When Chris Brown appeared to fall apart while attempting to perform Michael Jackson's "Man in the Mirror" at the BET Awards, some observers wondered: Was Brown overcome with genuine grief for the loss of Jackson or was he staging a play for sympathy in the hope of being forgiven for beating up Rihanna?

Or did his breakdown have nothing to do with Jackson or faking a ploy for sympathy? Was he really just overwhelmed that he was back singing legit again at a major industry event?

Chris Brown's performance at the BET Awards was his first major music gig in a long time. He was picked to perform because he's widely considered to be a protégé of Michael Jackson's and there was enormous curiosity over how he'd do — and be greeted by the audience — when he took the stage. If his career is truly over, he might not get a chance like this again to gain sympathetic attention.

After describing what Chris Brown did at the BET Awards, MTV.com solicited comments from readers. Quite a few posters wondered if he was play-acting. A poster named Kelli asked, "Was it for real, or was he trying to get attention for being softer? I'm sure he feels bad about Michael's death, but is he just trying to get away from the bad boy image with the crying thing?"

Photo: Chris Brown at BET Awards. Credit: Frederick M. Brown / Getty Images.

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The Kids' Choice Awards can be, granted, just as illogical as kids themselves, but a series of losses on Saturday night may suggest a trend: Are kids turning against Miley Cyrus? Oh, yeah — and Harry Potter too?

This year, Miley Cyrus led with the most nominations at the Kids' Choice Awards: three. Technically, she ended up losing twice, but really she got clobbered four times if you count the defeats of her TV show, "Hannah Montana," and film "Bolt." One personal nomination she lost was especially ominous because it was in a category she's dominated the previous two years: favorite TV actress. Selena Gomez ("Wizards of Waverly") ended up pulling off a magic trick last night.

Miley Cyrus did nab a separate prize that she also claimed in 2008 — favorite female singer — but that was an upset considering she prevailed over Rihanna, who was presumed to have a huge sympathy vote following her recent ordeal with Chris Brown (who withdrew his Kids' Choice nominations as public outrage put pressure on him to do so).

Miley Cyrus almost got booted out of the award races too. She ended up enduring despite triggering her own scandals as various new sets of photos kept surfacing, raising questions about her status as a teen role model. Maybe now it's clear why Miley Cyrus cried when she claimed her one, lonely orange blimp award last night. She wasn't putting on fake humility as she wept, "I really thought I was going to lose! So thank you, guys!"

"Hannah Montana" lost favorite TV show to "iCarly," which pulled off a jaw-dropping upset, and Miley's financially successful feature film, "Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Tour" ($70 million worldwide), wasn't nominated for favorite movie.

That Kids' Choice Award for favorite film ended up going to "High School Musical 3: Senior Year," which may not seem like a surprise, but, wait: It beat "The Dark Knight."

Speaking of movie upsets, the biggest at the Kids' Choice Awards this year was "Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa" beating "Wall-E," "Kung-Fu Panda" and even Miley Cyrus' "Bolt" (she performed the voice of "Penny" and co-wrote and performed the song "I Thought I Lost You"). Miley also lost the orange blimp for favorite voice from an animated movie, which went to Jack Black (Po, "Kung Fu Panda").

There was at least one shockeroo among the winners: Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning out-pacing Olympic superstar Michael Phelps for fave male athlete (sunk by his own personal scandals?). And maybe it's no surprise that the "Twilight" book series wins anything, but its victory at the Kids' Choice Awards is notable because it beat the "Harry Potter" series!

Photo: Jason Merritt / Getty Images

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Chris Brown has withdrawn from the upcoming Kids' Choice Awards. His representatives issued the following statement earlier today: "Chris very much appreciates the support of his fans and the honor they have paid him in the way of nominations for Favorite Male Singer and Favorite Song. Unfortunately, the controversy surrounding the incident last month has shifted the focus from the music to whether he should be allowed to be among those nominated. While Chris would like to speak to his fans directly about this and other issues, pending legal proceedings preclude his doing so at this time. Once the matter before him has been resolved, he intends to do so."

