On December 16, 2011, Aiko signed a recording contract with American record producer No I.D.'s record label Artium, distributed through Def Jam Recordings. She has been described as having gentle and pop-tinged vocals. [Tyler Antonius]
Jhené Aiko was born and raised in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of Christina Yamamoto and Dr. Karamo Chilombo (birth name Greg Barnes), a pediatrician. She is of mixed race background—her mother is of Japanese, Spanish, and Dominican descent, while her father is of African American, Yaqui, Choctaw, Cherokee, Navajo, and German Jewish descent. She often states her ethnicity as "Japanese, African American, Native American, etc." based on percentages but identifies with all parts of her heritage. Aiko has also stated that she has French ancestry and has stated regarding her ancestry, "I’m a quarter Japanese. That’s the only percentage I know for sure because it’s my grandfather's. And then everyone else is pretty much like mixed." Her older sisters Miyoko and Jamila were in the R&B group Gyrl and toured with Immature, who were signed to MCA/Silas Records. This led to Jhené’s first meeting with producer Chris Stokes when she was five years old, and eventually he heard her sing. When B2K signed with Epic Records, Jhené was signed as well. She served as the opening act for B2K on their Scream Tour 3.
Aiko began her musical career contributing vocals to several B2K releases in 2002. She featured on tracks five through eight of the R&B group's remix album B2K: The Remixes - Volume 1. "Santa Baby", a cover she recorded, was also featured on their album Santa Hooked Me Up and she appeared as a guest vocalist on the song "Tease" from Pandemonium!. Her song "Dog" appeared as a bonus track.
Aiko also appeared in numerous music videos including O'Ryan's debut video, "Take It Slow", B2K's debut video "Uh Huh" and "Why I Love You", P.Y.T.'s "Same Ol' Same Ol' (Remix)" featuring Sarai, Play's "M.A.S.T.E.R. (Part 2)" featuring Lil' Fizz video and Morgan Smith's 2004 video "Blow Ya Whistle". Jhené also has songs featured on the soundtracks of Barbershop, The Master of Disguise, You Got Served, The Proud Family, and Byou. She released a video for her single "NO L.O.V.E" (re-recorded from Tha' Rayne version in 2002) which debuted on BET's 106 & Park when she was 15 years old.
Aiko was set to release her debut album, then-titled My Name Is Jhené, however the album was never released due to tension at the record label Epic, which ultimately led to Aiko asking to be released from the label. She then began to focus on school and continue her education.
In 2007, she made a return to music, in an interview she spoke on the choice saying “Shortly before I conceived my daughter, I stepped back into the field and took a meeting with a label head. In this meeting, I was innocently told, to ‘sell’ myself when walking into these meetings. “That’s when I decided I would ‘sail’ myself rather than sell myself.” Aiko released a mixtape on March 16, 2011 entitled Sailing Soul(s) via her official website, JheneAiko.com. All the songs on the mixtape were written by her, except “July” which was written by Micah Powell and most of the songs were produced by Fisticuffs, except “July” and “You vs Them” which were produced by Bei Maejor, “Real Now” which was produced by Roosevelt, “Do Better” which was produced by J. Lbs and “Growing Apart” which was produced by Tae Beast. The album's artwork was shot by photographer Jay 3. The mixtape also features collaborations from Miguel, Drake, and Kanye West, as well as others.
To promote the mixtape Aiko was joined by Grammy-nominated R&B singer Miguel on a one-off free secret tour on Sunday, July 15. The free tickets were given away at the Key Club box office on July 6 from 11AM-5PM on a first-come, first-served basis. The concert started at 7:00pm and finished as 9:30pm, lasting a duration of two and a half hours. On October 21, 2012 Aiko released a music video for the song "My Mine". Aiko also released a video for the mixtapes second track "Stranger". Datpiff certified the mixtape gold with downloads of 100,000. In 2011, she also began working closely with artists from Carson-based independent record label Top Dawg Entertainment such as Schoolboy Q and Ab-Soul.
In 2012, Aiko met with No I.D., record producer and vice president of A&R at Def Jam, who ended up signing Aiko to his Artium Records imprint through Def Jam. Aiko released the track "3:16AM" which was made available for digital download on iTunes September 4, 2012. The song was released as the first single from Sail Out. In 2012, Aiko was also the opening act on the highly anticipated “Life Is Good/Black Rage” concert tour headlined by fellow American artists, rapper Nas and singer-songwriter Lauryn Hill. In June 2013, Aiko was featured on the Big Sean song "Beware", which ended up reaching the Top 40 in the United States. This was her first song to chart on the US Billboard Hot 100. In October 2013, it was revealed Jhené Aiko would open for Canadian rapper Drake on his Would You like a Tour? concert tour. She had previously collaborated with Drake on his third album Nothing Was the Same (2013), lending her vocals on the tracks "Wu-Tang Forever" and "From Time".
