20 Hit Songs Meant For Other Singers

Ever since former Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger revealed she turned down the opportunity to record Rihanna‘s signature song “We Found Love,” plenty of people have been wondering who might have possibly recorded some of our favorite songs before they got to the artists who made them famous. The people at Billboard decided to share the back story of some of our favorite hits. For example, did you know “How Will I Know” was initially intended for Janet Jackson to record, but Whitney Houston made it a hit after Jackson turned it down? Check out an excerpt below:

B.o.B – “Nothin’ On You”

Turned Down By: Lupe Fiasco

Before B.o.B and Bruno Mars linked up to perform the song that would serve as a breakout to both, “Nothin’ On You” was originally offered to another Atlantic hip-hop artist, Lupe Fiasco. Apparently the label rejected Fiasco’s version of the track, which made the rapper reach a breaking point. “It was less about the bruised ego but more the audacity of it. It was mentally destructive,” he said in an interview after the song’s release.