Source: NME
Chris Brown stole the heart of many pop music fans in the mid-2000s with the release of songs like “Forever,” “Run It!,” and “Kiss Kiss.” His voice and dancing skills set him apart, and it took a short time for him to become many teenagers’ favorite. Born in 1989 in Tappahannock, Virginia, a town of fewer than 2,000 people, Christopher Maurice Brown grew up singing in the church choir. His musical idols include Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, and Sam Cooke. He began to hone his singing and dancing skills imitating another of his music idols, Usher, and eventually became well-known for those skills.
Chris Brown was discovered in 2004, when he was 15 years old, by Tina Davis, a representative of Def Jam Recordings. Tina Davis was struck by his unique voice and, in her words in a Billboard Magazine interview, “I thought he was going to be a star, so it was easy to reach out to him.” After the discovery, Tina became his first manager and steered his career to land him a record deal at Jive Records, which was known for developing other young acts like Britney Spears and was home to stars like Kanye West, Usher, and R-Kelly.
He released his debut album, a self-titled album, in November 2005, which made it to the top of the charts. The album produced a number 1 hit titled “Run It!” as well as other hits like “Yo (Excuse Me Miss)” and “Gimme That.” The album earned him two Grammy Award nominations, including Best New artist in 2006. In 2007, he landed acting roles in the movie Stomp the Yard, the popular television series The OC, and the holiday comedy film This Christmas. He released his second album, Exclusive, in 2007, which critics lauded for his growth and maturity even though it still appealed to the teen demographic. The album featured collaborations with prominent artists like Kanye West, Lil Wayne, and T-Pain with the single “Kiss Kiss,” making it to the top of the Billboard Hot 100.
In 2009, his career took a big hit when he controversially assaulted pop/dance star Rihanna, his girlfriend at the time. Even though he later apologized publicly for the assault, his career suffered for it. Radios dropped his songs, and he struggled to get acceptance from many people globally. However, luck shone on him again in his 2011 album titled, F.A.M.E. It brought him back on the music charts, and he won a Grammy Award for the album. Although he continued to have run-ins with the law, and that marred his career for quite some time.
He released two more albums titled Fortune and X in 2012 and 2014, respectively, after which he got embroiled in more legal troubles. He was arrested on assault charges after he fought with an unidentified man outside a hotel in Washington, D.C. He got a 90-day court-ordered sentence at a rehabilitation center in February 2014. He, however, violated his probation and was removed from the rehabilitation center and taken back to court. Chris Brown was sentenced to a year in prison, but he got out early in June to the birth of his daughter, Royalty.
On Halloween 2017, Chris Brown released his album, Heartbreak on a Full Moon, a 45-track album that featured Usher, R-Kelly, and Future. In 2019, he released the album Indigo with the single “Undecided” released in January. The album also featured “No Guidance,” featuring Drake. He has been quiet for the most part of the last two years except for his mixtape, Slime & B, with Young Thug, which was released on May 5, 2020.
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