Aiko then released her debut EP Sail Out, on November 12, 2013. "Bed Peace" featuring Childish Gambino was released as the album's second single on September 17, 2013. The single's artwork was inspired by John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Bed-Ins for Peace protest against the Vietnam War. The EP features guest appearances from American rappers Vince Staples, Childish Gambino, Kendrick Lamar, and Ab-Soul. The EP debuted at number eight on the US Billboard 200 chart, with first-week sales of 34,000 copies. On January 14, 2014, "The Worst" was serviced to rhythmic contemporary radio in the United States as the album's third single. On May 2, 2014 "The Worst" rose from three to one on the airplay Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop, in doing so she became the first female artist to top the chart as a lead with a debut single since Jazmine Sullivan reached the same feat with "Need U Bad" in 2008. "The Worst" also rose forty seven to forty three on the Hot 100. The song peaked on the US Billboard Hot 100 at forty-three, becoming Aiko's first solo release to chart in the region, the song also peaked at number eleven on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.
On January 18, 2014, Aiko appeared on Saturday Night Live performing the song "From Time", with the episode's guest host, Drake. In a January 2014 interview with Vibe, Aiko announced her debut studio album Souled Out would be released in May 2014. However the album would be delayed. On March 16, 2014, Aiko premiered a song titled "My Afternoon Dream," along with an accompanying music video directed by Aiko and Krissy. It has yet to be revealed if the song, produced by Key Wane, will feature on the album.
On June 23, 2014, Aiko posted the cover art and a snippet of Souled Out's first single, titled "To Love & Die", on her official Instagram page. The single's artwork was described as "space-y" by Adelle Platon of Vibe magazine. The song was released for digital download on iTunes, the following day. On June 26, 2014, Canadian singer-songwriter The Weeknd, announced he would be headlining the "King of the Fall Tour", essentially a mini-tour across America in September / October 2014, the tour will consist of four shows and start on 19 September 2014 in New York, at the Barclays Center and end on October 10 in San Francisco, at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium. Aiko and frequent collaborator Schoolboy Q, were confirmed as the tour's supporting acts.
Aiko is a Christian, having been baptized when she was 16 at the evangelical Pentecostal Foursquare Church. At the age of 20, Aiko became pregnant by American R&B singer O'Ryan and gave birth to her daughter Namiko on November 19, 2008. Before losing her brother Miyagi to cancer on July 19, 2012, Aiko recorded "For My Brother" on her laptop, which was initially intended only for her brother's ears. He died soon after hearing the record. On August 27, 2013, Aiko was involved in a car accident in Los Angeles along with her daughter Namiko, older sister Miyoko, and her daughter's father O'Ryan. Aiko suffered a broken wrist, chipped tooth and had stitches in her chin. Her daughter, however, was unharmed in the accident.
Comfort Inn Ending
Jhené Aiko Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Thought I told you not to trust these hoes
Say they love you, when you know they don't
Say they will, but shit, you know they won't
Yeah, you hear me, you don't feel me, though
And you are not the only one
You are not the only one, yeah
You are not the only one
Okay, fuck it
It was Dominik, David, Braden
All of them did the same to you
Marquis and Sean and Brian
All of them had they way with you
Ever so often you get lost and miss out on everything
Shout-out to Krissy
That's my bitch 'cause she tells me everything
And I was not the only one
I was not the only one to you
So I was the only lonely one
Really, we had the perfect end
That night we shared at the Comfort Inn, we
Made love like the world would have ended
If either of us had admitted
We were in love
But I was the only one
So I was the only lonely one
And
And, and I never sh-
And I should've never took you on a boat for your birthday
And I should've never fucked you on a boat on your birthday
Man, I never would've came into your house in the first place
If I would've known that you would hurt me like in the worst way, yeah
'Cause that night turned into every weekend and
Every weekend turned to every evening, you
Took me out and left me in the deep end then
Quis found out and then I had to leave him
'Cause I couldn't be the one to hurt him
Plus I thought you were the one so it was worth it
But really we should've just ended it
That day I was at your crib when
Your baby mama just burst in, damn
I was weak then and you knew it
I was so weak then and you proved it
'Cause my brother was dying
And you gave me a shoulder to cry on
It was nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing
No, there was nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing
Then why'd you
Then why'd you call it love?
And I was not only one who was hurting
And you were not the only one with the burdens
But if we're nothing, we're nothing, we're nothing, we're nothing
We're nothing, we're nothing
Why would you call this love when you knew that it wasn't?
Why would you call it love when you knew that it wasn't?
If this is not love then please tell me what was it?
