"Grass Ain't Greener" is a song by American singer Chris Brown released on May 5, 2016 as the lead single from Brown's eighth studio album, Heartbreak on a Full Moon.[1] The song was written by Brown and Prince Chrishan, and produced by Nikhil.[2] "Grass Ain't Greener" is a mid-tempo alternative R&B and trap song, that explores themes of breakup and untrusting love relationships.
A music video, shot in the desertified surroundings of Los Angeles, and in a forest outside Fresno, California, was released on August 26, 2016, and displays, though a "cinematic" and "dark" atmosphere, a "mysterious" storyline about Brown following his ex-girlfriend to a foggy club that ends up being full of vampires.
On January 10, 2016, Brown previewed some unreleased songs on his Periscope and Instagram profiles, through videos of him dancing and lip-synching to these tracks in the studio. ‘Grass Ain’t Greener’ was among them.[3][4][5] On April 27, Brown announced the mixtape Before the Trap: Nights in Tarzana, the European leg of his One Hell of a Nite Tour, and the release of a new single on May 5.[6][7][8] On May 3, he revealed that the single would be "Grass Ain't Greener", showing its artwork and announcing it as the first single from his upcoming album titled Heartbreak on a Full Moon.[9] The single was released on May 5, 2016, on Brown’s 27th birthday. "Grass Ain't Greener" was not included on the album’s first announced track listing. It was later added as a bonus track on the official tracklist when the album became available for pre-order.[10]
Lyrically, in the song Brown addresses how his second lover became his main girlfriend, combining passion and romance, but their relationship changed for the worse, ending up in a bitter breakup. In the track, Brown is wary of the intentions of his female liaisons, while calling out his ex-girlfriend for putting on a false facade to impress others, lamenting that he's tired of texting her, as he sings "I know what you want, but you're not gon' get it (...) You do what you want with somebody else / I'm gone, baby".[13][14][15] Media outlets speculated that the song's lyrics were referring to Brown's relationship with his ex-girlfriend Karrueche Tran.[16][17][18]
Critical reception
Carl Lamare of Billboard said that the song is "Brown['s] first major attempt at the whole "dark R&B" craze, and it works perfectly" describing it as featuring "brutally honest lyrics over a beat that's somber, but danceable".[10] Adam Fleischer of MTV said that Brown sings about "how the two don't play nicely together no more", commending Brown's "heartfelt vocals" and its lyrics, which he found to be "very relatable to his private life".[19]XXL's writer Mark Stainser said that the song's production "matches impeccably Brown's voice", defining it as "one of the best R&B cuts of 2016".[10]
Music video
On August 26, 2016, Chris Brown uploaded the music video for "Grass Ain't Greener" on his YouTube and Vevo account.[20] The video was directed by Brown, and shot in August in the desertified surroundings of Los Angeles, and in a forest outside Fresno, California.[21]
Synopsis
The video starts with Brown driving towards a party in the desertified surroundings of Los Angeles, with his friends in the car, played by members of his OHB crew, who are skeptical, claiming that he’s 'always chasing a girl', and mention that his ex-girlfriend might be at the party. Upon arriving at the foggy club, they notice dancers in lingerie lying in hoops suspended from the ceiling. Brown looks around as flashes of his ex-girlfriend appear in his mind. The girl is dressed in tribal-like clothing with white paint on her body. Brown starts chasing a girl in a black bikini top, who bites his neck: the dancers turn out to be vampires. The video concludes with the girl from the initial flashes seductively looking at the camera before turning and walking away into the forest.[22]
Reception
Capital XTRA called the video "cinematic" and "dark".[23] A writer for Rap-Up described the video as "mysterious".[24]2DBZ and Urban Islandz stated that the character of Brown's ex-girlfriend in the video might be a reference to Karrueche Tran.[25][26]
Charts
Weekly charts
Weekly chart performance for "Grass Ain't Greener"
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
