Jennifer Grey claims split from Matthew Broderick inspired Madonna song
Jennifer Grey is expressing herself in her new memoir, “Out of the Corner.”
The “Dirty Dancing” star, 62, revealed that her breakup with ex Matthew Broderick inspired Madonna’s hit 1989 song, “Express Yourself,” People reported.
Grey and the Queen of Pop’s friendship goes back to the 1980s, and they starred in the 1989 period flick “Bloodhounds of Broadway” together.
Madonna, 63, and the “Red Dawn” actress became such good pals that the singer threw Grey a 29th birthday bash in March 1989.
Grey wrote that Madonna told her at the party that her relationship with Broderick influenced the catchy feminine-power song.
Grey and Broderick, 60, had started dating while filming “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” in 1985 and had kept their relationship semisecret at the time.
However, their love was thrust into the limelight in August 1987 when they were both involved in a tragic car crash in Northern Ireland.
“She told me she wrote ‘Express Yourself’ about me breaking up with Matthew,” Grey recalled in her book.
“She played it for me in her car. I was in my log cabin with Johnny [Depp] and she said, ‘Come into my car.’ And I got in her Mercedes where she had a really good sound system and she was like, ‘Listen to this song I just did. It’s about you,’ ” Grey added.
The “Dancing With the Stars” alum admitted that she contacted the “Vogue” crooner recently and brought up the song in an email.
Grey wrote that she hit up Madonna and asked her in the message, ” ‘Did you just tell that to everyone?’ ”
Grey also gave some insight into her new memoir earlier this week, writing on Instagram about an interview she did with the New York Times’ book section: “ ‘Out of the Corner’ isn’t all about regret, survival or reinvention. It’s a funny, dishy, occasionally heartbreaking coming-of-age story.”
She continued, “Being misunderstood on a global stage was very painful. I think people really love black-and-white thinking. I’m into gray; I couldn’t have a better name.”
The New York City native has also been linked to actor Michael J. Fox. She married “Marvel” actor Clark Gregg in 2001 and they divorced in 2020.
“Out of the Corner” is set to hit bookstores on May 3.
