In Chris Brown's first public interview since his arrest and plea for assaulting Rihanna, the R&B star said that he cannot recall the violent events of 8 February. "When I hear about the police reports, I don't know what to think," Brown told CNN's Larry King, in a programme to be broadcast on Wednesday (2 September). "That's not who I am as a person. It's like crazy to me."
It is more than six months since police were called to a Los Angeles neighbourhood and found Rihanna, Brown's pop-star girlfriend, bruised and battered. Brown has made few public statements since the event – generally saying that he is "sorry" and is seeking therapy.
In this week's interview with King, however, Brown's remorse is accompanied by disbelief. "When I look at it now, it's just like, wow, like, I can't believe that that actually happened."
Brown's lawyer, Mark Geragos, and his mother, Joyce Hawkins, accompanied him for the interviews. Hawkins said she was "totally shocked" when she heard what had happened. "I know that Chris has never, ever been a violent person, ever," she said. This comes after last week's report that February's assault was at least the third incident of domestic violence between Brown and Rihanna.
While Brown's plea bargain prevents him from directly contacting or approaching Rihanna, Hawkins got in touch on his behalf. "[I] let her know that I was very, very baffled [by] what had happened, and apologised for my son, along with I'm so sorry what happened to you," she told King. "I didn't know what else to say, and I gave her a hug, and she hugged me, as well."
According to CNN, Brown said he is still in love with Rihanna – even if a court has ordered them to stay 100 yards apart. "I never fell out of love with her," Brown told People magazine. "That just wouldn't go away." He said he would "definitely be affected by" Rihanna dating other people, but "at the end of the day ... we're not together, so, if she's happy, I'm cool."
"I just need to prove to people I can be a role model," Brown said.