This surprise decision comes just a day after awards organizer Nickelodeon said it would not remove his name from the ballot despite growing pressure to do so following an alleged incident with Rihanna last month. As per Tuesday's Associated Press report, Nickelodeon spokesman Dan Martinsen said, "Like all our KCA nominees, Chris Brown was nominated by kids several months ago based on his body of work as a performer, and the kids who vote will ultimately decide who wins in the category."

Voting for these awards began at the official website on March 2. Chris Brown was in the running for the third year in a row as favorite male singer. He won the award last year after losing to Justin Timberlake in 2007. This year he was competing with 2006 winner Jesse McCartney, Kid Rock and T-Pain.

He was also a nominee for favorite song, as his No. 1 single "Kiss Kiss" went up against tracks by Beyonce ("Single Ladies"), Katy Perry ("I Kissed a Girl") and Rihanna, who contends with "Don't Stop the Music."

Rihanna is also competing for the first time as favorite female singer at the Kids' Choice Awards against last year's champ, Miley Cyrus, 2007 winner Beyonce and three-time nominee Alicia Keys.

There is no word as to whether Rihanna will be attending the March 28 ceremony, which will be telecast live on Nickelodeon and hosted by Dwayne Johnson. Both she and Brown skipped the NAACP Image Awards, which came only five days after the Grammy-eve incident that catapulted them into the headlines. At the Image Awards, Brown lost the male vocalist prize to Jamie Foxx and Rihanna was bested by Beyonce for female vocalist.

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Photo: Nickelodeon

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Rihanna and Chris Brown are reported by E News to be recording a duet together this week. How will the public and the music industry respond to this collaboration?

Before this latest revelation, Rihanna was on track to establish herself as a force to be reckoned with in the music business. She had already racked up nine Grammy nominations in just two years. Public sympathy was with her for the most part. She was being counseled via the airwaves by Oprah Winfrey while her mentor Jay-Z was said to be arranging a meeting for her with abuse survivor Tina Turner.

Chris Brown remains at risk of losing his carefully cultivated image as a teen idol. His core fans are young girls who swoon over his boy-next-door good looks and charm. Indeed, he is contending for the third year in a row as favorite male singer at the the upcoming Kids' Choice Awards. He won the award last year after losing to Justin Timberlake in 2007. This year he contends against 2006 winner Jesse McCartney, Kid Roc, and T-Pain.

Voting began at the official website last Monday, March 2. A day later, Chris Brown's MySpace page included a plea to his fans to vote for him. He is also a nominee for favorite song, as his No. 1 single "Kiss Kiss" goes up against tracks by Beyonce ("Single Ladies"), Katy Perry ("I Kissed a Girl") and Rihanna, who contends with "Don't Stop the Music."

Rihanna is also competing for the first time as favorite female singer at the Kids' Choice Awards against last year's champ Miley Cyrus, 2007 winner Beyonce, and three-time nominee Alicia Keys. However, her MySpace page makes no reference to the ongoing online voting.

There is no word as to whether either Chris Brown or Rihanna will attend the March 28 ceremony, which will be telecast live on Nickelodeon and hosted by Dwayne Johnson. However, if this latest report is true, it would not be surprising if they did appear together. They both skipped the NAACP Image Awards, which came only five days after the Grammy-eve incident that catapulted them into the headlines. At the Image Awards, Chris Brown lost the male vocalist prize to Jamie Foxx and Rihanna was bested by Beyonce for female vocalist.

The pair faced off against each other at the two most recent Grammy Awards. Last year, Rihanna and Jay-Z won the best rap/sung collaboration for "Umbrella" over, among others, Chris Brown and T-Pain for "Kiss Kiss." This year, they competed against each other for the pop vocal collaboration Grammy. Brown and Jordin Sparks were nominated for "No Air" while Rihanna and Maroon 5 were up for "If I Never See Your Face Again." Both duos lost to the night's big winners Robert Plant and Allison Kraus for "Rich Woman."

