Pitchfork Shared Its Review of Chris Brown's "BROWN" Album, and the Hitmaker Has Responded

R&B superstar Chris Brown released his 12th studio album, “BROWN,” on May 8, 2026, just three days after his 37th birthday. Many fans anticipated a solid project showcasing his unique voice, creativity, and songwriting skills. After all, his past projects have shown his versatility as an artist, along with his ability to create chart-topping hits with every album.

While some fans enjoyed the project, others shared their grievances about the album. However, Chris is not one to take the criticisms to heart, as past projects have been known to initially receive harsh ratings to only become fan-favorites over time. However, given Pitchfork’s review of the album, social media users believed that the singer would have a few things to say.

In case you’ve been out of the loop, on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, Pitchfork gave the “BROWN” album a score of 1.3 out of 10. The rating, which many deem as super harsh, has made headlines, with many fans disagreeing with the number.

Not to mention, the outlet’s comments about the project felt like a gut-punch.

“Chris Brown’s soulless, hit-chasing new album doesn’t justify his return to the public eye,” the review reads. “If I were on the Chris Brown PR payroll, I would suggest he just cop to all of 'BROWN' being AI, because if not, he’s got bigger problems. It’s hard to find anything redeemable about the album, and I tried hard.”

With such harsh comments, it’s easy to see why Chris would crash out. However, the 37-year-old has taken a different approach.

In a May 12, 2026, Instagram Stories post, Chris took the time to address Pitchfork’s review, while also sharing his primary focus.

“I know people want me to get on here and say some sad s--t, but f--k that,” Chris said. “We're kicking ass Godd--n it. We ain't letting up. I’m going to keep my foot on their neck, and we ain’t stopping.“You heard me? We're doing this motherf--king tour."

He continued: “More s--t to come. I’m not going to tell you what’s more to come, but it’s coming. At the end of the day, I don’t give a f--k what these [N-word]s are talking about. I know exactly who my fans are, and I know exactly who is hearing this album. If you're not my fan, I don’t want you to listen to my s--t. Go listen to motherf--king Zara Larsson or somebody.

This video follows Chris’s Instagram Story over the May 8 weekend, of him listening to the project with fans, where he showed gratitude.

“Just wanna say thank you to everyone who listened to this album,” Chris said via Billboard. “Been a lot of mixed reviews, and I can take my audience’s criticism and opinions,” he wrote. “The last 3 albums have come under the same scrutiny, and it eventually grew on people. Thank you for even taking the time out to listen.”

In light of Chris’s reaction to Pitchfork’s review, everyone caught he sligh shade he threw Zara Larsson’s way. And while he’s never publicly mentioned her name until now, fans are wondering what’s going on.

In February 2026, Zara appeared on Cosmopolitan magazine’s “Cheap Shots” segment to promote her album “Midnight Sun.” During the chat, Zara was asked, “Name one artist we would never find on a playlist of yours?”

And her response took social media by surprise.

“There are so many artists I have blocked on Spotify, and all of them are abusers,” she said. “You certainly wouldn’t find a Chris Brown song [on a playlist of mine].”

Of course, it didn’t take long for Chris to catch wind of her statements, so it makes sense that he threw some shade her way.