Chris Brown is slated to take on Johannesburg’s First National Bank Stadium in South Africa on Dec. 14 and 15. Despite one of the dates already being sold out, some people don’t want to see the R&B singer take the stage, especially in light of his alleged abusive past.
Earlier in the month, Women For Change launched a petition in hopes that the South African government would reconsider their decision to let the “No Guidance” hitmaker perform. "When I saw the news that Chris Brown was coming to South Africa, I was shocked and deeply disappointed," the non-profit organization’s executive director, Sabina Walter, told BBC.
She continued, “The petition was started to send a strong message that we will not tolerate the celebration of individuals with a history of violence against women.” At the time of reporting, it shows over 39,000 signatures — more than 6,500 of which occurred on Wednesday (Oct. 16).
Brown responded to the outrage on Tuesday (Oct. 15) by leaving a comment underneath Women for Change’s TikTok repost regarding the incident: “Can’t wait to come.” It’s unclear whether he was poking fun at the organization or simply being genuine, though the artist’s remarks garnered a whopping 1,000 replies and nearly 7,000 likes.
The two South African shows are a part of the musician’s “The 11:11 Tour,” which wrapped up its North American leg in August. With Ayra Starr and Muni Long joining him on select dates, the Grammy Award-winning musician swept through major cities like Boston, Philadelphia, Houston, Oakland and Las Vegas.
Ahead of the trek, Brown debuted the deluxe version of 11:11, his 11th studio album. It welcomed new tracks like “Go Girlfriend,” “Delusional” and “Freak.” On the last-mentioned track, he took jabs at Quavo, which sparked a trade of diss records and shots between the two online.