The current PR problems that Chris Brown is experiencing over his alleged smackdown with Rihanna apparently aren't stifling his drive to win Kids' Choice Awards on March 28.

At his MySpace page, there's a plea for fans to vote for Brown in two top races — favorite song, in which he's nominated opposite Rihanna — and favorite male singer. The request for support was posted one day after online voting commenced Monday.

In the face-off for best song, Chris Brown competes with his No. 1 single "Kiss Kiss" opposite Rihanna's "Don't Stop the Music," Beyonce's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" and Katy Perry's "I Kissed a Girl." In the race for favorite male singer — a prize he won last year — Brown squares off against his "Kiss Kiss" collaborator T-Pain, 2006 winner Jesse McCartney and Kid Rock. Brown also competed in the category in 2007, but lost to Justin Timberlake.

Rihanna is nominated for favorite female singer for the first time, taking on last year's champ Miley Cyrus, 2007 winner Beyonce and three-time nominee Alicia Keys.

The Kids' Choice Awards will not mark the first time that Brown and Rihanna have been rivals in the same category. Last year Rihanna and Jay-Z ("Umbrella") beat Chris Brown and T-Pain ("Kiss Kiss") at the Grammys for best rap/sung collaboration.

At this year's Grammys, they both contended in the pop vocal collaboration category. Brown and Jordin Sparks were nominated for "No Air" while Rihanna and Maroon 5 were up for "If I Never See Your Face Again." They lost to Robert Plant and Alison Krauss ("Rich Woman").

There is no word on whether either Brown or Rihanna will attend the Kids' Choice Awards, which will be telecast live on Nickelodeon and hosted by "The Rock," Dwayne Johnson. They both skipped the NAACP Image Awards, which came only five days after the Grammy-eve incident that catapulted them into the headlines. At the Image Awards,  Brown lost the male vocalist prize to Jamie Foxx, and Rihanna was bested by Beyonce for female vocalist.

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Photos: Rihanna. Credit: Getty Images. Chris Brown. Credit: Associated Press

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After all of the scandal surrounding their alleged smackdown, Rihanna should be able to rebuild her career and even rise to new heights if she handles everything properly ahead. As for Chris Brown... Well, it's not likely that he'll ever again be the exalted pop idol he was just weeks ago.

A good role model for Rihanna might be Tina Turner, who may soon offer Rihanna advice if reports are true that Rihanna's mentor, Jay-Z, is planning a private meeting. Tina Turner knows a lot about suffering physical abuse from a lover. Her husband Ike frequently beat her with shoe stretchers, telephones and coat hangers, she said, resulting in facial bruises and broken bones that she had to cover up with heavy makeup before stepping on stage to perform. Finally, on Independence Day 1976, Tina Turner broke loose, and with only 36 cents and a gas station credit card in her pocket, she started a new life and solo career that took her to dizzying heights.

By the mid-1980s, Tina Turner reigned as America's biggest female rocker after pulling off what Variety hailed as "one of the most dramatic comebacks in music history." "Private Dancer" spent 71 weeks on the album charts and spun off three hot hits: "Better Be Good to Me," "What's Love Got to Do with It" and "Private Dancer."

At the Grammys held in 1985, "What's Love Got to Do with It" won best record and song and "Private Dancer" was nominated for best album. Three of its wins were personal triumphs for Turner: record of the year and best female pop and rock vocal performances.

As she held the record of the year trophy in her grasp before the Grammy crowd at the Shrine Auditorium, Tina Turner beamed: "I've waited so long for this!"

Rihanna has already proved that she's serious Grammy stuff. Her and Jay-Z's collaboration "Umbrella" was nominated for best record last year and it won best rap/sung collaboration.

Now, if she dumps Chris Brown and asserts herself like Tina Turner did, can she bag the top Grammy win too?

