Undecided (Chris Brown song)

2019 song by Chris Brown

"Undecided"

Single by Chris Brown

from the album Indigo

Released

January 4, 2019

Recorded

August 2018

Studio

CBE (Tarzana, Los Angeles)

Genre

Length

3:08

Label

RCA

Songwriter(s)

Chris Brown
Scott Storch
Vincent Van den Ende
Antonio Stith
Patrizio Pigliapoco
Felicia Ferraro
Jarvis Barker
Sylvester Jackson
Shanice Wilson-Knox
Narada Walden

Lyricist(s)

Chris Brown
Antonio Stith
Felicia Ferraro

Producer(s)

Scott Storch
Avedon (co-producer)

Chris Brown singles chronology

"Buss It"
(2018)

"Undecided"
(2019)

"Chi Chi"
(2019)

Music video

"Undecided" on YouTube

"Undecided" is a song by American singer Chris Brown. It was released as a single on January 4, 2019, by RCA Records.^[1] The song serves as the lead single from Brown's ninth studio album Indigo.^[2]

The song was written by Chris Brown, Felicia Ferraro and Antonio Stith, while its production was handled by Scott Storch and Avedon. "Undecided" is a midtempo R&B and pop song, with lyrics about Brown reflecting on his hesitation to fully commit to a woman.

The single was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) and Canadian Recording Industry Association (MC). The music video for "Undecided" was released alongside the song. It was filmed at Santa Monica Pier and stars Brown and American actress Serayah.

Background and composition

According to Brown's mixing engineer Patrizio Pigliapoco, "Undecided" was recorded in August 2018, right after the end of the "Heartbreak on a Full Moon Tour", at Brown's home studio, being the first song composed for the Indigo album following the creation of its concept.^[3] The song was written by Chris Brown, Antonio Stith and Felicia Ferraro, and was produced by Scott Storch, that previously worked with Brown for his singles "Run It!" (2005) and "Gimme That" (2006), as well as for his albums Exclusive (2007) and Heartbreak on a Full Moon (2017).

"Undecided" is a "melodic" midtempo R&B and pop song,^[4]^[5] with a "mellow, tropical-leaning" instrumental.^[6] The song runs for three minutes and eight seconds, containing a sample of American R&B singer Shanice's 1991 single "I Love Your Smile".^[2] ThisisRnB described it as a "sweet-sounding" song with romantic content.^[7] Lyrically, "Undecided" is about Brown reflecting on his hesitation to fully commit to a woman, realizing that he loves her too much to not do so.^[8]^[6]

Music video

On January 4, 2019, Brown uploaded the music video for "Undecided" on his YouTube account.^[9] The music video was directed by Chris Brown and Arrad, and features Serayah as Brown's love interest.^[9]

Synopsis

The video opens with Brown trespassing onto the Santa Monica Pier at night. He sees a girl, played by Serayah, through a magic portal opened with the thread of a blue balloon. Brown enters the portal and a magical dream sequence unfolds, with the couple riding the roller coaster, playing carnival games, and dancing under an indigo starry sky, decorated with a giant full moon, as the ocean’s waves crash on the shore, before ending the magical dream sequence with a kiss. The video ends with Brown suddenly returning to reality, running away from the magic balloon.^[6]^[10]

Reception

Rap-Up praised the video for being "dance-heavy" and "cinematic".^[6] HypeBeast stated that in the video "the two showcase their dance moves alongside their respective crews throughout a bright and lively carnival".^[11] Urban Islandz commented that "the fun-filled music video comes with the exact creative energy that Chris Brown is known for".^[10]

Commercial performance

"Undecided" debuted at number 35 on the US Billboard Hot 100, serving as the singer's 91st entry on the chart.^[12] With the song, Chris Brown tied James Brown's eighth most Hot 100 entries of all-time.^[12] "Undecided" marked his first Hot 100 entry since "Freaky Friday" with Lil Dicky in April 2018, which peaked at number eight.^[12]

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2019)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)^[13]	58
Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Flanders)^[14]	29
Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Wallonia)^[15]	20
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)^[16]	57
France (SNEP)^[17]	150
Germany (Official German Charts)^[18]	94
Ireland (IRMA)^[19]	46
Japan (Japan Hot 100)^[20]	92
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40 Tipparade)^[21]	7
Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[22]	43
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)^[23]	15
Scotland (OCC)^[24]	32
Sweden Heatseeker (Sverigetopplistan)^[25]	15
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)^[26]	47
UK Singles (OCC)^[27]	15
UK Hip Hop/R&B (OCC)^[28]	6
US Billboard Hot 100^[29]	35
US Adult R&B Songs (Billboard)^[30]	4
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)^[31]	15
US R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay (Billboard)^[32]	4
US Rhythmic (Billboard)^[33]	10

Year-end charts

Chart (2019)	Position
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)^[34]	77

Certifications


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)^[35]	Gold	40,000^‡
United Kingdom (BPI)^[36]	Gold	400,000^‡
United States (RIAA)^[37]	Platinum	1,000,000^‡
^‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label	Ref.
Various	January 4, 2019	Digital download streaming	RCA	^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b "Undecided – Single by Chris Brown". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved January 15, 2019.
^ ^a ^b "Watch Chris Brown's New Video for "Undecided"". Complex. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
^ "Inside Track: Chris Brown 'Heat'". Soundonsound.com. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
^ "Chris Brown Releases New Single "Undecided"". HNHH. 3 January 2019.
^ "Chris Brown Reunites with Scott Storch for New Single 'Undecided': Listen". Billboard.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Video: Chris Brown - 'Undecided'".
^ "Chris Brown Returns with New Single & Video "Undecided"". 8 January 2019.
^ "Watch Chris Brown's New Video for "Undecided"". Complex Networks.
^ ^a ^b "Chris Brown Reunites With Scott Storch For New Single 'Undecided': Listen". Billboard. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
^ ^a ^b "Chris Brown Drops Adventurous New Video "Undecided"". 4 January 2019.
^ "Chris Brown Rolls into the New Year with "Undecided" Music Video". 4 January 2019.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Future Ties Taylor Swift for 10th Place Among Artists With Most Hot 100 Hits". Billboard. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
^ "ARIA Chart Watch #507". auspOp. January 12, 2019. Archived from the original on 2021-01-01. Retrieved January 28, 2024.
^ "Chris Brown – Undecided" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
^ "Chris Brown – Undecided" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
^ "Chris Brown Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
^ "Chris Brown – Undecided" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
^ "Chris Brown – Undecided" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
^ "IRMA – Irish Charts". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
^ "Chris Brown Chart History (Japan Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
^ "Tipparade-lijst van week 7, 2019". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved March 12, 2023.
^ "Chris Brown – Undecided" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
^ "NZ Top 40 Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. January 21, 2019. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
^ "Veckolista Heatseeker – Vecka 2, 11 januari 2019". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
^ "Chris Brown – Undecided". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
^ "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
^ "Chris Brown Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
^ "Chris Brown Chart History (Adult R&B Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
^ "Chris Brown Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
^ "Chris Brown Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2019.
^ "Chris Brown Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved February 26, 2019.
^ "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs - Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
^ "Canadian single certifications – Chris Brown – Undecided". Music Canada. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
^ "British single certifications – Chris Brown – Undecided". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
^ "American single certifications – Chris Brown – Undecided". Recording Industry Association of America.