The year was 2005. A fresh-faced 16-year old with Usher-esque dance moves and big pop hooks emerged as the newest teen idol and pop prince for pre-adolescence. His name was Chris Brown.
That may seem like a lifetime ago, because in the eight years since, Brown has gone from being the innocent, amicable teen to the glowering R&B bad boy that we know today. His most notorious misstep, the shocking beating that he gave his then-girlfriend Rihanna during Grammy weekend in 2009, irrevocably changed his image. Although Brown became a pariah for the better part of two years, he has since re-emerged and stabilized his career. He’s won Grammys, sold records and performed to sold-out crowds.
But he has never been viewed the same way. And he’s gotten into a multitude of other notorious scrapes since that fateful night four years ago.
In the past year alone, “Breezy” has been involved in altercations with paparazzi, been accused of a hit-and-run, gotten back with (and broken up again with) Rihanna (publicly), gotten into a shouting match with a parking lot attendant that was captured on video, gone on profanity-filled Twitter rants against B-list comediennes, gotten into a fist fight with fellow R&B star Frank Ocean and most infamously, trashed a New York City nightclub in a champagne bottle-throwing brawl with rapper Drake.
It’s as if Chris Brown has been channeling Bobby Brown ever since February 2009.
Speaking of 2009, at the end of that year, while Brown was releasing apologies and begging for the world to forgive him for his domestic abuse, another fresh faced teen was emerging with a squeaky-clean image and pop songs to spare. Justin Bieber became a sensation following the release of his My World EP, and was mentored by the aforementioned Usher, to boot. Not only did pre-teen girls get giggly and goo-goo eyed for him, moms loved him, too.
Now, four years later, the 19-year old Beebz finds himself in similar territory as Brown. While the Canadian singer hasn’t been involved in anything as heinous as brutally beating his girlfriend, he has gotten entangled in numerous controversies: a speeding incident led to a confrontation with retired NFL star Keyshawn Johnson, a fight with a photographer in London, drugs were found on his tour bus in Sweden and this week, he was filmed urinating in a mop bucket in a restaurant, then running out of the room and inexplicably screaming “F–k Bill Clinton!” while spraying water on a portrait of the former president.
They even had to take his pet monkey taken away.
Beebz is experiencing the difficult transition into adulthood that most of us had to go through as post-teens. And he’s doing so in under an intense media glare. But before his life gets any crazier, he would do well to take a look at a (slight) elder in Brown. He can never go back to being an innocent kid, anymore than any of us can, but he doesn’t have to become a confrontational malcontent, either.
It doesn’t matter if you lose the soccer moms, Justin, but don’t lose your soul.