If this was not love then please tell me what was it?
'Cause when I met you at my favorite store
Jhené Aiko's "Comfort Inn Ending" is a song about a failed relationship. The lyrics speak to the pain and frustration of being lied to, manipulated, and mistreated by someone you thought you loved, but who ultimately betrayed you. The opening lines clearly set the tone for the rest of the song, warning against trusting people who say they love you but don't back up their words with actions. The repeated refrain of "you are not the only one" emphasizes the sense of betrayal and the realization that the person you loved has been with others as well.
The second verse reveals more about the singer's experiences with this person, including a shared night in a Comfort Inn where they made love like it was the end of the world, but only the singer was truly in love. There are allusions to cheating and secrecy, with the singer referencing a boat on the person's birthday and getting caught by someone named Quis. The third verse involves even more heartache, with the person seemingly taking advantage of the singer's vulnerability during a time when her brother was dying. The song ends on a desperate note, with the singer questioning what kind of love this was if it involved so much pain and betrayal.
Overall, Comfort Inn Ending is a powerful and emotional song that speaks to the universal experiences of heartbreak, betrayal, and the search for truth and understanding in relationships.
Line by Line Meaning
One, two, one two
Beginning of the song
Thought I told you not to trust these hoes
The singer warns the addressee about trusting women who claim to love them
Say they love you, when you know they don't
The singer accuses the addressee of ignoring the truth about women's love
Say they will, but shit, you know they won't
The artist criticizes the addressee's naivety about women's promises
Yeah, you hear me, you don't feel me, though
The artist recognizes that the addressee is not receptive to their advice
And you are not the only one
The singer tries to reassure the addressee that they are not alone in their struggles
You are not the only one, yeah
Repetition for emphasis
Okay, fuck it
The artist gives up trying to persuade the addressee
It was Dominik, David, Braden
The artist lists the names of people who mistreated the addressee
All of them did the same to you
The artist notes that the addressee has a pattern of being mistreated
Marquis and Sean and Brian
The singer continues listing names of people who mistreated the addressee
All of them had they way with you
The artist implies that the addressee has had sexual relations with these people
Ever so often you get lost and miss out on everything
The singer observes that the addressee often feels lost and misses out on things
Shout-out to Krissy
The singer acknowledges Krissy for telling them everything
That's my bitch 'cause she tells me everything
The singer declares that Krissy is a close friend who shares intimate details with them
And I was not the only one
The artist reminds the addressee that they were not the only person mistreated by them
I was not the only one to you
The artist clarifies that they were not the only person the addressee mistreated
So I was the only lonely one
The singer laments being alone in their suffering
Really, we had the perfect end
The singer reflects on their past relationship with the addressee
That night we shared at the Comfort Inn, we
The artist recalls a specific romantic encounter with the addressee
Made love like the world would have ended
The artist describes the intensity of their sexual experience
If either of us had admitted
The artist acknowledges that neither of them admitted their love for each other
We were in love
The singer suggests that there was a mutual emotional attachment between them
But I was the only one
The artist reveals that they were the only one who felt that deeply about the relationship
So I was the only lonely one
The singer laments being alone in their love for the addressee
And
Transitional word
And then, and I never sh-
The singer hesitates to share more information
And I should've never took you on a boat for your birthday
The artist regrets taking the addressee on a boat for their birthday
And I should've never fucked you on a boat on your birthday
The artist regrets having sexual intercourse with the addressee on the same boat ride
Man, I never would've came into your house in the first place
The singer regrets ever entering the addressee's house
If I would've known that you would hurt me like in the worst way, ooh
The singer implies that the addressee caused them great emotional pain
'Cause that night turned into every weekend and
The artist recalls how their relationship evolved into something more frequent
Every weekend turned to every evening, you
The artist describes how they spent time together more often
Took me out and left me in the deep end then
The artist feels like the addressee led them on and then deserted them
Quis found out and then I had to leave him
The singer had to leave Quis (presumably another romantic partner) after they found out about the affair with the addressee
'Cause I couldn't be the one to hurt him
The artist didn't want to be the cause of Quis's pain
Plus I thought you were the one so it was worth it
The singer believed that the addressee was the one they had been waiting for, so they thought it was worth the risk
But really we should've just ended it
The singer acknowledges that their relationship should have ended much earlier than it did
That day I was at your crib when
The singer recalls a specific event from their past together
Your baby mama just burst in, damn
The artist describes an awkward encounter with the addressee's ex-partner
I was weak then and you knew it
The artist admits to being in a vulnerable state and the addressee took advantage of it
I was so weak then and you proved it
The singer affirms that the addressee proved their weakness
'Cause my brother was dying
The singer reveals that their brother was close to death at the time
And you gave me a shoulder to cry on
The artist acknowledges that the addressee gave them emotional support during a difficult time
It was nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing
The artist tries to play down the significance of the emotional support
If it's nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing
Repetition for emphasis
Then why'd you
Transitional word
Then why'd you call it love?
