Chris Brown’s video for Autumn Leaves premiered today.
I’m generally a fan of Brown’s music, but this one gets all the side eyes from me.
Essentially, this song and video artistically detail his dysfunctional relationship with Karrueche Tran. I wish I knew less about them so I could enjoy it.
This video is an exercise in all things cliché from beginning to finish, and I imagine the meeting over the concept went something like this:
Karrueche is Asian. Let’s do an Asian theme. We’ll put a scar on Chris to give him some depth. Let’s get some Asian guys to swing some swords around. Chris should stand in some water and wear white to make him look more good-guy. Wait. Something’s missing. Throw some random video chicks in there. Make sure they bring the sex. Perfect! This is going to be great guys.
Before seeing the video, I was actually happy for Tran that Brown finally put her in a video. I mean, she’s supposed to be a model right?
Anyway, she comes off as sad, pathetic and vapid. I’m not trying to be harsh, but she spends 99% of the video walking as though she’s going into the light. He walks behind her. She stops to blankly stare out at something. They meet up, and she can barely contain herself or look at him. Is she happy, sad or shy? I’m not sure if she’s just overly self-aware or on the verge of tears. Maybe she’s thinking, “In spite of everything, he really loves. He put me in a video.”
It all feels tragic.
I need those 4+ minutes of my life back.
Real Life Chic 