See the rest of Rihanna's 20/20 interview with ABC News' Diane Sawyer here.
Chris Brown brings his "Fan Appreciation Tour" to town this weekend, leading to several questions. Not the least of which are, "Who the hell is still a fan of this guy?" And, "Will his 'appreciation' of same take some form other than beating the shit out of them in a parked car?"
Brown's assault on Rhianna and his subsequent mealy-mouthing about the incident paint an unkind portrait of the R&B singer, but where does he rank alongside other musicians with a penchant for beating women? Rocks Off has helpfully provided a random sampling of abusive artists for comparison.
Tommy Lee
The Mötley Crüe drummer was sentenced to six months for spousal abuse after kicking wife Pamela Anderson while she was holding their son, Dylan. And yet Rock Star: Supernova went unpunished for a whole season.
Tracy Lawrence
Lawrence's now-ex-wife, Stacie, claimed the country singer punched her several times following a Las Vegas show in 1997. He was convicted of misdemeanor battery while his story changed from "I only slapped her" to "I pushed her and she fell against a nighstand." You can't hide redneck, indeed.
James Brown
The Godfather of Soul was arrested several times for incidents involving two of his wives. Unlike our other Brown, he was lucky enough to avoid jail time for the charges, though he'd already done a bid for his famous high-speed chase.
Big Pun
Liza Rios candidly discusses her late husband's abuse in the documentary about his life, Still Not a Player, and comes across a lot more forgiving than you'd expect of someone caught pistol whipping her on camera.
Ike Turner
Ike will always rank near or at the top of most celebrity abuser listings because - unlike the others we've talked about - his abuse long ago overshadowed his contributions to music. We'd like to be sympathetic, but statements such as "There have been times when I punched her to the ground without thinking, but I have never beat her" make it a little difficult.
Chris Brown performs with New Boyz and Audio Push, 8 p.m. Saturday, November 14, at House of Blues, 1204 Caroline, 888-402-5837 or www.hob.com/houston.
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Peter Vonder Haar writes movie reviews for the Houston Press and the occasional book. The first three novels in the "Clarke & Clarke Mysteries" - Lucky Town, Point Blank, and Empty Sky - are out now.