Over the weekend, after several blogs noticed the similarities between [artist id="1231768"]Kelly Clarkson's[/artist] new single "Already Gone" and Beyoncé's hit "Halo," [article id="1617011"]Clarkson did an interview[/article] in which she claimed she was unaware of "Halo" until she heard it on the radio -- and then fought like crazy to keep her label from releasing "Gone" because the songs sounded too much alike.

She also went to great lengths to put the blame for the situation squarely on [artist id="2128037"]OneRepublic[/artist] frontman Ryan Tedder, who wrote both songs, saying that upon hearing "Halo," she called him and angrily asked why he had given the same song to two different artists.

"No one's gonna be sitting at home, thinking, 'Man, Ryan Tedder gave Beyoncé and Kelly the same track to write to,' " Clarkson told Canada's CBC radio network. "No, they're just gonna be saying I ripped someone off. I called Ryan and said, 'I don't understand. Why would you do that?' "

On Wednesday (July 29), a spokesperson for Tedder sent MTV News a statement from the songwriter, who disagreed with Clarkson's -- and several blogs' -- assertions that "Already Gone" and "Halo" are based on the same song.

" 'Already Gone' is one of the best songs I've written or produced since [Leona Lewis'] 'Bleeding Love' and stands tall on its own merits apart from 'Halo,' " Tedder said in the statement. "They are two entirely different songs conceptually, melodically and lyrically, and I would never try to dupe an artist such as Kelly Clarkson or Beyoncé into recording over the same musical track. The idea is both hurtful and absurd."

Tedder didn't address Clarkson's claim that she fought her label's decision to have "Gone" released as a single, but he did urge fans to listen to both songs and decide for themselves if the tracks are similar.

"I think when people hear 'Already Gone,' they will hear what I hear -- one of the greatest female vocalists on earth giving her most haunting and heartbreaking performances on a song she helped write," the statement continues. "I challenge people to listen and form their own opinions."

A spokesperson for Clarkson's label, RCA, did not respond to MTV News' request for comment on the matter.