Jordin Sparks has been criticized for supporting Chris Brown after his win at the American Music Awards on Sunday (November 20).
The singer - who won the singing competition American Idol in 2007 - is best known for her songs 'Tattoo' and 'No Air,' with the latter featuring Brown. However, she's now come under fire for her support of him after he won the American Music Award for Favorite Male RnB Artist, something that prompted booing from the audience at the time.
The 'Kiss Kiss' singer has previously faced a lot of controversy after his assault on then-girlfriend Rihanna in 2009, which resulted in her hospitalization. Soon afterward, Brown accepted a plea deal of community labor, five years probation, and domestic violence counseling, per the Los Angeles Times. Rihanna later forgave him, and the pair resumed their romantic relationship in 2012, before calling it quits the next year.
Brown was in the running for the award alongside The Weeknd, Brent Faiyaz, Giveon, and Lucky Daye. The 33-year-old was scheduled to perform a Michael Jackson tribute to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the late musician's Thriller album, which was surprisingly canceled just days before.
Kelly Rowland, who presented the award, was blasted by fans for praising Brown as he won the prestigious accolade. She accepted the prize on his behalf, attempting to quieten the growing boos by saying: "Excuse me... Chill out!"
"But I wanted to tell Chris, thank you so much for making great RnB music and I want to tell him thank you for being an incredible performer," she added. "I'll take this award - bring it to you. I love you. Congratulations. And congratulations to all the nominees in this category."
Rowland later explained her opinions on Brown to TMZ, adding that: "We all need to be forgiven for anything we could be doing, anything that we're thinking. We all come up short in some sort of way. And grace is real. And we are humans, and everybody deserves grace. Period."
Now, the spotlight has turned onto 32-year-old Sparks, who agreed with Rowland's sentiments. She also spoke to the outlet, stating: "We love Chris. He should have been there."
When asked about what she thinks of Brown's 2009 assault against Rihanna, Sparks replied that she "doesn't think that should even be a conversation anymore [...] It's about his talent. They shouldn't have canceled the performance [...] I just think people deserve to be able to grow and learn and be able to live their life without things hanging over them. Everybody deserves that…him especially."
Folks on Twitter didn't seem to agree with Sparks, as one user wrote: "'It's about his talent,' Somebody didn't read the police report [...] Chris Brown should be in prison."
While another added: "When he shows remorse for his past behaviors and actual growth then we can talk. No one silenced him. He does exactly as he pleases."
Unfortunately, the father-of-three's legal woes did not extend exclusively to his assault on Rihanna. In fact, aside from numerous other violations, Brown was even placed under a restraining order in 2017 by his ex-girlfriend Karreuche Tran after he continued to text her violent threats, PEOPLE detailed.