Chris Brown has never won a Grammy. The highest category he's reached with a nomination was best new artist, which he lost to Carrie Underwood. His other few bids were in the R&B slots.

Thuggish music artists such as Snoop Dog, 50 Cent and Notorious B.I.G. haven't won a Grammy, so Chris Brown needs to clean up his act in order to prevail. But even if he pulls off the cleanup, he's already given his career a bruiser that will probably never heal. Chris Brown's core fans are swooning teen gals who bought the marketers' image of him as a dreamy, dimpled crooner of lyrics such as "I'm into you / and, girl, no one else / would do / 'cause with every kiss and every hug / you make me fall in love" ("With You"). In music videos he came across as just the kind of golly-gee-whiz boy who girls could dominate in an ideal romantic relationship.

Now that his fans find out who seems to insist on domination in Chris Brown's relationships — and how he dominates — he's no doubt popped that fantasy bubble.

Photo credits: Wire Image (left) and Capitol Records

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Chris Brown and Rihanna are competing against each other in the best song category at the upcoming Kids' Choice Awards. Chris Brown is nominated for his No. 1 single "Kiss Kiss," while Rihanna contends with "Don't Stop the Music." The other nominees are Beyonce ("Single Ladies") and Katy Perry ("I Kissed a Girl"). Voting begins at the official website on Monday, March 2.

This is not the first time the two have been rivals for an award. At this year's Grammy Awards, they both contended in the pop vocal collaboration category. Chris Brown and Jordin Sparks were nominated for "No Air," while Rihanna and Maroon were up for "If I Never See Your Face Again." Both duos lost to Robert Plant and Allison Kraus ("Rich Woman"). And last year, when they faced off in best rap/sung collaboration, Rihanna and Jay-Z won for "Umbrella" over, among others, Chris Brown and T-Pain for "Kiss Kiss."

That marks the only Grammy victory for Rihanna among nine nominations in two years. "Umbrella" also lost song and record of the year to Amy Winehouse's "Rehab." Rihanna's dance recording bid for "Don't Stop the Music" was beaten by Justin Timberlake's "LoveStoned." And her R&B duo with Ne-Yo on "I Hate That I Love You" lost to Chaka Khan and Mary J. Blige ("Disrespectful") and lost a R&B song bid to "No One" by Alicia Keys. This year Rihanna lost dance recording again, with "Disturbia" bested by Daft Punk's "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger." And her long-form video ("Good Girl Gone Bad Live") was edged out by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers ("Runnin' Down a Dream").

Chris Brown remains a Grammy loser despite five nominations. This year he also lost R&B male vocal for "Take You Down" to Ne-Yo ("Miss Independent"). At last year's Grammy Awards he also lost best contemporary R&B album for his self-titled debut to Ne-Yo ("Because of You") as well as best new artist to Carrie Underwood.

However Chris Brown is a winner with the Kids' Choice Awards, having taken home favorite male singer last year after losing to Justin Timberlake in 2007. This year he contends against 2006 winner Jesse McCartney, Kid Rock and his "Kiss Kiss" collaborator, T-Pain.

Rihanna contends for the first time as favorite female singer at the Kids' Choice Awards against last year's champ Miley Cyrus, 2007 winner Beyonce and three-time nominee Alicia Keys.

There is no word on whether either Chris Brown or Rihanna will attend the March 28 ceremony, which will be telecast live on Nickelodeon and hosted by "The Rock" Dwayne Johnson. They both skipped the NAACP Image Awards, which came only five days after the Grammy-eve incident that catapulted them into the headlines. At the Image Awards, Chris Brown lost the male vocalist prize to Jamie Foxx, and Rihanna was bested by Beyonce for female vocalist.

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In 2008, Chris Brown and Rihanna were the top male and female pop singles artists in America, and both were just nominated for Grammy Awards. The music industry's highest honor has eluded Chris Brown so far, while Rihanna won a golden gramophone for "Umbrella" (best rap/sung collaboration) last year.

