Chris Brown to perform at Grammys
By MESFIN FEKADU Associated Press February 7, 2012 9:00AM
FILE - In this March 21, 2011 file photo, singer Chris Brown makes an appearance on BET's "106 & Park" show in New York. Brown will perform at this year's Grammy Awards, the event where his career almost ended three years ago. Brown assaulted then-girlfriend Rihanna at a pre-Grammy party in 2009 and is serving five years of probation for the felony attack. Rihanna will also perform at the show. She's up for four awards. (AP Photo/Peter Kramer, File)
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Updated: March 9, 2012 8:10AM
Chris Brown will perform Sunday at this year’s Grammy Awards, the event where his career almost ended three years ago.
Brown admitted assaulting then-girlfriend Rihanna at a pre-Grammy party in 2009 and is serving five years of probation.
The Recording Academy made the announcement Tuesday.
Brown’s reputation plummeted after the attack, but he has bounced back, releasing multiple mixtapes and the multi-hit album, “F.A.M.E. (Forgiving All My Enemies).” He is nominated for three Grammys, including best R&B album.
Rihanna will also perform at the Grammys. She’s nominated for four awards, including the top prize — album of the year — for her platinum effort “Loud.”
Carrie Underwood and Tony Bennett were also announced as performers, as were Alicia Keys and Bonnie Raitt, who will pay tribute to blues singer Etta James, who died last month.
Brown and Rihanna were supposed to perform at the 2009 Grammys, but that changed after Brown attacked the pop singer in the early morning hours before the show. Since then, Brown hasn’t attended the Grammys, though he was nominated for three awards last year.
A judge eased a restraining order last February after an attorney for Rihanna said she didn’t object to removing the stay-away provisions.
Brown, 22, has been nominated for Grammys in five of the last six years, though he has never picked up the top prize in music. His song “Look at Me Now,” which features Lil Wayne and Busta Rhymes, is nominated for best rap song and best rap performance.
Rihanna is the owner of four Grammys, three with Jay-Z. She won a Grammy last year for her No. 1 smash, “Only Girl (In the World)” for best dance recording.
In addition to album of the year, her fifth CD “Loud” is up for best pop vocal album. Rihanna is also nominated twice for best rap/sung collaboration for another No. 1 jam — the Drake-assisted “What’s My Name?” — and for her guest appearance on Kanye West’s “All of the Lights.”
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