Before Their Feud, Paul McCartney Wrote This Song for an Iconic Artist but Ultimately Released It for Himself
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Published Mar 26, 2026, 6:30 PM EDT
Tehuan Harris is a news and features journalist at Collider, reporting and writing about all things music and reality TV (sometimes). She is a talented journalist and a natural storyteller who writes with curiosity and interest. After graduating from university, she jumped straight into journalism, with one goal in mind: to tell stories that matter.
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Ever since his days as a Beatle, Paul McCartney has cemented himself as an iconic music figure, with his penmanship topping charts and reaching icon status. In 1974, he began a friendship with Michael Jackson and wrote “Girlfriend” for him four years later. Sadly, the opportunity fell through, and McCartney released the song himself on his Wings' album London Town. However, this is not where the story ends.
While Jackson missed out on recording the song before McCartney, the pair’s friendship blossomed into more opportunities. Both collaborated on the tracks “Say Say Say” and “The Girl Is Mine,” and McCartney even informed Jackson on how he could make more money as a musician through purchasing catalogs. Unfortunately, this friendship would soon turn sour, and the separation lasted until Jackson died in 2009.
Paul McCartney Wrote “Girlfriend” For Michael Jackson
McCartney and Jackson met in 1974 during different periods in their lives. Jackson was still a Motown artist,while McCartney had five studio albums without the Fab Four. This chance meeting sparked a friendship, but itwould be a while until they saw each other again.
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It was not until the second time they met that McCartney told Jackson he had written a song for him. McCartney and Jackson met again at the wrap party for the Wings Over America tour in Beverly Hills, where McCartney told Jackson that “Girlfriend” was for him. As Jackson detailed in his autobiography Moonwalk, “We shook hands amid a huge crowd of people, and he said, ‘You know, I’ve written a song for you.’ I was very surprised and thanked him. And he started singing ‘Girlfriend’ to me at the party.”
They agreed to contact each other about the recording of the track. However, this never came to be, despite Jackson showing interest in the song. “So we exchanged phone numbers and promised to get together soon, but different projects and life just got in the way for both of us, and we didn’t talk again for a couple of years,” Jackson explained.
Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson Released “Girlfriend”
Since Jackson and McCartney did not contact each other about the song, McCartney kept the song for himself. He released it as part of his album London Town in 1978, and the album peaked at number two on the Billboard 200. Though “Girlfriend” was no longer Jackson’s song, Jackson was still interested in it.
After McCartney released “Girlfriend,” Jackson’s producer, Quincy Jones, came across the song. He told him to cover it, unaware that the song was written with Jackson in mind. Jackson released his version of the song for his album Off The Wall in 1979, and his cover was exclusively released as the fifth and final single from the album in the UK.
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Eventually, the music powerhouses came back together in the 80s and collaborated on two songs. In 1982, Jackson released his bestselling album Thriller, which featured a collaboration with McCartney called “The Girl Is Mine.” “Say Say Say” from McCartney’s fourth solo studio album, Pipes of Peace, was released a year later, despite the pair recording the song two years earlier. Jackson also helped write “The Man” from Pipes of Peace.
“Say Say Say” and “The Girl Is Mine” performed well on the charts. While “The Girl Is Mine” failed to reach the top position and only peaked at number two, “Say Say Say” topped the Billboard Hot 100. However, this would be the last time McCartney and Jackson worked together.
The End of Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson’s Friendship
It all came crashing down in 1985 after Jackson gained control over The Beatles’ songs. The friendship reached a point of no return since the auction created a huge rift. Following the auction, McCartney wrote letters to Jackson for a raise in the mid-1990s for his songwriting, to which Jackson responded with, “Oh, Paul, that’s just business." This severed any chance of reconciliation for good.
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Many years went by without McCartney and Jackson being on speaking terms. Sadly, Jackson died at 50 years old without making amends with the former Beatle, who went on to gain ownership of The Beatles’ back catalog eight years later. McCartney praised Jackson and called him “unforgettable” despite their feud, and said after his death, “His music will be remembered forever, and my memories of our time together will be happy ones.” While it is upsetting that the pair never became friends again, their collaboration will still have a place in music history and pop culture.
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