album alongside Birdman (rapper), Birdman, Li ...

'' single '

Pills n Potions "Pills n Potions" is a song by rapper Nicki Minaj from her third studio album, ''The Pinkprint'' (2014). It was released on May 21, 2014, by Young Money, Cash Money, and Republic Records as the lead single from the album. Minaj collaborated wit ...

'". Lindsey Weber from ''

Vulture A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture (including Condors). Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to North and ...

'' said "Nicki takes a sickly sweet Skylar Grey hook and wraps a nasty ode around it". Sharan Shetty from ''

Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...

'' 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". Eliza Thompson from ''

Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...

'' praised the song and said Grey's hook was "all pretty and wistful".

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

and

for the third-most entries among women since the chart began in 1958. On January 16, 2015,

ARIA In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...

certified the single Platinum in Australia for sales of 70,000.

Live performances

On November 9, 2014, Minaj and Grey debuted the song performing at the 2014 MTV EMA. They also performed the song on November 23, 2014, at the 2014 AMAs and on December 6, 2014, on ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...

''. On December 15, 2014, they performed the track at ''

The Ellen DeGeneres Show ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' (often shortened to ''Ellen'' or ''The Ellen Show'') is an American daytime television variety comedy talk show that was created and hosted by its namesake Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it was prod ...

''. On December 16, 2014, they performed the song twice, first on ''

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * Day of the present, the time that is perceived directly, often called ''now'' * Current era, present * The current calendar date Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Today'' (1930 film), a 1930 A ...

'' and after on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It is the seventh incar ...

''.

Charts

Weekly

Year-end

Certifications

Radio and release history

References

{{authority control 2010s ballads 2014 songs 2014 singles Nicki Minaj songs Cash Money Records singles Songs written by Skylar Grey Skylar Grey songs Songs written by Nicki Minaj Republic Records singles Song recordings produced by Kane Beatz Song recordings produced by Alex da Kid Pop ballads Songs written by Breyan Isaac Songs written by Kane Beatz Songs written by Vinay Vyas Songs written by Justin Davey