Princess of China Lyrics

[Intro: Rihanna]
Oh, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh

[Verse 1: Chris Martin]
Once upon a time, somebody ran
Somebody ran away saying fast as I can
I've got to go, I've got to go
Once upon a time, we fell apart
You're holding in your hands the two halves of my heart
Oh-oh, oh-oh-oh

[Interlude: Rihanna]
Oh, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh

[Verse 2: Rihanna & Chris Martin]
Once upon a time, we burned bright
Now all we ever seem to do is fight

On and on
And on and on and on

Once upon a time on the same side
Once upon a time on the same side
In the same game

Now why'd you have to go
Have to go and throw water on my flame?

[Chorus: Rihanna]
I could've been a princess, you'd be a king
Could've had a castle, and worn a ring
But no, you let me go
I could've been a princess, you'd be a king
Could've had a castle, and worn a ring
But no, you let me go

[Post-Chorus: Chris Martin & Rihanna]
You stole my star
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la
You stole my star
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la


[Bridge: Rihanna]
Oh, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh
Oh, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh

[Outro: Chris Martin & Rihanna]
'Cause you really hurt me
No, you really hurt me
'Cause you really hurt me
No, you really hurt me
'Cause you really hurt me
Oh, you really hurt me, oh
'Cause you really hurt me
Oh, you really hurt me

How to Format Lyrics:

  • Type out all lyrics, even repeating song parts like the chorus
  • Lyrics should be broken down into individual lines
  • Use section headers above different song parts like [Verse], [Chorus], etc.
  • Use italics (<i>lyric</i>) and bold (<b>lyric</b>) to distinguish between different vocalists in the same song part
  • If you don’t understand a lyric, use [?]

To learn more, check out our transcription guide or visit our transcribers forum

About

Genius Annotation

The music video seems catchy, while Princess of China marks a milestone in Coldplay history with the first appearance of a guest on an LP (Jay-Z previously appeared on “Lost+” in the Prospekt’s March EP, which was a remix of the song “Lost!” from Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends). The arcade-meets-rock composition of the song was easily criticized, and was a main point of division between fans and critics.

Mylo and Fly have already broken up due to the fact that his Silencer career is still active, and they part on bad timings. They both are apparently flexible with the situation, but both regret breaking up as they remember the negatives and the positives.

While Mylo Xyloto was already hotly-debated amongst fans and critics, “Princess of China” was easily the biggest point of contention. An acoustic version of the song released on its EP has significantly improved the overall reception.

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did Coldplay & Rihanna say about "Princess of China"?
Genius Answer

According to Songfacts, Chris Martin told NME:

I found that with “Viva La Vida“, I enjoyed writing from someone else’s perspective to actually get out what I was feeling. That song is from a girl’s perspective. I wonder what that says about me?

He also explained to newspaper The Sun:

The album is designed as a whole piece. It has boy and girl lead characters and top of our list for the girl part was Rihanna … but it took a while to pluck up the courage to ask her. We did a show in Las Vegas and I met her and said, ‘Do you think there’s any chance?’ I was very Hugh Grant-like and spluttering about it. She has such an amazing voice and it’s so different to mine. When the vocal happened I thought, ‘Wow, you sound different’ but I think that’s also because she was singing a different song to what we are used to hearing from her and it is written by a bloke from Devon [England]. When the song came out, it sort of asked for her to be on it. And I think at this point, we have nothing to lose, and so we’ve been trying some new things and trying to break down the perceived boundaries between different types of music. Because from where we’re sitting, it seems like you can try and sound any way you like nowadays. You don’t have to be in a rock box or a hip-hop box or a pop box, and I think it’s fun when you embrace that idea.

Finally, he said to Maxim magazine:

It was when she was doing Rated R but it took so long – there’s still this tribalism in music where we’re rock and you’re hip hop, and sometimes it takes a while to get across those barriers.

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