“Irreplaceable,” Beyoncé’s Ne-Yo penned, Grammy-nominated and heretofore best-charting single, was originally intended to be – get this – a country song. Or at least that’s what producer Tor Hermansen recently told MTV.

According to Hermansen, “The tune was not specifically written for Beyoncé — in fact, Ne-Yo wrote it from a male perspective.” MTV further reports that “[Ne-Yo] had Faith Hill and Shania Twain in mind when he wrote ‘Irreplaceable’ as a country song, and Hermansen still thinks the tune could easily have been a country radio hit.”

“Irreplaceable” is currently a Grammy nominee for Record of the Year. [MTV]