At a recent show in Washington, D.C., the singer broke down while singing the song, which speaks of an abusive ex-boyfriend who used Bey's fame in mind games against Rowland. She even had to stop in the middle of the song, which was produced by her tour mate The-Dream, to pull herself together.

So while there were no tears in New York, that doesn't mean emotions weren't running high during the performance. "This song started a lot of stuff," Rowland said to the crowd as the first few chords of the song played. "This is my truth."

In the two weeks since the song was released online, Rowland's gotten a bit of press for her open letter, which sheds light on what it was really been like for her to see her best friend hit the big time, all the while she struggled with things deeper than fame.

Unsurprisingly, "Dirty Laundry" has also led to speculation as to the identity of the ex Rowland sings about. There's been so much speculation that Rowland's ex-fianc�, former football player Roy Williams, felt he needed to put some rumors to rest.

Rowland has been candid about the guy's identity and continued to stay mum at the show saying only, "I think everyone has their form of dirty laundry. I decided to air mine out."

Sitting on a stool with a towel in her hand, Rowland lamented about the past. With her eyes shut tight she sang, "When you're soaked in tears for years, it never airs out/When you make pain look this good, it never wears out." - more on this story

Kelly Rowland CDs, DVDs and MP3s Kelly Rowland T-shirts and Posters Share this article

...end