Chris Brown has launched a furious tirade at critics—among them Swedish pop star Zara Larsson—after his new viral album was universally panned. The R&B star had hoped to revitalise his career following a spate of controversies with the release of his twelfth studio album, Brown, a sprawling 27-track opus, on May 8.
But the album has fared miserably with critics, notably popular music site Pitchfork, whose reviewer dismissed Brown's latest release as 'a real piece of s**t,' scoring it a dismal 1.3 out of 10. Taking to social media on Wednesday, the chastened singer, 37, evidently rattled by the negative response, vowed to 'keep on putting my foot on their necks' by pushing ahead with plans to tour the poorly received album later this year.
'We ain't stopping,' he told followers in his latest, expletive-fuelled Instagram post. 'I know who my fans is and I know exactly who's hearing this album. If you're not my fan, I don't want you to listen to my s**t. Go listen to motherf***ing Zara Larsson or somebody.'
Brown appeared to take aim at Larsson after the Swedish singer branded him an 'abuser' during a recent interview with Cosmopolitan. Speaking in February, Larsson alluded to Brown's high-profile controversies, among them a 2009 felony assault charge for attacking then-girlfriend Rihanna, while talking about her least favourite artists. 'There's so many artists I have blocked on Spotify, and all of them are, like, abusers,' she explained. 'You certainly wouldn't find a Chris Brown song. Bye!'
Brown's latest release has been labelled 'soulless, hit-chasing' and 'bereft of any ideas that don't have to do with its star's own victimhood' by a particularly scathing Pitchfork reviewer. Arguably more concerning for the singer, the offending article has amassed more than 93,000 likes and 10.4 million views on social media platform X, with many Pitchfork followers and subscribers appearing to agree.
'We kickin' they ass, goddammit,' a defiant Brown promised on Wednesday. 'We ain't lettin' up. I'mma keep my foot on they neck and we ain't stopping. You heard me? We doing this motherf***er. Tour, more s**t to come. I'm not gon' tell you what's more to come, but it's coming.'
The singer will join fellow R&B star Usher for the R&B Tour this summer, with their first show expected to take place at Denver's Empower Field at Mile High on June 26. The release comes as ex-Diamond Brown reportedly seeks physical and legal custody of the four-year-old daughter she shares with the R&B singer. Diamond filed a paternity suit against Brown over their daughter Lovely Symphani Brown in April, according to documents obtained by TMZ. In the filing, Diamond allegedly requested physical and legal custody of Lovely but did suggest Chris have visitation of their daughter. The document says Lovely has been living with her mother at her Los Angeles home since she was born. A voluntary declaration Chris made acknowledging paternity of Lovely was also included as an exhibit. Diamond also requested to be awarded legal fees in this case. The paternity suit was filed on April 3—just weeks before Chris confirmed the arrival of a son with his current girlfriend, Jada Wallace.
