Chris Brown apology: Too little too late?

Yesterday Chris Brown finally made a public apology for beating Rihanna via a video clip on celebrity gossip site TMZ. The singer claims his attorney had advised him to keep quiet about the February incident, but he had been wanting to express his regret for some time.

Chris, you are 20 years old. You are your own man, and if you wanted to speak up during this time, you could have. It has been five long months since you caused great physical harm to your ex girlfriend. We saw the photos and were genuinely disturbed by them. Both you and Rihanna have many young fans, and whether you like it or not, you are a role model. Setting this type of example and going five months without accepting responsibility and apologizing is immature, insensitive, and careless. When the public sees you racing jet skis with friends days after the incident, attending basketball games with a Rihanna lookalike, and going to parties wearing a $300,000 diamond necklace that says "Oops!", you are not sending a message that you are sorry. It just looks like you don't care. While we are glad that you eventually pled guilty in court and took the time to address the public and your fans with an apology, we think perhaps it is too little too late.

You can read Brown's full apology below or watch the video here. Do you think Chris Brown's apology was sufficient? Do you think he should have spoken up sooner? And most importantly, do you forgive Brown and think he is truly sorry and trying to change?


"Hi, I'm Chris Brown," he begins. "Since February my attorney has advised me not to speak out, even though since the incident I wanted to publicly express my deepest regret and accept full responsibility.

"Although I would do some interviews and answer some questions in the future, I felt it was time you heard directly from me that I am sorry. I have tried to live my life in a way that would make those around me proud of me, and until recently, I think I was doing a pretty good job. I wish I had the chance to live those few moments again, but unfortunately I can't."

"I cannot go into what happened, and most importantly, I'm not going to sit here and make any excuses. I take great pride in me being able to exercise self-control and what I did was inexcusable. I am very sad and very ashamed of what I've done.

"My mother and my spiritual teachers have taught me way better than that. I have told Rihanna countless times, and I'm telling you today that I am truly, truly sorry, and I wasn't able to handle the situation both differently and better. I recognize that I've truly been blessed. I've been blessed with a wonderful family, wonderful friends and fans. God has been generous in giving me the ability which has brought me fame and fortune.

"I have done a lot of soul-searching, and over the past several months I've talked with my minister and my mother, and I spent a lot of time trying to understand what happened and why. I have let a lot of people down, and I realize that.

"No one is more disappointed than in me than I am. As many of you know, I grew up in a home where there was domestic violence and I saw firsthand what uncontrolled rage could do. I have sought and am continuing to seek help to ensure that what occurred in February can never happen again.

"As I sit here today I can tell you that I will do everything in my power to make sure that it never happens again, and I promise that. What I did was unacceptable, 100 percent. I can only ask and pray that you forgive me, please. I hope that others learn from my mistakes. I intend to live my life so that I am truly worthy of the term 'role model.' Thank you." [OMG]