It looks like the tagline "Chris Brown album in stores everywhere on December 8th" was a bit of an overstatement - at least in his opinion. The R&B singer is accusing Walmart of intentionally not selling his new album, Grafitti. It all started two weeks ago when fans of the 20-year-old singer claimed that they were having difficulty finding the album at mainstream CD retailers. To investigate what he determined as "major retailers blackballing his album", Brown visited a Walmart store in Wallingford, Connecticut last weekend and found that the store did not have his album on shelves and also did not have any copies of his CD in stock.
He alleges that major stores are boycotting his album as a result of the domestic violence incident which occurred in February where he physically assaulted his then-girlfriend, pop singer, Rihanna. Music fans may remember that following the Rihanna controversy, many pop and R&B radio stations across the country refused to play Chris Brown's songs and support him. That sentiment has eased a bit, but there are many who believe his recent interviews expressing his remorse over assaulting Rihanna were not sincere.
Walmart has stated that they are not in anyway excluding Brown's album from the shelves and released a statement saying that the exact opposite is true. The store's statement was, "We are surprised at the comments online," read a statement released by the store today. "All Walmart stores nationwide have carried the CD since its release, including the Wallingford, [Conn.], store mentioned in the post. This store actually sold through its initial shipment over the weekend. The majority of our stores today are showing they do have copies available."
Brown, a former avid celebrity tweeter on Twitter, used the site to direct his anger toward the stores that he believes did not appropriately promote his album, and yesterday he angrily quit Twitter. Before quitting the popular social networking site he had tweeted, "I'm tired of this s----. Major stores r blackballing my CD. Not stockin the shelves and lying to costumers. What the f--- do I gotta do."
Is it possible that he was expecting bigger record sales and wants to pinpoint a scapegoat to blame, or are some retailers really not giving the album equal shelf time as other recent releases? Obviously, cleaning up his image is his main priority after such a controversial and violent incident. However, maybe he was counting his chickens before they hatched and felt after a few interviews expressing his regret and releasing a few songs which were apologetic and introspective, he could ease back into public admiration again.
It could be he is paranoid because he knows that there are some music buyers who are still unsure what to think about him because of the domestic abuse charge. His charming looks, smooth vocals, and dance moves may not be enough for some music buyers to easily forgive him, but on the other hand haven't some of his fans already forgiven him?
Comments
One of the things every boy must learn to become a man is every action has consequences, And if you want to be treated as a adult you must act like an adult. Chris has not learned this, it is someone else’s fault for all his problems. His girlfriend got him so mad he was forced to strike her, he lied about the beating until he was finally proved guilty. His record isn’t selling because of a massive Wal-mart conspiracy. Stop crying Chris and man up. Show the world you are going to get your act together and be a adult.
Walmart do not have to worry this xmas we are boycotting thier store, watch, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
Chris Brown fan for life.
Fast forward 2 years: Chris who?
Chris did what a rural boy will not there to do so he deserve whatever he is experiencing!!!!! show good act
@Mike- Where did he lie about the beating, he pled guilty to the charges, he didn't go with a long drawn out trial, he accepted his punishment, community labor and daily bashing from the public and the media. He didn't lie about walmart( google search for video) a fan went there and recorded the racks and spoke with a employee, who when asked if they had sold out, replied we never had it, then realized they were videoing and put his hand in the camera.He aslo admitted that it was his fault,Chris Brown was a 19 year old teenager in Feb, he turned 20 in May, I'm sure he is learning as he makes that move from a BOY to a man.. I hope that as he goes into adulthood that he will become a better man, we all were 19 at one time... He made a bad decision in his young life, one that will follow him the rest of his days no matter what he does. Some of us were given a second chance in life for a mistake we made at an early age, let us give this young man that same chance. I wish him the best.
@Alan- He will survive and in 2 years I hope that you will remember those words. He isn't the first celebrity,Music greats like Michael Jackson, Britney Spears, R. Kelly, Elvis Presley and James Brown were all adults when they faced near-career ending controversies.Chris Brown took responsibility for what he did and is working to make changes. He should not keep getting prosecuted for his past mistakes. He stepped up and took responsibility for what he did... From his Fans Appreciation Tour this month he donate a portion of the proceeds from the tour to the Jenesee Center, which aids domestic violence victims, and Best Buddies International, which helps children and adults with developmental disabilities... He chose these centers himself, he has been doing a lot of volunteer work. He's completeing his year of domestic violence classes and is doing his community labor.Regardless to how you feel he has alot to offer the music industry.If you have never made a mistake than I understand
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