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Sometimes, seemingly inoffensive music inspires a lot of controversy. For example, Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers” has received criticism for its similarities to Bruno Mars’ “When I Was Your Man.” This controversy is overblown.

Why people think Miley Cyrus’ ‘Flowers’ is too similar to Bruno Mars’ ‘When I Was Your Man’

“When I Was Your Man” has the lyrics “I should’ve bought you flowers / And held your hand / Should’ve gave you all my hours.” “Flowers” has “I can buy myself flowers / Write my name in the sand / Talk to myself for hours.” Similar? Yes. Plagiarism? No.

At most, “Flowers” is an homage to “When I Was Your Man.” That’s not a crime. Most of music is built on homage. Beyond that, “When I Was Your Man” is a slow pop ballad and “Flowers” is a disco track. The tunes have entirely different melodies. Nobody could possibly confuse one song with the other. 

Miley Cyrus almost took her song in a different direction

During a 2023 interview with British Vogue, Cyrus said the offending lyrics of “Flowers” were initially a bit different. “I wrote it in a really different way,” the “Wrecking Ball” singer said. “The chorus was originally: ‘I can buy myself flowers, write my name in the sand, but I can’t love me better than you can.’ It used to be more, like, 1950s. The saddest song. Like: ‘Sure, I can be my own lover, but you’re so much better.’ The song is a little fake it till you make it. Which I’m a big fan of.”

Cyrus discussed how a famous rapper reacted to her song. “It’s like one o’clock in the morning and Lil Nas X walks into the club and he asks me the most interesting question,” she recalled. “He said: ‘Are you so anxious about how successful ‘Flowers’ is?’ ‘A lot of headlines [recently] have said, ‘This is Miley’s moment.’ And I’m like, ‘That’s exactly what it is. It’s a moment. And it will be over.'”

The “Prisoner” star accepted that the success of “Flowers” would fade. “That’s not pessimistic,” Cyrus said. “That’s honest and that’s OK with me. I actually prefer it. I don’t like to stay big.” Perhaps that explains why Cyrus’ career has been a series of peaks and valleys.

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How ‘When I Was Your Man’ and ‘Flowers’ performed

“When I Was Your Man” topped the Billboard Hot 100, staying on the chart for 35 weeks in total. The ballad appeared on the album Unorthodox Jukebox. That record was No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and remained on the chart for 234 weeks. So far, Unorthodox Jukebox is Mars’ only chart-topping album in the United States.

While “When I Was Your Man” was a hit, “Flowers” became far more popular. “Flowers” topped the Billboard Hot 100 for eight of its 55 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. Cyrus included her tune on the album Endless Summer Vacation. That record reached No. 3 and stayed on the chart for 59 weeks. Endless Summer Vacation is Cyrus’ most popular record that is not connected to the Hannah Montana franchise.

Regardless of which song was more popular, listening to “When I Was Your Man” is a very different experience from listening to “Flowers.”

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