Peak
9
Weeks
20
Score
2,984
Chart Year
1995
Norwood reunited with Hype Williams, director of her previous videos for "I Wanna Be Down (Human Rhythm Hip Hop Remix)" and "Baby," to film a visual for "Brokenhearted."[16] Filming took place inside the Oheka Castle, a mansion located on the North Shore of Long Island, in West Hills, New York.[16] Much of the scenes were filmed on the estate's third and fourth floor before their restoration several years later.[16] Norwood and Morris who each shot their scenes separately, do not appear in any sequence together in the video though "Brokenhearted" blends several of their scenes.[16] The music video begins with shots of a large tree and Norwood laying on a blanket in a field.[16] When asked about the treatment of the video, Norwood told MTV News during the shooting: "It's basically a dream, because of course this is not reality. I can't afford a mansion right now, so it's like I fall asleep and I dream about doing a duet with Wanya and I'm in this big mansion wearing these grown clothes, big beautiful Whitney Houston–type clothes."[7] At the 1996 MTV Video Music Awards, "Brokenhearted"'s director of photography Martin Coppen was nominated for Best Cinematography in a Video but lost to Declan Quinn for his work on the video for The Smashing Pumpkins's "Tonight, Tonight" (1995).
"Brokenhearted" is a breakup song with a positive message: "Life's not over, I can start again." Brandy was just 14 when she recorded it and 15 when the song was released; many teenagers are sure they will never love again when they go through their first painful breakup, but here she lets them know they will. Released on Brandy's first album, this song was written by the team of Kipper Jones and Keith Crouch, who wrote it on assignment. Brandy had recorded their song "I Wanna Be Down," which Brandy's label, Atlantic Records, was very impressed with. They asked for more songs from the duo, including a ballad. This was a challenge for the lyricist of the pair, Kipper Jones, because he was a 32-year-old many trying to write something a teenage girl would sing. "What in the hell am I doing writing for her?" he said in a Songfacts interview. "Subject-matter-wise, we had to play to her audience, which was other 14-year-old girls," he told Songfacts. "When you write for someone, you do an assessment: Who are they? Who is their audience? What is the message they're trying to convey to that audience? What is the call to action? And with Bandy, her audience was other 14-year-old girls. And what do 14-year-old girls talk about? School and boys. When they talk about boys, what's the deal? Well, they get their hearts broken. So then what is the call to action? You get your heart broken, but you get over it, and that was the message we wanted to convey." "Her mother just absolutely loved it," Jones added. "Those are the kinds of things I would like to see more young people saying to each other. Even then, and especially now, I think a lot of the messages are less than helpful." The production team Soulshock & Karlin did a remix of "Brokenhearted" with Brandy duetting with Wanya Morris of Boyz II Men. This duet is unusual because they're not singing to each other - the lyrics are the same as the original, but with Morris doing half of the lines, which works because there are no gender-specific references. This version wasn't included on the album but was released as a single and became the most popular version of the song. The remix with Wanya Morris got a video directed by Hype Williams, who also did Brandy's videos for "Baby" and "Sittin' Up In My Room." The video ends on a happy note, with Brandy waking up in a meadow and greeted by puppies. Brandy had better things to do than record her vocals for this song: she wanted to go to the amusement park Magic Mountain with some friends. "I'm like, 'Yo I don't wanna come to the studio. I just wanna be a kid today,'" she told Billboard. Producer Keith Crouch convinced her to come in and get it done, which she did in just a few takes before heading out for some fun. "I was really focused on getting the right vocals so I could get to where I need to go," she said. The remix is included on the first greatest hits collections for both Boys II Men (The Remix Collection, 1995) and Brandy (The Best of Brandy, 2005).
I'm young but I'm wise Enough to know that you Don't fall in love over night That's why I thought if I Took my time that everything In love would be right But as soon as I closed my eyes I was saying to love Goodbye But I guess I'm Lonely brokenhearted Life's not over I can start again While I'm lonely brokenhearted It's a hurting thing to get over No more empty conversation Next time I will be totally sure Don't want the pain of falling In and out of love It's more than my poor heart should endure So I listen to all the advice And remember each time I cry But I guess I'm Lonely brokenhearted Life's not over I can start again While I'm lonely brokenhearted It's a hurting thing to get over While I'm lonely brokenhearted Life's not over I can start again While I'm lonely brokenhearted It's a hurting thing to get over Oh Ya Wow Ya I listen to all the advice And remember each time I cry Only brokenhearted Life's not over I can start again While I'm lonely brokenhearted It's a hurting thing to get over Lonely brokenhearted Life's not over I can start again While I'm lonely brokenhearted It's a hurting thing to get over [Repeats]
| Week | Chart Date | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sep 9, 1995 | 37 | 89 |
| 2 | Sep 16, 1995 | 22 | 104 |
| 3 | Sep 23, 1995 | 19 | 107 |
| 4 | Sep 30, 1995 | 19 | 107 |
| 5 | Oct 7, 1995 | 11 | 115 |
| 6 | Oct 14, 1995 | 9 | 117 |
| 7 | Oct 21, 1995 | 9 | 117 |
| 8 | Oct 28, 1995 | 11 | 115 |
| 9 | Nov 4, 1995 | 13 | 113 |
| 10 | Nov 11, 1995 | 14 | 112 |
| 11 | Nov 18, 1995 | 18 | 108 |
| 12 | Nov 25, 1995 | 23 | 103 |
| 13 | Dec 2, 1995 | 35 | 91 |
| 14 | Dec 9, 1995 | 39 | 87 |
| 15 | Dec 16, 1995 | 54 | 72 |
| 16 | Dec 23, 1995 | 56 | 70 |
| 17 | Dec 30, 1995 | 63 | 63 |
| 18 | Jan 6, 1996 | 61 | 65 |
| 19 | Jan 13, 1996 | 61 | 65 |
| 20 | Jan 20, 1996 | 74 | 52 |