- Sky Ferreira publicly implied that her unreleased demos were used — without proper credit — on Charli XCX’s Wuthering Heights soundtrack album.
- Specific tracks called into question include “Eyes of the World,” the intro to “Chains of Love,” and “Altars,” which fans claim may be rooted in Ferreira’s original work dating as far back as 2015.
- Ferreira insists she has dated proof of her contributions, but says it isn’t worth the fight — a pointed nod to how the music industry tends to handle artists in her position.
Sky Ferreira — the elusive, perpetually delayed album-having “Everything Is Embarrassing” singer — has spent the past few weeks implying that her fingerprints are a lot more prominent on Charli XCX‘s Wuthering Heights album than anyone realized. And she’s not being subtle about it.
It started back in February, when Wuthering Heights dropped and a meme circulated about Charli dragging Ferreira back into the studio to make the album. Ferreira’s response in the comments was blunt: “To record my old songs.” No explanation. No elaboration. Just six words and a handful of asterisks that sent the internet into a full spiral.
That comment simmered for weeks. Then, earlier this month, a fan account named Leon on X decided to question Ferreira’s sources of income — which, in retrospect, was a bold choice. Ferreira found the post and clapped back: “I toured for years. I work. I hate to break it to you, but your favorite artist records my old songs. I hope that answers your question.”
Still no names. But everyone understood who she was talking about.
Leon then posted a since-deleted screenshot of a text exchange with an alleged “industry insider,” who claimed that “Eyes of the World” — the track on which Ferreira is officially credited as a guest feature — and the intro to “Chains of Love” were both taken from her demo “Ancient Idols,” a track dating to around 2018 that had been intended for her long-suffering, still-unreleased second album, Masochism. The insider also alleged that “Altars” was based on a Ferreira demo from 2015.
Ferreira didn’t confirm those specifics — but she didn’t exactly deny them either. She responded to Leon: “Your industry ‘insider’ is wrong. Close but wrong.” Then, in a follow-up, she added: “I’m not going to get into it but it was definitely more than an intro. I have proof of everything with dates. It isn’t worth the trouble bc I know how the world works.”
“Close but wrong” and “more than an intro” is a very specific kind of not-denying something.
Los Angeles, USA 14 June 2017
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Ferreira has been careful not to directly accuse Charli XCX of theft by name, framing the issue instead as part of a broader pattern within the music industry — one where creative ownership gets muddied and original authors don’t always get their due. But the implication is loud enough that no one is missing it.
The through line in all of this appears to be producer Justin Raisen. Ferreira’s frequent collaborator also worked on the Wuthering Heights soundtrack with Charli, and fans have been quick to speculate that music Ferreira created with Raisen — work she reportedly couldn’t release while stuck in her deal with Capitol Records — may have eventually made its way to Charli’s project.
Ferreira has been candid in past interviews about her decade-long battle with Capitol Records, noting that the label “waited until the 10-year anniversary of Night Time, My Time to drop me via an automated message that got forwarded to me.” So the idea that her unreleased work could’ve ended up in someone else’s hands isn’t exactly a stretch.
The irony of all this? Charli has, on more than one occasion, declared her deep admiration for Ferreira — once saying that while she was “the biggest Rihanna stan ever,” Ferreira was “the only exception” because “she’s one of a kind.”
For now, Charli XCX has not commented on Ferreira’s claims. Given that this all played out across Instagram comments and since-deleted tweets, it’s a very 2026 kind of drama — chaotic, partially redacted, and deeply unresolved.
Ferreira says she has proof of everything with dates. Whether she ever decides it’s worth the trouble remains to be seen.
