Chris Brown, Indigo | Album Review

Grammy-winning R&B artist Chris Brown once more overindulges on his 10^th album,  ‘Indigo,’ but does have his fair share of respectable moments.

Once more, Chris Brown seems to be ‘feeling himself’ just a little bit too much.  Actually, a lot too much.  Why? After releasing the excessively long Heartbreak on a Full Moon, the Grammy-winning R&B singer felt he needed to drop yet another overstuffed album with Indigo.  Thank goodness Indigo isn’t three hours long, but it still exceeds two hours which is absolutely too much Brown in one setting.  The thing is, Indigo has its moments, but you have to sift through the excess that is Indigo to find them.

Going into Indigo, the thought had crossed my mind to do a track-by-track review of the two-hour-plus project.  I didn’t give Heartbreak on a Full Moon the track-by-track treatment, so, perhaps I owe it to Indigo.  The problem is, if you sit and listen to Indigo, even in increments as I did, you find yourself struggling to find distinct material that Chris Brown hasn’t already presented in the past.  In other words, it doesn’t really make sense doing a track-by-track review of a project like this, which again, is more of a playlist meant to rack up the streams. That’s a turn-off in itself about Indigo, though more about Brown as an artist – he’s willing to sacrifice quality in favor of quantity.

Disc 1 / “Back to Love”

Something that did occur with Indigo personally was listening to the entire album – all two-hours-plus.  There are some early highlights, including the respectable, more thoughtful  ✓ “Back to Love” which sounds almost uncharacteristic of ‘bad boy’ Chris Brown at this point in his career.  It’s a sleekly-produced urban contemporary joint that features strong vocals from Brown – can’t deny the pureness of his instrument, even if effects are piled on.  Brown has another fine moment collaborating with fellow Grammy-winner H.E.R. on the follow-up record, ✓ “Come Together.” There’s a cool throwback sensibility, coupled with the über-slick backdrop that clearly has 2019 written all over it. The vocal chemistry between the two is arguably the biggest selling point.

“Wobble Up”

✓ “Wobble Up”, featuring Nicki Minaj and G-Eazy, is a banger through in through.  It’s catchy, but certainly nothing different from what Chris Brown has done since transforming into a bad boy. “Wobble Up” finds him continuing to be sexed-up to the nth degree, evidenced by the key line of the risqué chorus: “Wobble on that dick, wobble up, wobble-wobble up.” He’s incredibly hedonistic on the following verse, closing out with the following lyrics: “Huh, your ex-n*gga, he was dumb as fuck / Soon as I gave her the dick, she fallin’ in love.”

Unsurprisingly, Nicki Minaj responds to Brown’s sexual vibes with her own filth, including the unfortunate lyric, “When I bust a nut, I don’t ever wanna cuddle up.” Of course G-Eazy continues his fuckboy ways, asserting, “So, I pulled up while her man’s at work / Yeah, she had the night shift, I made her cancel work / Then I asked her twerk on the D, I pulled out, splashed her shirt.” Oh my… Adding to the filth is the Magnolia Shorty sample, “Monkey on the D$CK”.

“Need a Stack” 

“Said, ‘You gon’ have to give me more than fifty dollars / …Yeah, you gon’ have to empty out your fuckin’ pocket.” After ‘wobbling up,’ ✓ “Need a Stack” is a fun worthwhile listen, particularly the aforementioned pre-chorus by Chris Brown.  It’s not all on Brown’s shoulders, as “Need a Stack” enlists Lil Wayne (verse two) and Joyner Lucas (verse one and chorus) for the assist.  Unsurprisingly, single ✓ “No Guidance” is a winner, featuring Drake at his best, dominating the beginning of the record.  One reason why “No Guidance” is so successful is the contrast between Drake and Brown’s vocals.  Brown has such a powerful, cutting voice, while Drake is much cooler, mellow, and understated.

Even the solo follow-up “Girl of My Dreams” is worth noting, showing Chris Brown in a more refined, less arrogant or cocky light.  Some of the charm that occurred on the aforementioned “Back to Love” returns.  Justin Bieber and Ink join Brown on the chill, guitar-fueled, pop-soul gem, ✓ “Don’t Check on Me.” The vocal chemistry between all three is spot-on.  While “Sorry Enough” wouldn’t grace my list of gems, the drums particularly, copped from The Clipse, are enough to earn it some attention.

Disc 2 / “Juice”

Although not mentioned previously, title track “Indigo” was a respectable start to the album, specifically the first disc.  The same can be said of the groovy “Juice,” where Chris Brown continues to sound top-rate, even employing ample vocal effects and gimmickry.  Moving down a few tracks, the next big collaboration occurs with Tory Lanez on “Lurkin’.”  It’s sleek like everything else on Indigo, but doesn’t eclipse the best of the album, mentioned above.  Arguably, the next surefire gem comes on the effort’s 23^rd track, ✓  “Undecided,” which blatantly samples Shanice (“I Love Your Smile”).  Give Brown credit for high-flying vocals, even if he’s ‘overstimulated’ at times sexually.  What exactly is he ‘undecided’ about? Well, according to the chorus:

“I’m undecided, excited, ignited
And I don’t wanna feel the way I do, but I like it
Look at all these sparks flying
But I’m still indecisive
And she want me to wife it
But I’m undecided.”

Indigo features several two-part songs: “Emerald / Burgundy,” “Natural Disaster / Aura,” and “Trust Issues / Act In.” In most cases, they’re a bit much due to the sheer length of the album. The best of the two-part offerings is ✓ “BP / No Judgement,” which runs nearly six-and-a-half-minutes.  Even so, the vocal arrangement/production is pretty sweet, and there’s an unexpected charm about the record, even with so much drip going down.  Even when it seemed it might be hard to follow up “BP,” the second part, “No Judgement” is equally alluring.

“Side N*gga”

After “BP / No Judgement,” Indigo still has nine more songs – wow. If nothing else, the bright, optimistic sound of ✓ “Side N*gga” is a win.  Once more, Chris Brown’s voice shines.  The subject matter isn’t ‘refined’ mind you, but the vocals remain consistent.  Skipping along, Trey Songz joins Brown on “Sexy,” a shallow plea for sex – that shouldn’t come as a surprise (“Sexy, sexy / … Fuck me, please”).  The final collaboration of Indigo, “Early 2K,” brings Tank along for another sexy, sexed-up ride. Interestingly, the petitioning “Dear God” follows. Don’t call it a CCM/contemporary gospel song by any means.  It’s a bit of an odd number honestly… but to each his own.  Two more songs close out Indigo – “Part of the Plan” and “Play Catch Up” – neither of which necessarily affect the tenor of the LP.  

Final Thoughts 

To reiterate an aforementioned point, Indigo has its fair share of moments, but you have to sift through the excess to find them.  Regardless, as mentioned numerous times, Chris Brown does sound great vocally, but again, that has never been the problem with the artist.  Still, two-hours-plus is too much for almost anybody, particularly an artist like Brown who has carved out his niche on hedonism.  Had Indigo been edited by at least an hour, and the ‘best of the best’ songs been featured, Indigo would be a much stronger album as opposed to ‘playlist.’

✓ Gems: “Back to Love,” “Come Together,” “Wobble Up,” “Need a Stack” “No Guidance,” “Don’t Check on Me,” “Undecided,” “BP / No Judgement” & “Side N*gga”

Chris Brown • Indigo • RCA • Release: 6.28.19

Photo Credit: RCA