Rihanna's "Umbrella" was also up for one of the loftiest Grammy Awards — best record of the year — and many pundits believed it could win. Alas, it got skunked by Amy Winehouse's "Rehab."

Chris Brown has not yet received that kind of Grammy love. The highest category he's reached with a nomination has been best new artist, losing to Carrie Underwood. His other few bids were in the R&B slots. Now that he's tinged by scandal, can he ever win?

As Gold Derby often notes, bad boys don't win Oscars.  Russell Crowe hasn't been nominated since he attacked that BAFTA producer and Manhattan hotel clerk. (Crowe apologized in the first incident and settled a lawsuit in the second.)

Since the Grammys are music's equivalent to the Oscars, the same issue applies. These academies represent the conservative establishments of their industries and they don't like to give awards to people who reflect poorly upon them. True, in music — especially in the R&B, rap, metal and hard rock genres— a rebellious, anti-establishment spirit is tolerated, sometimes celebrated, but that's because edginess drives mass music sales. That's not true of movies or TV, so that's why the Oscars and Emmys are even more conservative than the conservative Grammys.

But the Grammys can still be a bit fuddy-duddy. Rap artists who tend to win, for example, are more likely to be of the safe Will Smith or Jay-Z variety (four Grammys each) than the thuggish kind like Snoop Dog or Notorious B.I.G. (none). When gangsta rappers triumph, they tend to be of the establishment kind like Dr. Dre (four). Just a few years ago, music critics widely hailed 50 Cent's "Get Rich or Die Trying" as the best disc of the year, but its music couldn't break into the top Grammy races. 50 Cent's been nominated for Grammys but only in those second-tier slots. He's never won. When he was nominated for best new artist of 2004, he lost to Evanescence.

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Photo: WireImage

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Chris Brown and Rihanna could be reunited on the red carpet of this Thursday's NAACP Image Awards. The two singing sensations are both nominated as outstanding recording artists at the 40th annual awards show. Voting is still underway by members of the civil rights organization.

Relations between these onetime lovebirds are anything but civil following the events of early Sunday morning. Brown has been charged with making criminal threats against Rihanna. An altercation allegedly left Rihanna with bruises shortly after the couple left -- in a rented Lamborghini -- the star-studded party thrown annually by recording exec Clive Davis. Both were nominated for Grammy Awards, and Brown was scheduled to sing "Forever"  Sunday night.

Instead, Brown was arrested, charged and released on $50,000 bail. Rihanna was treated for her injuries and is now in seclusion. As reported by Access Hollywood, in a 2007 interview with Giant magazine, Brown spoke candidly of his family’s history with alleged abuse. The magazine wrote, "When he was 11, the R&B star-to-be told his mother that he would go to jail for killing his allegedly abusive stepfather."

When Gold Derby contacted the NAACP Image Awards for an update on whether Brown and/or Rihanna plan to attend Thursday night, a rep said, "We haven't received any word yet." However, both Brown and Rihanna have canceled or postponed other scheduled events this upcoming weekend, so their chances of appearing at the Image Awards looks slim.

At the NAACP Image Awards airing live on Fox Thursday and hosted by Halle Berry and Tyler Perry, Chris Brown — who won best male artist last year — faces off against Common, 2006 champ, Jamie Foxx, John Legend, and will.i.am. For best female artist, Rihanna contends against Beyonce, Mariah Carey, Jennifer Hudson and three-time winner Alicia Keys.

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Chris Brown facing legal woes

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Over the past few weeks I pitted our forums moderators David "Guru" Shnelwar and Darrin "DoubleD" Dortch against each other to predict who'll win the Grammy Awards for best record, song, Album and new artist of the year. Now let's look at each pundit's Grammy predictions on a solo basis. Here's Guru's spin on the Grammys:

RECORD OF THE YEAR

• Favorite -- "Viva La Vida" -- Coldplay
• Possible -- "Chasing Pavements" -- Adele

Coldplay's "Viva La Vida" and Adele's "Chasing Pavements" are the only two songs nominated at the Grammys for Record of the Year and Song of the Year.  The contest will most likely be between those two songs.

