Vanessa Brown was born in Northampton, England. She is the eldest of six siblings. Her mother is Jamaican and her father is Puerto Rican. She attended Overstone Park School near Northampton, which her parents own and work at. Brown learned to play the piano, developed her vocals and took classical and jazz piano lessons at a musical arts school. Brown was given her name "V V" from her peers as an MC nickname when she attended her middle school. Her love for hip hop and artists such as J Dilla and Q-Tip still exists. Brown studied violin at the age of 9 but gave it up because she found she was better at the piano and trumpet. She completed her grade 8 jazz trumpet at the age of 16 and went on to play in jazz bands up to the age of 21.
Growing up, V V listened to jazz artists like Ella Fitzgerald and Dizzy Gillespie. Brown earned four "A" grade A-Levels, studying at Kingsthorpe Upper School (now Kingsthorpe Community College) a year early; she was offered places at five top UK universities to study law including Oxford, King's College London, LSE and York. She declined the offers to follow a career in music. V V Brown was first offered a deal by Gut records when she was 14 but due to educational commitments she decided to finish her studies. She was then offered a deal by Danny Simms, the manager and mogul associated with Bob Marley. Brown declined to finish her studies. She joined a punk band at 15 and had the opportunity to tour Japan. Subsequently, P. Diddy attempted to sign her to his record label Bad Boy Records.
At 18, Brown was invited to an open audition for "VH1 Divas" by friends and was stopped outside the venue by an executive from London Records. Brown was offered a development deal by London records. The development soon came to an end and, at 19, Brown was offered a deal by Polydor records in the UK and A&M records in the US. She left her deal with Polydor and A&M in 2006, with just one single - "Whipped" - officially being released, and a planned album titled "Back to the Music" never materialising.
Brown moved back to London and began performing in bars and clubs around London. She was rediscovered by executive Darcus Beese and signed to Island Records. "Traveling Like the Light" was then recorded in 2007-2008. Brown said that most of the lyrics on the album were about a failed affair Brown endured. The album was promoted by four singles: "Crying Blood", "LEAVE!", "Shark in the Water" and "Game Over". "Shark in the Water" charted in the British, French and American charts, and was certified gold in America and France in 2009.
On September 14 2011, Brown announced that the first single from her then untitled sophomore album would be "Children" featuring Chiddy of Chiddy Bang. The song was released digitally on September 20 2011 (the release was limited to the US, Canada and Mexico as her UK deal with Island Records expired). On October 4 2011, Brown announced that the album would be titled "Lollipops & Politics" and released on February 7 of the following year.
Weeks before its planned release, a digital preorder for the album on Amazon was removed, leading to Brown announcing that the LP would be pushed back in order for a worldwide release to occur and to add more songs. However, she eventually confirmed that the entire release would be scrapped and a new album released in its place, with news also emerging that Brown had left Capitol Records and set up her own label, YOY Records (You Own You).
"Samson" was released as her second album proper's lead single on July 14 2013. Brown announced that the LP would be called "Samson & Delilah" and released on October 8 in the US and September 9 in the UK. The second single, "The Apple", was released on August 25 in the UK, with a third single, a remixed version of album track "Faith" featuring Bloc Party's Kele, following in March 2014.
Brown commenced recording of her third album in mid-2014 exclusively with producer Nearly Native (James Leggett), who she had found on SoundCloud. The project, initially planned to be an EP, expanded into an album, with a planned release date of March 2015 being pushed back. Brown filmed 3 music videos for the songs "Shift", "Instincts" and "Lazarus" in March, with the former song's video leaking in June.
The next month, Brown announced that she would be adopting a new stage name, V V, made her album available for preorder on Pledge Music, and shared the video for "Instincts". "Shift" was released officially on August 7 exclusively to streaming services, with its parent album "Glitch" expected in autumn.
Leave
V V Brown Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
How does it feel like this
To be caught in a web of a heavy grip
Where you might want believe or try to admit
That the one that you love is a fool you don't realize
When will you finally wake up
And the love that you hold is a taste of bad luck
He's blinded you deep by the look in the pit of his eyes
And If I knew that this could be
A total catastrophe
I probably would have told you a little sooner so you wouldn't get hurt
If I could change this possibly
It would be how you want this to be
Cause it ain't over till it's all done
So let me finish my conversation
Yes I'm tryna get your attention
Cause your distracted by affection
Can't you see that it isn't true
What you thought you had and you knew
And I've been chosen to tell you
That you're stupid and you know you gotta do it LEAVE!
When you are deep in love
It is hard to see past all the dirt and the mud
You tell everyone that it's great and okay
When you know in your heart
That it hurts and it won't go away
Afraid to let go of the hand
That you held so tight when he said I'm your man
But his eyes seem to sway at the flick of a switch
And you are alone in the dark with a bruised broken heart
And If I knew that this could be
A total catastrophe
I properly would have told you a little sooner so you wouldn't get hurt
If I could change this possibly
It would be how you want this to be
Cause it ain't over till it's all done
Listen to my conversation
Yes I'm tryna get your attention
Cause your distracted by affection
Can't you see that it isn't true
What you thought you had and you knew
And I've been chosen to tell you
That you're stupid and you know you gotta do it LEAVE!
You know that I do get it right
The truest friend you can't deny
You know that I don't tell a lie
I know that you love him
It's clear that you put up a fight
To keep the love still in your life
But I must speak
The truth be told
Even thought I know you love him
Cause it ain't over till it's all done
Listen to my conversation
Yes I'm trying get your attention
Cause your distracted by his affection
Can't you see it isn't true
What you thought you had and you knew
And I've been chosen to tell you
That you're stupid and you know you gotta do it do it!
Say what?!
