As the adage goes, ”Some things are better left unsaid.” Or, in the case of embattled R&B artist Chris Brown, left unposted. Brown recently took to social media and let the entire world see his frustration and anger after not winning the Grammy for Best R&B Album.
But what apparently inflamed social media users wasn’t only that Brown was angry about the snub. It was his seeming to question the legitimacy of the winner of the highly coveted award.
YALL PLAYING, wrote Brown, followed by several emojis in the Instagram post.
WHO DA F*** IS THIS?
The “THIS” is none other than multi-award-winning producer, songwriter, and pianist Robert Glasper. In an article posted on theroot.com, author Noah A. McGee writes about Glasper: “His 2012 album, Black Radio, won Glasper the 2013 Grammy for best R&B album and since then, he has won four more. He has produced and written on albums for Talib Kweli, Big K.R.I.T., Q-Tip, Kendrick Lamar, Common, Denzel Curry, Mos Def, Lupe Fiasco, Jill Scott, Erykah Badu and Anderson .paak just to name a few. He’s also worked heavily on arguably the best rap album of all time, To Pimp a Butterfly. His 2020 album, Dinner Party, which he collaborated on with Terrace Marti, 9th Wonder and Kamasi Washington is still one of the best R&B albums I’ve heard in the past few years.”
Following the massive online backlash, Brown posted an apology to Glasper.
“Congratulations my brother.. I would like to apologize if you took offense to my reaction at the Grammys.. you were not the intended target and I know I came off really rude and mean. After doing my research I actually think your amazing…THE ORGANIZATION ISNT DOING US BLACK OUR DUE DILIGENCE. YOU AND I SHOULD never be in the same category.. two totally different vibes and genres. So from one black man to another.. CONGRATULATIONS.”
While many of the online comments were supportive of Brown’s apology, some pointed out that perhaps he should have stayed away from seeming to deflect his anger elsewhere, namely the “organization,” which is most likely the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, and left it at the apology.
Brown’s about-face seems to be a sign of regret. If so, he has lots of company. Research shows that at some point, nearly half of social media users suffer from posting regret.
If you’ve posted something on social and later regretted it, what should you do? Consider taking one or more of these SAND actions:
Show … the blog to a trusted friend to get their thoughts.
Apologize … to the target of your post if at all warranted.
Nothing … for now if you’re not sure what to do.
Delete … the post as soon as you can.
While the post may never really be deleted, rewinding your brand and showcasing your remorse will result in forgiveness from others and, more importantly, for yourself.