Should we all just give Chris Brown a break? Yes, it’s difficult to believe that the Chris Brown of today is only about five years removed from the “bright, shiny star” that was heralded by his idol Michael Jackson.
Strange and disturbing tweets, emotional outbursts, and, of course, his physical confrontation with onetime girlfriend Rihanna have almost overshadowed the Rappahannock, Va.-born and -raised hitmaker who was well on his way to grabbing major musical stardom before he seemingly self-destructed. Rihanna seems to have tried to forgive him for his 2009 assault on her. Can fans do the same?
| Onstage |
| Chris Brown |
| When: 7 p.m. Saturday |
| Where: Verizon Center, 601 F St. NW |
| Info: $39.75 to $85.75; 202-397-SEAT |
“I let y’all down before, but I won’t do it again. I promise,” Brown said during his acceptance speech for the AOL Fandemonium award last year. “I promise.”
Despite reports of a violent outburst this past spring after an appearance on “Good Morning America” — an incident for which Brown apologized and explained he was just “letting off steam” — it seems Brown is trying to get back on track in a big way as he works his way around the United States on his “F.A.M.E.” tour.
The concerts are in support of his album of the same name, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart and spun off three consecutive No. 1 singles.
Perhaps understandably, Brown seems a bit gun-shy with the media these days. Even major music journalists haven’t done many interviews with him since the 2008 assault.
Listening to his latest record and watching him start a grueling tour, though, it does seem that Brown is taking a back-to-basics route with his music. That sounds very much like the strategy Brown outlined for his career in 2006 when he spoke to reporters.
“The one thing that I’ve learned in my short time is just that this business won’t wait for you,” Brown said during that teleconference. “You can’t be a little kid coming in the game and thinking everything is on your time. Like, for me, I had to learn early about responsibility. I think it’s a great way to bring maturity and become a man in this industry because you have to learn quickly … you have to be smart.”
Let’s hope that as Brown continues on his tour he takes his own words to heart and moves on to even more “F.A.M.E.” for his music.
