How Alexis Ren's Split From Noah Centineo Inspired Her Music

Ever since To All the Boys I've Loved Before hit Netflix in 2018, Noah Centineo has been a hot commodity (and the dream boyfriend of many a Gen Z-er). But off-screen, Centineo hasn't found a lasting love just yet. Reports circulated in March and April 2020 that Centineo and model-singer Alexis Ren had broken up, and Ren addressed the split a few months later in October.

Like so many artists before her, Ren is using her breakup to drive her art. Before the breakup and the coronavirus pandemic, Ren was known for her modeling career — she's appeared in Sports Illustrated's swimsuit edition and Brandy Melville campaigns. But during quarantine, Ren has started working on music, including writing songs that were apparently inspired by her ex.

"Heartbreak just breaks you open, and here's your soul and, like, create with it," Ren said to Entertainment Tonight in October 2020. "So, that's exactly what happened." The model is far from the first person to turn heartbreak into art, but it's not every day you see someone talking about their ex-boyfriend so openly. Here's what else fans should know about Ren's musical pursuits.

Music isn't a passing phase for the model. Alexis Ren shared with Entertainment Tonight that she's written at least 20 songs since the coronavirus began to spread through the U.S. "Once COVID hit, I was like, 'This is an opportunity for me to do this. I'm going to take this as a lesson,'" Ren said to ET. "So I went super, super deep into that. I wrote about 20 songs in two weeks, which is, like, crazy."

As for how Noah Centineo inspired her music, she's choosing to see the positive, telling ET that "no relationship is a failure." That's one way to look at it! "I always use the relationships in my life as a great way to learn deeper about myself. So that definitely had something to do with it. But in return, I got to see my relationship with the Earth, my relationship with my family, and so I've written about it all," Ren said. "I think the relationships in our lives are our biggest teachers because they literally are our closest reflections to each other... Because no relationship is a failure, it's a lesson or a blessing."

Ren hasn't released the new music yet, but it sounds like the lyrics are off to a great start at least. And if the sweet song she wrote in honor of her late mom, "Come Back," is any indication, Ren is one to watch in the music sphere.

She might not be getting the cliché breakup haircut, but Alexis Ren is using her split to do some deep thinking. The Dancing with the Stars alum told ET she's not blaming herself for how things shook out. "I wanted a better relationship with myself after that," Ren said. "I was like, 'How can I now treat myself better? I think a lot of people when a breakup happens, we think it's our fault... And for me, it was like, 'OK, the universe wants me to focus on myself,' and I can totally do that." Good for you, girl!

If fans are curious what genre Ren's relationship-inspired songs will be, there are two distinct possibilities. "It's my favorite genre," Ren told ET of R&B. "Like, sexy and empowering. And it has this very nice progressive trap bass that I'm obsessed with. So it's either going to [be] acoustic beautiful, or trap and sexy and cool. It's just super fun because there's no roof."

As for how Noah Centineo is handling quarantine, he threw his weight into talking about voting and sharing vague tweets about being alone. (There were rumors he'd eloped with Stassie Karanikolaou in October 2020, but they seem to be just that: rumors). Ren and Centineo were only together a few months, but it looks like they've both moved forward and aren't on bad terms.

Whatever path Ren chooses for her future — she told ET that she's breaking into acting, too — fans are ready to see her talents in a new light.