The artist questions the addressee's characterization of their relationship
Oh-ooh, oh-ooh, oh
Musical interlude
And I was not only one who was hurting
The singer notes that they were not the only one suffering in the relationship
And you were not the only one with the burdens
The singer reminds the addressee that they were not the only one with problems in the relationship
But if we're nothing, we're nothing, we're nothing, we're nothing
The artist questions the meaning of their relationship
We're nothing, we're nothing
Repetition for emphasis
Why would you call this love when you knew that it wasn't?
The singer asks the addressee why they pretended it was love if they knew it wasn't
If this is not love then please tell me what was it?
The singer challenges the addressee to define what their relationship actually was
If this was not love then please tell me what was it, ooh?
Repetition for emphasis
'Cause when I met you at my favorite store
The artist recalls their first encounter with the addressee
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Ernest Wilson, Steve Wyreman, Jhene Aiko Chilombo
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Bluehime
After hearing this song for YEARS this is what I got:
Verse 1: She's yelling at herself at all her ex's that used her for their needs. She was cheated on and it hurt her to the point where she went to another guy.
Verse 2: The new guy and her were really vibing and the sex was amazing. She was enjoying everything until " 'Quis" (I'm guessing Marquis from verse 1) found out. She left Quis for him and the new guy's baby mama caught them together. She was devastated to know that he was cheating on her too.
Verse 3: Jhene reveals to us she was in a dark place and deeply sad because her brother was dying. She thought the new guy was her comfort and showed her vulnerability only for him to do the same thing everyone did to her.
I'm pretty sure Marquis was cheating on her and she cheated back for revenge, but ended up falling in love with the wrong person.
@bvwrt4188
Lyrics
One, two, one two
Thought I told you not to trust these hoes
Say they love you, when you know they don't
Say they will, but shit, you know they won't
Yeah, you hear me, you don't feel me, though
And you are not the only one
You are not the only one
You are not the only one
You are not the only one
Okay, fuck it
It was Dominik, David, Braden
All of them did the same to you
Marquis and Sean and Brian
All of them had they way with you
Ever so often you get lost and miss out on everything
Shout-out to Krissy
That's my bitch 'cause she tells me everything
And I was not the only one
I was not the only one to you
So I was the only lonely one
Really, we had the perfect end
That night we shared at the Comfort Inn
We made love like the world would have ended
If either of us had admitted
We were in love
But I was the only one
So I was the only lonely one
And I should've never took you on a boat for your birthday
And I should've never fucked you on a boat on your birthday
And I never would've came into your house in the first place
If I would've known that you would hurt me like in the worst way
'Cause that night turned into every weekend and
Every weekend turned to every evening
You took me out and left me in the deep end then
Quis found out and then I had to leave him
'Cause I couldn't be the one to hurt him
Plus I thought you were the one so it was worth it
But really we should've just ended it
That day I was at your crib when
Your baby mama just burst in, damn
I was weak then and you knew it
I was so weak then and you proved it
'Cause my brother was dying
And you gave me a shoulder to cry on
It was nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing
If it's nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing
Then why'd you
Then why'd you call it love?
Oh oh
And I was not only one who was hurting
And you were not the only one with the burdens
But if we're nothing, we're nothing, we're nothing, we're nothing,
We're nothing, we're nothing
Why would you call this love when you knew that it wasn't?
Why would you call it love when you knew that it wasn't?
If this was not love then please tell me what was it
If this was not love then please tell me what was it
'Cause when I met you at my favorite store
And I saw you working at the door
Traduire en français
@TruthGamingsInc
This beat tho.
@lorainedominguez9198
She badass!!!
@NayelytheCat
@Georgia Peach
It was a freestyle. Maybe about something that happened to her.
@ruthrichard318
@Georgia Peach her best friend’s name who help her harassing the other woman that her boyfriend have I think 😊
@lledo1984
@Georgia Peach I think her friend was naming all the guys that did Jhene wrong and jhene was just quoting what her friend told her in naming those guys. And right after she gives her a shout-out. Could be wrong but that was my interpretation 🤷♂️🤷♂️
@chilldaonly1841
Yeah specially that break down
@Metaytalia
"if this wasn't love then please tell me what was it" that part hit me💮
@basicinfo2022
I came back to this song for that part. Narcissistic men never loved you, youre just a means to their end. It was all a lie.
@brittlynn8824
Love this entire song but that part hits me every single time!!!
@Assyafami
Literally read this while she was singing the same words