Cos you're stupid and you know you gotta do it leave!
The song "Leave" by V V Brown is a powerful message about the struggle of being in a toxic relationship and the difficulty of leaving it. The lyrics describe the feeling of being trapped and blinded by love, giving into the heavy and harmful grip of a partner who is a liar and a fool. The singer is urging the listener to wake up and see the truth, telling them that they need to leave and that they are being "stupid" to stay in such a situation.
The chorus of the song emphasizes the importance of taking action and leaving the relationship, even when it is hard or painful to do so. The singer reassures the listener that they are not alone and that she is there to support them: "You know that I do get it right, the truest friend you can't deny, you know that I don't tell a lie."
Overall, the song is a powerful call to action and a reminder that sometimes the hardest thing to do is also the most important thing for our own wellbeing and happiness.
Line by Line Meaning
How does it feel like this
What emotions and sensations do you experience in this situation?
To be caught in a web of a heavy grip
To be stuck in a difficult and painful situation that seems impossible to escape from.
Where you might want believe or try to admit
You may want to deny or ignore the truth of the situation.
That the one that you love is a fool you don't realize
You may not see that the person you love is not good for you and is not who you thought they were.
When will you finally wake up
When will you open your eyes and see the situation for what it is?
And the love that you hold is a taste of bad luck
The love you have is bringing you misfortune and pain, not happiness and joy.
And all that you have is a bag full of lies
All the things you believed or were told were not true and are just causing you more harm.
He's blinded you deep by the look in the pit of his eyes
He has deceived you with his actions and words to the point where you can no longer see the truth of the situation.
If I knew that this could be
If I had realized how bad this situation was, earlier on.
A total catastrophe
A complete disaster that would affect you deeply.
I probably would have told you a little sooner so you
I would have warned you earlier so that you could avoid being hurt.
Wouldn't get hurt
So that you would not be harmed or damaged emotionally.
If I could change this possibly
If it were possible to change the situation and make it better.
It would be how you want this to be
It would be the way that you desire and need it to be for your happiness.
Cause it ain't over till it's all done
The situation is not finished or resolved until it is completely over and done with.
So let me finish my conversation
Allow me to say my piece and give you my advice.
Yes I'm tryna get your attention
I am trying to make you listen and pay attention to what I have to say.
Cause your distracted by affection
Because you are too focused on your feelings for him to see the truth.
Can't you see that it isn't true
Don't you understand that the situation is not what you thought it was?
What you thought you had and you knew
The love and relationship that you believed you had is not real or trustworthy.
And I've been chosen to tell you
I have been tasked with telling you the truth about your situation.
That you're stupid and you know you gotta do it leave!
You are not seeing the truth of the situation and you need to leave him to avoid further harm.
When you are deep in love
When you are very in love with someone.
It is hard to see past all the dirt and the mud
It is difficult to see the truth of the situation when emotions are involved and things are not as they seem.
You tell everyone that it's great and okay
You may be pretending that everything is fine and good, even when it's not true.
When you know in your heart
When you feel deep down inside your true feelings about the situation.
That it hurts and it won't go away
You are in pain and the situation is not improving or healing on its own.
Afraid to let go of the hand
You are scared to move on from the situation or the person.
That you held so tight when he said I'm your man
You are holding on tight to the hope or promise that he made to you in the past.
But his eyes seem to sway at the flick of a switch
His behavior and emotions change very easily and quickly, making it hard to know what he truly desires or feels.
And you are alone in the dark with a bruised broken heart
You are left feeling alone, hurt, and emotionally damaged by the situation.
You know that I do get it right
You understand that I give you honest and true feedback.
The truest friend you can't deny
A loyal friend who has your best interests in mind and is not afraid to tell you the truth.
You know that I don't tell a lie
You believe and trust that I am honest and truthful in my feedback to you.
It's clear that you put up a fight
You are trying very hard to maintain the relationship and the love that you once had.
To keep the love still in your life
You are doing everything you can to make sure that the love you once had is still present in your life.
But I must speak
I need to say what needs to be said, no matter how difficult it may be.
The truth be told
It is important to tell the truth about what is really happening in the situation.
Even thought I know you love him
Even though I understand that you have strong feelings for him.
Listen to my conversation
Pay attention to what I am saying and consider my advice.
Cause your distracted by his affection
Because you are focused on his love and affection towards you rather than the truth of the situation.
And I've been chosen to tell you
I have been chosen to be the one to give you this feedback and advice.
That you're stupid and you know you gotta do it do it!
You may be making foolish choices and it's time to take action and make a change in the situation.
Say what?!
An expression of surprise or disbelief, often used in hip-hop and R&B music.
Cos you're stupid and you know you gotta do it leave!
You need to leave the situation to avoid further pain and harm to yourself.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: VANESSA BROWN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Leighia1st
I wish I heard her more on the radio!
Tiye Gray
definately my fav song from her album TRAVELING LIKE THE LIGHT. idk something about this makes this song make you want to dance, yet ill do it slowly. this truly relate to anyones life, it doesn't have to be about love for you to actually relate to you but don't go around disrepecting people or breaking peoples hearts by just plain old being mean...
Charlotte Brakel
Magnifique chanson , belle artiste !
SunsetRainbow27
her voice is AMAZING :3
Ashley A
I would love to sing this song to one of my friends cause she needs to be told everything in these lyrics!
Kevin Mc S
I love it. Why can't more musicians be like this
hayley hall
she's amazing, i love all of her music :D
Otaku Hanzo
Where did this woman come from?! I haven't heard a bad song come out of her lips yet! I'm in love.
Terrell_Cole
She's really creative...i totally love this video! Alright Miss VV Brown!
auserfromMARS
love her style AMAZING !!