Indigo (Chris Brown album)

In December 2017, soon after releasing Heartbreak on a Full Moon, Brown showed that he was already working on new songs teasing a "Michael Jackson-inspired" song on his Instagram profile, filming a video from his studio and playing the song supposedly called "Vampire Vibe".[3][4] In 2018 he posted various snippets of new unreleased songs, showing that he was working on a collaboration mixtape with Jacquees, on another collaboration mixtape with Joyner Lucas, and on his album, rumored to be called Indigo, which he later said would be a 30-track album in reference to his 30th birthday.[5][6]

In January 2019, Brown announced a new deal with International global media and his label RCA Records, becoming one of the youngest artists to own his masters at age 29.[7] Indigo was announced as the first album on this deal, with the release of the first single "Undecided" on January 4, 2019.[8] Brown stated in an Instagram post that his new album would not be as lengthy as Heartbreak on a Full Moon and would focus on "energy, love, light, and happiness", saying that it reminds him of his previous albums Chris Brown, Graffiti and F.A.M.E..[9]

He later previewed and released the second official single from the album, "Back to Love", on April 11, 2019, getting a positive response from fans and critics.[10][11][12] The following week he released the third single from the album, "Wobble Up", featuring Nicki Minaj and G-Eazy,[13] announcing that the album is expected to be released in June, also confirming a summer tour with Nicki Minaj.[14] In an announcement made on May 2, 2019, Brown announced the list of artists he had been working with for the album, including Nicki Minaj, Tory Lanez, Tyga, Justin Bieber, Juicy J, Juvenile, H.E.R, Tank, Lil Jon, Lil Wayne, Joyner Lucas, Gunna and Drake. Some of these collaborations were surprising to the media, especially Drake, due to their public feud that lasted for several years.[15][16][17][18]

He later revealed the artwork of the album and its track list between May and June 2019.[19][20] On June 8, Brown released "No Guidance" featuring Drake as a single.[21] It debuted at number nine on the US Billboard Hot 100, making it Chris Brown's 15th top-ten song, and becoming his highest charting song as a lead artist since 2013's "Loyal" as well.[22]

On October 4, 2019, Brown released a deluxe version of Indigo entitled Indigo Extended, which included 10 additional songs, making the extended version a total of 42 songs.[23]

The cover art for the album was revealed on May 14, 2019, along with the back cover. The front cover artwork was designed by graffiti artist Saturno and features a purple-haired Chris Brown in space, surrounded by fictional monsters and flying saucers, while the back cover, designed by visual artist Jeff Cole, continues the supernatural theme with a levitating body over a pyramid.[24]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
HipHopDX	2.9/5[25]
Slant Magazine	[26]

The album received mixed to negative reviews from critics. Trent Clark of HipHopDX praised the album for its nostalgic sound and the numerous collaborations, especially with H.E.R. and Drake, but criticized its perceived disorganization as well as for the long duration.[25] In a positive review, Urban Islandz wrote that "The "No Guidance" singer has already proven himself to have the Midas touch when it comes to making hit records and that's why artists from all over the music industry clamor to get a Chris Brown feature".[27]

Andy Kellman of AllMusic stated that "Not quite as extravagant as the preceding Heartbreak on a Full Moon, Chris Brown's tenth album is merely two hours in length. That still allows more than enough space for the singer to sufficiently cover each one of his modes. Pleasure-seeking club tracks, entitled slow jams, tormented ballads, and yearning pop-R&B love songs -- the last of which still match up best with his voice, virtually unchanged during the last decade -- are all plentiful."[2] Alexa Camp of Slant Magazine stated that "Indigo is lean compared to 2017's interminable 45-track Heartbreak on a Full Moon, but the album's lumbering pace and homogeneity overshadow even its few gems."[26]

In the United States, Indigo debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with 108,000 album-equivalent units, which included 28,000 pure album sales in its first week, making it his third number-one album in the country.[31] The album also accumulated 97.95 million on-demand audio streams in the United States for its track list of 32 songs.[31] In its second week, the album remained in the top ten and fell to number three, earning just under 50,000 album-equivalent units.[32] In its third week, the album dropped to number five on the chart, earning 42,000 album-equivalent units that week.[33] Just over a month after its release, Indigo generated over 1 billion streams.[34] On December 9, 2019, the album was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for combined sales and album-equivalent units of over a million units in the United States.[35]

In Australia, the album opened at number three on the ARIA Albums Chart, becoming Brown's sixth top-ten album in the country.[36] In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number seven on the UK Albums Chart, Brown's seventh top-ten album on the chart.[37]

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes and Tidal.[38][39]

Notes

• ^{^[a]} signifies a co-producer
• ^{^[b]} signifies an additional producer
• ^{^[c]} signifies an uncredited co-producer
• ^{^[d]} signifies an uncredited additional producer
• "Let's Smoke" was not included on streaming versions of the album internationally nor on Apple Music in the US; thus the track listing was cut down to 32 songs (42 including the Extended Edition)
• "Indigo" and "Heat" features uncredited vocals by Tank
• "Trust Issues" features uncredited vocals by Sage the Gemini
• "Juice" features background vocals by Tone Stith
• "Undecided" features background vocals by Felicia Ferraro

Sample credits

• "Come Together" contains a sample from "Don't Stop", written by Albert Hudson, as performed by One Way.
• "Temporary Lover" contains a sample from "I Want To Thank You", written by Kevin McCord, as performed by Alicia Myers.
• "Emerald" contains a portion of the composition "Drag Rap (Triggerman)", written by Orville Hall, and Phillip Price, as performed by The Showboys.
• "All I Want" contains a sample from "How's It Goin' Down", written by Anthony Fields, and Earl Simmons, as performed by DMX.
• "Wobble Up" contains samples from "Monkey on the D$CK", written by Renetta Lowe, and Byron Thomas, as performed by Magnolia Shorty and "Wishing on a Star ("Dancin" Danny D Remix)", written by Billie Calvin, as performed by Fresh Four.
• "Need a Stack" contains a portion of the composition "Back That Azz Up", written by Dwayne Carter, Terius Gray, and Byron Thomas, as performed by Juvenile.
• "No Guidance" contains uncredited samples from "Before I Die", written and performed by Che Ecru.[42]
• "Sorry Enough" contains a sample from "Grindin'", written by Charles Hugo, Gene Thornton, Terrance Thornton, and Pharrell Williams, as performed by Clipse.
• "Undecided" contains a sample from "I Love Your Smile", written by Jarvis Barker, Sylvester Jackson, Shanice Knox, and Narada Walden, as performed by Shanice.
• "Throw It Back" contains a sample from "Back & Forth", written by Robert Kelly, George Clinton III, George Clinton, Jr., William Collins, Garry Shider, David Spradley, Bernard Worrell, and Philippé Wynn, as performed by Aaliyah.
• "Let's Smoke" contains a sample from "Back Pocket", written by Jack Stratton, as performed by Vulfpeck.
• "Troubled Waters" contains a sample from "Get Me Back on Time (Engine Number 9)", written and performed by Wilson Pickett.

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes and Tidal.[38][39]