Coldplay won this category in 2003 for their song "Clocks."  I expect them to win here again.

ALBUM OF THE YEAR

• Favorite -- Robert Plant and Alison Krauss -- "Raising Sand"
• Possible -- Coldplay -- "Viva La Vida" or "Death and All His Friends"

I believe rock voters at the Grammys will be split between Coldplay and Radiohead and urban voters will be split between Lil Wayne and Ne-Yo, leaving Robert Plant and Alison Krauss to win.  Plant and Krauss are nominated in multiple fields such as pop, country and folk, which helps their chances.

Grammy voters might mark their ballots for Coldplay throughout the General Field.  So they are still possible.

No one expected Herbie Hancock to win here last year.  So anything can happen.

SONG OF THE YEAR

• Favorite -- "Viva La Vida" -- Coldplay
• Possible -- "Chasing Pavements" -- Adele

Song of the Year usually is in sync with Record of the Year.  I expect "Viva La Vida" to win.

BEST NEW ARTIST

• Favorite -- Adele
• Possible -- Duffy

Last year I was the lone person to predict Taylor Swift instead of Amy Winehouse.  A year later Taylor Swift has the No. 1 album in the U.S. for six weeks and counting and Amy Winehouse's future musical status is a mystery.

One thing I learned from predicting Taylor Swift last year is that only twice in 20 years at the Grammys has an artist with one nomination won Best New Artist -- Milli Vanilli in 1989 and Shelby Lynee in 2000.  This is what hurts the Jonas Brothers' chances, despite being the biggest name and seller in this category.

Lady Antebellum and Jazmine Sullivan are not crossover enough to win.

The battle is between Adele and Duffy.  Adele has the upper hand because she is nominated for Record of the Year and Song of the Year.  But do not count out Duffy.  She is a critical favorite and still poses competition.

BEST POP VOCAL ALBUM

• Favorite -- "Long Road Out Of Eden" -- The Eagles
• Possible -- "Rockferry" -- Duffy

No album nominated in this field is nominated for Album of the Year in the General Field.  The Eagles and Duffy were both serious contenders for Album of the Year but failed to make the cut. 

This is Sheryl Crow's only Grammy nomination this year (which hurts her chances).  Leona Lewis' debut album was not well received critically and James Taylor has an album of cover songs.

This Grammy is between The Eagles and Duffy.  The Eagles have the edge.

BEST POP MALE VOCAL PERFORMANCE

• Favorite -- Jason Mraz -- "I'm Yours"
• Possible -- John Mayer -- "Say"

John Mayer has won in this Grammy category three times previously but each of those times he was also nominated in the General Field.  He is not nominated in the General Field this year.  But it's still hard to bet against Mayer at the Grammys.

James Taylor should not be completely counted out.  He unexpectedly won in 2001 in this category.

Kid Rock would have a better chance of winning if he was nominated for Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance.  Ne-Yo is favored in Best R&B Male Vocal Performance.

I believe Jason Mraz's Song of the Year nomination will help him win here.  John Mayer won with that same reasoning in 2003 with "Daughters."

BEST POP FEMALE VOCAL PERFORMANCE

• Favorite -- Duffy -- "Mercy"
• Possible -- Leona Lewis -- "Bleeding Love"

Ten years ago, I discovered a pattern: every winner in the Best Pop Vocal Album category has been nominated in the General Field or for Best Pop Vocal Album.

This pattern hurts Pink's and Katy Perry's chances.

This year it is between Adele, Sara Bareilles, Duffy, Leona Lewis.

Adele's debut album "19" failed to receive any nominations.  I think that will hurt her in this category.

I think it is between Duffy and Leona Lewis because they are both nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album.  Duffy is a throwback to Dusty Springfeld and voters will like that.