T-Pain and Chris Brown join forces for “Wake Up Dead”
The track was first previewed during T-Pain’s Verzuz battle with Lil Jon.
In the midst of all of the online battles birthed from the Coronavirus pandemic, T-Pain and Lil Jon’s was one of the most entertaining. That battle also revealed some new music on both ends — Lil Jon released his latest collaboration with Usher and Ludacris, titled “SexBeat,” earlier this month. Now, T-Pain delivers a new track of his own titled “Wake Up Dead,” which features Chris Brown. As Brown revealed via his Instagram, the song’s title was inspired by a scene in 2003 film Scary Movie 3.
Produced by T-Pain and KC Supreme, the laid-back cut sees the artists singing about the thoughts of losing their lover:
“Sleepless nights tryna learn how to die in my sleep/
Cause I don’t wanna be the one to wake up without a heartbeat/
But trust me, you’re gonna love this thing, you’ll see/
Baby, just tell me you’re gonna love me and I’ll admit defeat…/”
“Wake Up Dead” marks the latest of many collaborations between Chris Brown and T-Pain, including their 2007 hit “Kiss Kiss” from Brown’s sophomore album Exclusive. Since then, they’ve dropped songs together like RevolveR’s “Best Love Song,” Oblivion’s “Classic You,” and “Get Down.” It’s a surprise that fans haven’t been blessed with a full project from these two yet.
Previously, T-Pain dropped his sixth studio album 1UP, which saw 12 tracks and appearances from Lil Wayne, Tory Lanez, O.T. Genasis, Boosie Badazz, and more. He’s also helped to create hits for other artists over the last decade, throwing assists to the likes of Pitbull, Jamie Foxx, Ludacris, and Rick Ross. He also has the distinction of winning the first season the “The Masked Singer,” beating out La Toya Jackson, Gladys Knight, and Donny Osmond. Speaking to the New York Daily News, T-Pain considered that accomplishment a big message to all of his detractors:
“That was my, for lack of better terms, ‘F*** you, everybody (moment)’… I have people that just been doubting me my whole career and things like that because I’ve put some different aesthetic on my vocals than everybody else. It just turned out to be a great opportunity to really show another side of me, and kind of gave me a second coming.”
Press play on “Wake Up Dead” below.